By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — On Aug. 26, 1969, an angry white mob in Forrest City, Ark., tried to beat the life out of Min. Suhkara A. Yahweh while leading a peaceful “Walk Against Fear” from West Memphis to Little Rock, Ark. He told the story many times and marked the 50th anniversary of his near-death experience after returning to Forrest City to keynote a Civil Rights Commemoration Program on Aug. 17, 2019. Yahweh died March 25 at Methodist University Hospital in Memphis after a brief illness. He was 84. Wherever there was injustice and racial upheaval, Yahweh was…
Author: Wiley Henry
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — Candidates vying for the office of Memphis mayor, city court clerk and all 13 city council districts will stump for votes leading up to the Memphis Municipal Election on Oct. 5. Dr. Carnita Atwater, however, is miffed with the election process and the two-party system. On March 5, she organized a “political consortium” at The Kukutanna African American History and Cultural Museum in North Memphis to discuss “the root issues of our democracy.” Much to Atwater’s chagrin, the consortium drew a sparse crowd of 30 people to the first public meeting to discuss the…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — The Harriet Performing Arts Center is home to the Young Actors Guild (YAG) of Memphis. On Feb. 19, the day YAG was born 32 years ago, Chrysti Chandler will celebrate the art center’s second grand opening at 3 p.m. Located at 2788 Lamar Ave. and Pendleton Street in the historic Orange Mound/Bethel Grove community, this grand opening completes the second round of renovations to the Harriet, which had been an old vacant fire station that Chandler purchased in 2019 from the City of Memphis for $1. “All we had to do was renovate it,”…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — The savage beatdown that five Black police officers inflicted upon Tyre Nichols during a purported traffic stop, set off a powder keg of raw emotions and a call for change at the Memphis Police Department. When the city of Memphis released the video on Jan. 27, Bianca Baker said she wept. Then anger welled up in her and intensified. “You wouldn’t treat a dog the way they treated this man,” she said. “I have sons. What got me was when he called out for his mother.” For Baker, the video was quite excruciating to…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN – The little quaint restaurant sizzles on the inside where succulent cuisine is artfully created by a master chef – like DaVinci painting the “Mona Lisa,” for example. The cuisine is just as much a work of art as it whets the appetite. The master chef is Christopher E. Beavers. The quaint little restaurant, which Beavers is the sole proprietor, is called The Grilled Asparagus. “It goes back to the name culinary arts. It is the art of cooking,” Beavers explained. Located at one end of a strip of small businesses, The Grilled Asparagus…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN – He was a “Pill-er of the Community,” one of several slogans Dr. Charles A. Champion used to promote Champion’s Pharmacy & Herb Store in the Whitehaven community. A longtime independent pharmacist, Dr. Champion was widely known for dispensing both traditional drugs and herbal remedies. He’d spent more than 40 years building a loyal customer base. On Jan. 21, Dr. Champion died, bringing an end to a total of 65 years in pharmacy. He was 92. The family expressed the loss of Dr. Champion in a statement to the media that underscores his “incredible life…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — A documentary is a film or video about a person or event based on facts. A documentary should also educate and bridge cultural divides, added Maria V. Pizano, founder and CEO of MVP3 Entertainment Group, which focuses of film, music, and community. “This is part of my plan,” said Pizano, who is presenting a Black History Month series via MVP3, featuring three Memphis-based films: “Shannon Street: Echoes Under a Blood Red Moon,” “United Front: The People’s Convention 1991 Memphis,” and “SNAP: A Look at Injustice in America.” “United Front” is screening Wednesday, Jan. 18,…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — Tracy Bethea has a few ideas in mind to expand WDIA’s reach into the community, such as taking The Bev Johnson show on the road or Stan Bell showing up in a neighborhood park and playing music. “WDIA [1070 AM] is a community station. It always has been. That’s why they were the goodwill and good times station,” said Bethea, referring to a slogan the radio station used decades ago to promote its community involvement. Bethea now has an opportunity to implement her own ideas, forge her own path, as WDIA’s newest program director,…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — “I can say without reservation that we’re not closing down shop and looking to pack it in,” said Robert S. White II, sharing his thoughts and feelings about the ministry of Louise Dowdy Patterson and her legacy. Mrs. Patterson, widow of the late Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson, died Nov. 20 at her home in Memphis. She was 84. Mrs. Patterson and her husband co-founded Bountiful Blessings Ministries, Inc. in 1967 and Temple of Deliverance, the Cathedral of Bountiful Blessings in 1975. He was serving as COGIC’s presiding bishop and chief apostle when he died…
By Wiley Henry MEMPHIS, TN — Dr. Rochelle Stevens said a year ago that she was looking forward to “shaping and molding” the student athletes at LeMoyne-Owen College after accepting the job as head coach of both cross country and track and field. The season was on the mark to begin this fall. And the first meet was set to take place indoors in January. But Stevens, a two-time Olympic gold and silver medalist, resigned “effectively” Nov. 10, citing “unfulfilled promises and obligations mutually agreed upon” with the historically Black college. Stevens’ letter of resignation was addressed to Amy…