Dr. Jerry Young, President, Nat’l Baptist Convention USA
The Afternoons with Amos PODCAST For Friday, July 31, 2015. News of a historical discovery, interviews with the leader of the largest African-American religious denomination and one of Indy’s mayor candidates makes a strong proposal of dealing with the food desert crisis dominated Afternoons with Amos for the last day of July. (Interviews With National Baptist Leaders Are At 13:24 And 36:57 Mark On PODCAST Media Player). Three top officials of the National Baptist Convention USA,Inc. were in Indy to attend the retirement celebration, after 51 years, for the Rev. Dr. Melvin Girton, Pastor of Christ Missionary Baptist Church in Indy’s Riverside/UNWA neighborhood. Dr. Jerry Young, a native Mississippian, and Pastor for thirty-five years of one of Jackson Mississippi’s leading Baptist Churches appeared on the program and talked about a number of issues facing Black Baptists, the Black church and the Black community.
Dr. James Blackburn
Pastor Matthew Canada
Rev. Dr. Melvin Girton
In the interview, Dr. Young discussed the role of technology in the church; educating and nurturing new pastors, and the church’s responsibility in challenging times. Dr. Young stressed that while technology and times are changing, the one constant is the Word, the Message of Jesus and keeping Faith with God’s Word. Joining Dr. Young in the interview were Pastor Matthew Canada, President of the Convention’s Moderators and Dr. James Blackburn, Chair of the Executive Council of the denomination’s Christian Education division. Outgoing Pastor Dr. Melvin Girton and his successor, his nephew Pastor John Girton also expressed their views.
Indy GOP Mayor Candidate Chuck Brewer
Chuck Brewer With Nat’l Baptist Pres Dr. Jerry Young In Studio
(Interview With Chuck Brewer Starts At 25:08 Mark On Media Player) In the midst of the interview with these national Black church leaders, Republican mayoral candidate Chuck Brewer joined the discussion to talk about his proposal that Brewer feels would help deal with the food desert crisis in many of Indianapolis’ older neighborhoods. Brewer’s proposal would create an Urban Grocery Development Area (UGDA). Patterned after the Professional Sports Development Area that funded the building of the downtown Fieldhouse, Brewer’s UGDA would capture sales, property and income taxes generated by businesses in a designated geographic area to use for infrastructure improvements and other expenses to help encourage the location of a grocery vendor for a neighborhood or neighborhoods. Under Brewer’s proposal, funds would be limited to helping a grocery vendor; not other retail outlets like gas stations or liquor stores. Brewer cited his background as a businessman and retailer for coming up with this idea. Brewer feels with its success in sports, the UGDA would work to help deal with the food desert problem. Questioned directly, Brewer said the Double 8 stores closing were “a crisis”. A view that’s sharply diffeent from Monday’s Afternoons with Amos where Mayor Ballard’s press secretary said this wasn’t a crisis. Brewer’s proposal would need the approval of the Legislature and Brewer said he’s receuived support for his plan from State Sen. Jim Merritt. Brewer’s plan is the first concrete proposal on of what’s expected to be many from political and other leaders on finding long term solutions to Indy’s food deserts.
Logansport Pharos Tribune January 8 1898 / IU Archives
(Interview On IU’s First Black Female Student Starts At 1:45 Mark On Media Player) Add a new name to the heroines of Indiana overall and African-American history. The name is Carrie Parker. In 1898, Carrie Parker became the first African-American woman to be admitted as a student at Indiana University in Bloomington. Until now, the University knew who its first Black female graduate was (Frances Marshall), but never knew who was its first Black female student. An IU Archivist, Deena Kellums, uncovered the mystery, from a newspaper clipping in the Logansport Pharos Tribune newspaper, published on January 8x, 1898 about about Carrie Parker’s accomplishment. Kellums learned by searching newspaper records that Carrie Parker was an accomplished student in Vermillion County. An article in a Bedford, Indiana newspaper in June 1897 titled Colored Girl’s Triumph discussed how Carrie Parker had overcome obstacles to graduate from Clinton High School with distinction.
Prof. Elmer Griffth 1885 / IU Archives
The Old Cresent 1898 / IU Archives
Back then, there weren’t dorms for students, so this Black female pioneer lived in the house of an IU English professor Elmer Griffith and his family. Carrie Parker didn’t graduate from IU as she left the school a year later and married John Taylor in 1899. They lived for a while in Indiana and then moved throughout the Midwest, according to Census records. Carrie’s first husband died in in the early 1930’s and she married Richard Eaton in Michigan. Carrie Parker Taylor Eaton died in 1958 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. IU Archivist Kellums is encouraging those who may have known Carrie Parker Taylor Eaton or her children or grand or great grandchildren to get in touch with the university’s archives. Click The Link For More Details On This Discovery. MORE DETAILS ON CARRIE PARKER IU’S 1ST BLACK FEMALE STUDENT (Interview On Life Expectancy In Indy Area Starts At 47:13 Mark On Media Player) Speaking of IU researchers, Tess Weathers, a researcher at IUPUI helped compile a study of life expectancy in the eleven county Indianapolis metropolitan area. What Weathers found was that life expectancy is lowest in areas with high poverty in the metro. Not just in Indianapolis’ inner city neighborhoods, but also in the rural, poorer parts of the metro in Putnam, Hendricks, Madison, Johnson and Shelby Counties. With the highest life expectancy in the more affluent areas of the metro area. The report, located on the Savi.Org website is a dynamic study showing that poverty in the metro area isn’t just confined to the areas the media labels as underprivileged. The Indy metro’s rural areas suffer from poverty, but are largely ignored by media and policy makers. Click To Read The Full Study. SAVI IUPUI REPORT ON LIFE EXPECTANCY IN INDY METRO AREA (Open Lines Starts At 55:51 Mark) In Open Lines, Hillary Clinton blasting Jeb Bush at the Urban League Convention was discussed along with more on the issue of bans and groceries leaving the inner city, a problem of an insensitive landlord and other issues. The Afternoons with Amos PODCAST for July 31, 2015 Runs 104 Minutes. The PODCAST Starts After A Brief Video Ad.
