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GarlandJournal SERVING NORTH EAST TEXAS THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 29, 2022
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My Truth By Cheryl Smith Publisher
NAACP Garland Unit celebrates 31st annual Freedom Fund Brunch
But one thing you can say about Southern University, with a winning or losing season; the support is going to be there and the fans are going to have a good time. The Tigers won the game, never letting up as they coasted to a 24-0 victory over the Jaguars. People will debate for days to come which band took the halftime Battle of the Bands honors and I’ll just say there’s no halftime like an HBCU halftime. Which brings me to my truth. As I walked around the stadium, other than the two competing schools I saw a North Carolina A&T State University shirt and someone from Xavier and Dillard Universities; but I needed to see more. I didn’t have on a Florida A&M University (FAMU) shirt but I was wearing a Beta Alpha-Delta Sigma Theta Sorority face mask and EVERYONE knows that the BADST is FAMU! What I needed to see was an abundance of HBCU shirts at the game, though. Why? Because in one week Grambling State and Prairie View A&M will be playing at the Dallas Cotton Bowl and alums, students and everyone affiliated will be wanting folks to purchase tickets. And if any other schools happen to be fortunate enough to have a game played in this area, their alums, students, etc., will want folks to show up and fill every seat. I don’t blame them and I’d like to see every seat filled also. But guess what? If FAMU ever shows up on a field in the D/FW Metroplex, you best believe that I won’t be sounding like a hypocrite when I challenge my friends to support the game because I have supported every HBCU that has played in this market for the past 40 years. See MY TRUTH, page 5
SURVIVING AND THRIVING His Sister’s Breast Cancer Was A Hard Hit for NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith
Story and Photos By Sylvia Dunnavant Hines
What were you doing? It was a hot Saturday afternoon at the Choctaw Stadium for the Arlington Football Classic and there were plenty of seats available as the Southern University Jaguars faced the Texas Southern University Tigers. We knew who was going to win the contest for having the most fans in attendance. Of course, Southern University is ALWAYS strong and this year TSU did have a stronger showing than the previous two contests.
VOLUME X
“It was scary, concerning, and shocking,” said National Football League (NFL) Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith, regarding his sister’s breast cancer diagnosis. Holding the rushing records for the NFL, former running back Smith has taken a lot of hits in his 15-season career as a professional football player. Yet, nothing prepared him for the impact of the hit upon hearing the news.
Nine Scholars with Pres. Ricky C. McNeal, John Washington and Weldon Bradley
By Gwendolyn H. Daniels COVID 19 sidelined a number of programs and activities so it hadn’t been since September of 2019 that the national award-winning Garland Unit of the NAACP held an in-person event. All activities had been relegated to virtual presentations but all that changed when close to 300 gathered on Saturday, September 17, 2022, at the Hyatt
Place Hotel in Garland, Texas. A dynamic duo of keynote speakers in Drs. Latoya and Latonya Harris, twins who are homegrown products of the Garland Independent School District (GISD) and the grandchildren of the late Mr. Gale Fields, who was a pillar in the Garland community. They electrified those in attendance with their words of wisdom. The 2010 valedictorian and
David Gibbons, Mayor Pro Tem Deborah Morris, Mayor Scott LeMay
salutatorian graduates of South Garland High School served up a double punch of inspiring words all centered around the NAACP’s Freedom Fund theme: “Coming Out of the Storm, Still Work to Do!” After carefully explaining the characteristics of storms, how often storms occur in a period of time, and the varied severity of storms, they ended on a positive note by saying “storms are only temporary.” Graduating top of their 2010 high school class was just the beginning for these big achievers. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, obtaining both their bachelors and master’s degrees Summa Cum Laude in sports management; they went on to Parker University where they made history again graduating as valedictorian and salutatorian of their class! See NAACP GARLAND, page 5
GSU’s Dr. Nikole Roebuck joins elite club of female band directors By Cheryl Smith When the Grambling State University (GSU) World Famed Tiger Marching Band takes to the field on Saturday for the State Fair Classic in Dallas, many will see something they’ve never seen before — a female band director! Dr. Nikole Roebuck knows she is in an elite club, especially on the collegiate level and she goes about her business with a smile and a resolve that comes with the knowledge that she is directing one of the premier marching bands in the world. Roebuck has the distinction of being one of only four women to serve as band director at an Historically Black College and University (HBCU). Tomisha Brock of Clark Atlanta University and Dr. Kerry Anne Simon of Mississippi Valley State University who were appointed in
Dr. Nikole Roebuck
Nikole marched in the World Famed Tiger Marching Band in the 1990s.
2017 and in early 2019 welcomed Roebuck later in 2019. In November 2019, Roebuck and Simon made SWAC history as two female-led HBCU bands performed for the first time. Juliet Boykins of Elizabeth City State and Fayesha Cousins of Virginia Union round out the elite club. Roebuck chairs the University’s
See SHE’S A LADY, page 5
backs. As the mother of mothers that have endured violence, sexism, racism and still, we have always been in the struggle for equality. We must recognize White Supremacy is real. We must fight for the rights of our children and generations coming after us. Our vote is our weapon. We can’t legislate anti-hate, but we can regulate it so that it won’t limit our rights to equality and
Open Letter
See BLACK WOMEN SPEAK, page 6
“When I first found out that she had breast cancer, I was like most people, a little shocked and concerned. At first, I was struggling to try to understand the depth of what we had to deal with. We knew that it was immediate, but it was still going to be a process,” said Smith. Smith admits that his emotions ran the gamut from frustration to fear. See SURVIVING AND THRIVING, page 6
Council Honors Former Mayor The Garland City Council is renaming one of its major facilities to honor Ron Jones, a three-term Mayor and prior to that, a leader of City staff for nearly three decades. The Ronald E. Jones Municipal Building at 800 Main St. is home to the City’s permitting processes, its planners, engineers, transportation officials and others who are at the heart of Garland’s dayto-day operations. Prior to Council’s unanimous resolution at its Sept. 20 meeting, the facility was the Main Street Municipal Building.
Credit: Cheryl Smith
Music Department, in addition to directing the band and under her leadership, in 2021 Grambling also named its first female drum major in its almost century of existence. A graduate of GSU, Roebuck still remembers her days in the band and participating in band camps. There were long nights and intense sessions that helped with developing work ethic and building character; while also gaining friendships that last a lifetime. Roebuck also says she realizes
Black Women Speak
The title of this letter is inspired by a poem, “A Black Woman Speaks,” written by the late poet, activist, and actress, Beah Richards. We are the descendants of women who breastfed the slave master’s babies, then the babies they nursed became their abusive masters. We are the descendants of women who kept their families together, even when our men were systematically taken away. This country was built on our
Marsha Hill Smith attributes her success as a survivor to her family’s support. Her family all came together in Tallahassee, FL to make sure she was not alone as she started her breast cancer journey over a decade ago.
Debra Peek Haynes
Mayor Ron Jones Jones told the Council that the tribute cut through his trademark ability to be steadfast and hold things together. “I began to get the inner nervousness that I’m not known for,” he said. “Garland has a good name, well-respected across the nation. The City Council is thought of highly. And for you to make a decision to place my name on one of the facilities that you govern and manage gives me great honor.” Jones joined City staff in April 1977. He led 14 departments and rose to the ranks of Assistant City Manager, a post he held during his final five years as a Garland employee. He then retired to run for Mayor, winning three-way races in 2007 and 2009, taking more than 83% of the vote in his re-election bid. He was unopposed in 2011. The Council proclamation reads “Garland has been enriched by Mayor Jones’ presence, contributions, leadership, and the immense body of work he has performed on the City’s behalf over the course of his career,” then lists the many civic and governmental organizations to which Jones has and continues to contribute. Mayor Scott LeMay said a dedication ceremony will be held at a yet undetermined time. “We will probably have to close Main and Glenbrook down for the ceremony, for everyone that will want to come and share that with you,” he told Jones.