Jerald Brantley, in a May 19 column titled “From the pen of JB,” wrote: “Let’s talk about gatekeepers and their negative effect on our community . . .Take for instance the Commission on the Status of African Americans. Now we have this Covenant with Black Iowa but do we really know what’s going on with it or what the commission is doing to further the mission, since we’ve heard no more? It’s because we have a gatekeeper that appears to have changed from being for the people to now being sucked into the old normal, that old mind set — “I’m the show . . not the message” — bad move.”

The commission’s Division Administrator Abraham Funchess, who said he was aware of Brantley’s comments, stressed the plan is moving forward despite some “gaps” in communication. Brantley didn’t return phone calls and emails to Iowa Independent seeking comment. “Community work is painstaking. It’s a slow process,” Funchess said. “Oftentimes there’s not a lot of reward in it. It certainly doesn’t help when we engage in demobilizing politics that in many ways suggest the community, the nebulous entity called community, has the same class and political consciousness. We have differentiated individuals within this community who have their own agendas. It’s going to require a lot of work to accomplish what we want to with the OCBI imitative.”

The commission is in the midst of a five-year plan to study and improve the lives of blacks in 10 cities, including Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Davenport, Dubuque, Sioux City, Fort Madison, Burlington, Iowa City and Fort Dodge. The project is focused on education, youth, economic development, political involvement, spirituality, justice issues, housing and health care.

A disparity study about city contracts is underway in Davenport and project coordinators, whose role is to mobilize community interest and solicit community-driven proposals, recently have been hired in six of the target cities, he said.

“All valid criticism is welcome because accountability is a necessity,” Funchess said. “We have to be prepared to respond accordingly so that people are equipped with the best and most accurate information in order to engage in the work.”

Funchess added: “We have done some work already that is unprecedented. Never has there been a campaign to organize people. We have [in the past] talked about what people are feeling, but now the emphasis is on the plan so that necessary funding can flow to the community.”

The commission last month discussed the plan via its large statewide email network. The commission awarded the city of Davenport $75,000 in matching funds for a disparity study. The California-based Mason Tillman Associates, Ltd., is conducting the 10-month study to address the following questions, particularly in the areas of construction:

*  Is there a disparity between the number of qualified minority, women and disadvantaged-owned firms willing and able to perform a particular service and the number of such firms actually engaged by the city?

*  Has the city engaged in practices that have prevented or deterred minority, women and disadvantaged business owners from participating fairly and equally in goods and services contracts?

*  Has the city passively participated in a system of racial exclusion practiced by elements of the business community?

* Has the city fully utilized their opportunities to provide race and gender neutral measures?  Will additional race and gender neutral measures sufficiently remove any identified barriers?

* Are race and gender based remedies warranted?

“We think the model will provide a template for other cities,” including Des Moines and elsewhere,” Funchess said.

In an April 8 Quad City Times story by Tory Brecht, Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba praised the study, saying: “We want to make sure everyone is receiving a fair shake in procuring contracts,” Gluba said. “We are proud of our ethnic diversity. If everyone gets a piece of the action, everyone prospers. And this is the beginning of that.”

Community members in the target cities are encouraged to speak with project coordinators about recommendations they have that potentially could improve the lives of blacks. The goal is to get blacks focused on their most troubling areas of concern, create proposals to study or fix the problems and submit written proposals to the commission. The commission will seek money from the Iowa Legislature to pay for the projects, he said. Existing projects also are eligible to become part of the plan, Funchess said.

The project coordinators in Des Moines are Gretchen Woods, youth adviser of the Des Moines Chapter of the NAACP and Kim Carr-Irvin, of Creative Visions.

A community meeting will be held in late June in Des Moines to discuss the plan with the community, he said. A time and date have not been set.

“I want people to know that we’ve got a lot of work,” Funchess said. “There’s still much work to do . . . but we do have good leaders in Ft. Dodge, Burlington and Des Moines, in terms of the project coordinators.”

Spectrum Resources’ Prisoner Reentry Program helps ex-offenders find jobs and lead law-abiding lives. It’s among five sites across the nation that will receive a $1 million federal Beneficiary Choice grant on Nov. 1 to serve violent offenders in an 18-month job program. 

“We’re outpacing everyone,” said Jerald Brantley, Spectrum’s chief executive officer. “Not many programs are doing it like we’re doing it.”

Advocates across the state and nationally have called for an increase in community-based correctional programs like Spectrum to help stem prison population growth and cut the disproportionate incarceration rates of African-Americans. Iowa incarcerates 8,931 people — 25 percent of whom are black. A national study placed Iowa first among states for imprisoning blacks at a rate that is 13.6 times that of whites.

As the state struggles for ways to deal with its burgeoning prison population, reentry programs have become a hot topic. A committee organized by Gov. Chet Culver released a $9.7 million budget proposal last month to deal with the high black prison rate, with $3.12 million of that earmarked for reentry programs.

Jerry Bartruff, reentry coordinator for the Iowa Department of Corrections, said it’s crucial that the state increase programs like Spectrum, which he said excels at helping ex-offenders find jobs.

“They’ve been really successful in the employment arena,” he said. “Spectrum does help us provide that community linkage that is really important.”

Bartruff was uncertain of how many reentry programs exist in the state. Iowa has more than 20,000 people in community-based corrections, he said. The corrections department “can’t do it all” but needs the help of community-based organizations who know the communities and can link ex-offenders with services, he said. 

“We have a responsibility to our community to plan for their reentry as soon as possible,” Bartruff said.

How it works

President Bush in 2004 announced the U.S. Department of Labor’s Prisoner Reentry Initiative. It was designed to link ex-offenders with faith-based and community-based organizations. It provided about $19.8 million each year for four years to 30 grantees across the country. 

Spectrum, founded in 1995, was one of the grantees and receives about $660,000 annually. It is in the third year of the federal grant and has worked with a variety of agencies on the project. Spectrum, with a 14 percent recidivism rate, succeeds at helping reduce prison population growth, Brantley said.

The goal is to “turn them back into citizens,” Brantley said. “So they’re not recidivating and they can stay out here and be productive citizens.”

The nonprofit agency provides ex-offenders with job training, job placement and mentoring. It also links ex-offenders with prospective employers; provides life skills and parenting classes, and offers immediate supportive services, such as clothing, housing and food.

“Our philosophy is that reentry begins when a person goes into prison,” said Allen Spencer, Spectrum’s program manager. “We know that 93 percent of those incarcerated are going to get out one day.”

Spencer said it’s critical that inmates receive job training and life skills while incarcerated.

Spectrum is contracted to provide its services through the Director’s Council, of which Brantley is chair. The council includes Spectrum, the YMCA, Oakridge Neighborhood, Willkie House, Creative Visions and Pace Juvenile Center. 

About 60 days before an inmate’s release, Khalid Abdar-Rashid, a specialist at Spectrum, goes inside the prison to talk with the inmates about their plans. Many have no job, home or support system to return to, plus some might be facing fines or other financial hurdles, he and Spencer said.

Spectrum employees work with the Fifth Judicial District and the Iowa Department of Corrections on the release of inmates. They also frequently work with parole officers.

Ex-offenders are “picked up from the time they hit the street from prison,” said Spencer, who provides daily reports on the offenders to the labor department. “Some are paroled directly to Spectrum.”

Spencer, Abdar-Rashid and mentors “of faith” provide immediate services to clients — from clothes for a job interview to finding them substance abuse treatment.

Here is a breakdown of Spectrum’s clients as of October 5, 2007:
]]> http://iowaindependent.com/1357/keeping-ex-offenders-from-going-back-behind-bars-des-moines-program-is-a-model/feed 2 http://iowaindependent.com/1329/calendar-on-the-way-to-help-keep-citys-blacks-talking http://iowaindependent.com/1329/calendar-on-the-way-to-help-keep-citys-blacks-talking#comments Thu, 25 Oct 2007 00:27:12 +0000 Dana Boone http://iowaindependent.com/1329/calendar-on-the-way-to-help-keep-citys-blacks-talking Three African-American leaders in Des Moines plan to launch a community calendar next month to improve communication among the city’s black residents.

“The connectedness thing we can do right away,” said Jerald Brantley, publisher of the Iowa Bystander.

Brantley, Ako Abdul-Samad and Wayne Ford have joined forces to tackle the serious problems facing blacks, such as the state’s high black incarceration rate, while helping residents improve their lives and neighborhoods. The men and their well-known non-profit agencies, located within one mile of each other north of downtown, are long fixtures in the black community.

Brantley is executive director of Spectrum Resources. Abdul-Samad is founder and CEO of Creative Visions, and Ford is founder and executive director of Urban Dreams. Both Abdul-Samad and Ford also serve as Iowa legislators.

“You all as leaders who have access to the information, get it to those of us who don’t,” said Dawn Thomas, who attended the first community action meeting organized by the three leaders last Thursday at the Polk County Senior Center. “We’re not all on your email list.”

Others agreed. Jamel Kirby said he has been frustrated in the past with lively community meetings where little was accomplished. “My challenge for the men at the front is to pool their resources and knowledge together to create a central clearinghouse, a group or consortium where information is gathered,” he said. 

The calendar “will give us a good catapult into this thing and in keeping the momentum,” Brantley said.

Residents last week cited a myriad of concerns, including the state’s incarceration rate of blacks, which is 13.6 times that of whites, according to a national study. They also cited high suspension rates of black students and a dearth of after-school programs, jobs and programs for ex-offenders. They also said they lack information about the many community programs and projects already under way. Others said some events are scheduled in conflict with each other, which weakens support. A community calendar could help fix that, Brantley said.

Audrey Cheatom, 17, asked: “What kind of programs are there for kids who graduate early?”

Community activists, college officials and others at the meeting provided Cheatom with information about the third annual College Prep Day from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Nov. 3 at Drake University’s Olmsted Center. They also reiterated the need for better communication among blacks.

Brantley told the audience that he has spent 15 years helping ex-offenders stay out of prison and wants to expand programs. Ford said he has helped get state money for programs that benefited blacks, spearheaded studies of the state’s high black prison rate and runs a national model after-school program. Abdul-Samad said he’s working on the prison issue, school suspensions and youth programs.

The three men admitted they didn’t always get along but said they have set aside their differences to help the community.

The second meeting will be held next month and will include a progress report. The date and time of that meeting has not been set, but the meeting likely will continue at the Polk County Senior Center, Brantley said. 

Several of the 40 meeting-goers volunteered to work with the leaders.

Here is a sampling of comments from the community action meeting:

Dawn Thomas, said: “If you’ve been to prison and you get out . . . it is very hard to get a job and maintain a job. Yeah, we can get warehouse jobs. We can get jobs at McDonald’s, we can get things, and I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with those jobs, but if they go to school and they change their life and haven’t been in trouble, you still have employers that look at you and say there is nothing I can do for you because ‘10 years ago, you did this, or 15, 20 years ago, you did that.’ That’s a long time to hold somebody accountable for something when they’ve changed.”

Akil Jabbar, an ex-offender and former gang member who served six years in prison, said: “You can’t blame it on the system. You can’t blame it on racism. You can’t blame it on drugs. You have to blame it on yourself. Tell these people in the streets what time it is.”

Allen Spencer, said: “We have to be able to save our own babies. We have to quit being lax with our own families.”

Claudia Hawkins, said: “On your list of things, where are the after-school programs and funding for teenage activities?”

Wayne Ford, said: “I’ve seen a lot of white people come up there and lobby to save birds – and we save birds. If you want to understand the game, you’ve got to come up here.”

Carol Mandziara, of Miracle Life Family Church, said: “Parents haven’t been mentioned

The meeting will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 18 at the Polk County Senior Center at 2008 Forest Ave.

Driving the meeting are three men who didn’t always get along: Jerald Brantley, Ako Abdul-Samad and Wayne Ford. Brantley is publisher of the Iowa Bystander and executive director of Spectrum Resources, which provides ex-offender reentry programs; Abdul-Samad is founder and CEO of Creative Visions; Wayne Ford is founder and executive director of Urban Dreams. Both Abdul-Samad and Ford serve as Iowa legislators.

The goal of the meeting is to hear what people have to say and then develop an action plan.

“They can let us know what’s going on and what their needs are,” said Brantley. “The community can give their input on things. Things they need or want done in the community or come and blast us.”

Brantley said: “We’re trying to show that three alpha male personalities can work together without killing each other. We can come together and do something productive, versus arguing, squabbling and fighting against each other.”

In the Oct. 15 issue of the Iowa Bystander, Brantley wrote, of Thursday’s forum: “You will have the opportunity to ask the tough questions, and make the important observations and take part in the planning, action and delivery to make our African-American communities strong and vibrant again. This is the first step of a great new renaissance in Des Moines, one that has the potential to lead to the development of economic, political and social capital that will enhance African-American life in Des Moines.”

Elected officials Abdul-Samad and Ford joined forces last week with Jonathan Narcisse, a Des Moines school board member, to study the disproportionate suspension rates of black students.