>Reply-To: <[log in to unmask]>
>From: "Ira B. Jones" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: An APPEAL to writers/editors/music heads/activists/concerned people
>Date: Sat, 27 Apr 2002 12:43:48 -0500
>X-Priority: 3 (Normal)
>Importance: Normal
>
>
>
>
>PLEASE READ and PLEASE POST/FORWARD
>
>Greetings, all:
>
>My name is Kevin Powell and I am respectfully writing this amidst some very
>sad events of the past two weeks.
>
>As some of you know by now, Jackson-Mississippi-based music journalist,
>poet,
>historian, playwright, and literary scholar Charlie Braxton (at the end of
>this email is a detailed BIO on who Charlie Braxton is for those who do not
>know) and his family lost their home, about two weeks ago, to a tragic fire.
>The fire was the result of the Jackson Police Department pursuing a reckless
>chase of an alleged stolen car by two young men. The Braxton one-story home
>sat literally near the corner of an intersection, and the car driven by the
>two young men literally smashed through the front of the Braxton home and
>ended up in the livingroom. The car exploded and triggered a massive fire.
>Rather than help Charlie, his wife Johnnie, and their three children flee
>the
>fire, the Jackson Police instead chased the two young men from the car,
>beating them, witnesses in the neighborhood say, in full public view. It
>should be noted here that Charlie Braxton has been using crutches to walk
>since he was a tiny child, due to an ailment from birth. Which means,
>essentially, that Johnnie had to not only get herself and the children out
>of
>the burning house, but also had to go back into the house and rescue Charlie
>from their bed because the Jackson Police Department considered the burning
>house, and Charlie's life, a done deal. Johnnie ignored the police and
>resisted their efforts to block her from going back in, and saved Charlie's
>life, even as she was suffering an asthmatic attack.
>
>Suffice to say, the actions of the Jackson Police Department represents a
>case of incredible neglect. The fire took place in the wee hours of Sunday,
>April 14th, and to date, NO POLICE REPORT has been filed as yet, the media
>has presented conflicting coverage of the tragedy, local leadership, like
>the
>NAACP and the SCLC have not reached out to Charlie Braxton and his family,
>and there is a growing feeling that a cover-up of the case is taking place
>as
>the two young men who were in the alleged stolen car have been freed of all
>charges and have since told Charlie's wife, Johnnie, that the police were
>NOT
>chasing them.
>
>The police matter is one thing. In the interim Charlie Braxton and his
>family
>need help. They lost nearly all of their clothes, their furniture (except
>for
>the bed frames for Charlie and his wife, and one for each of their three
>children), and GONE are the 5000-plus cds, several hundred albums, the
>massive book collection (including rare, out of print books), all of
>Charlie's manuscripts, a computer and printer, family records, and more
>things than I can list here.
>
>I am personally asking people, if you are able, to look out for Charlie
>Braxton and his family. Here are some of the things they need:
>
>1) Any monetary donations would be appreciated. Charlie has not been able to
>do any journalism work since he lost his computer. Donations can be mailed
>to:
>
>Charlie Braxton
>P.O. Box 2595
>Jackson, MS 39207-2595
>601-346-9141 (home number as of May 1st)
>601-212-3383 (cell)
>
>
>2) What little money Charlie and Johnnie have has been used to secure a
>rented home for May 1st. They are in dire need of four (4) mattresses for
>the
>Charlie and Johnnie's bed (queen-size) and three (3) mattresses for each of
>the single beds for the three children.
>
>3) Clothes are desperately needed and I am hoping that some of you who work
>in the fashion world will be able to help. You can phone Charlie directly to
>get the his and Johnnie and the three children's sizes.
>
>4) While there is no way to replace all the books, cds, albums, etc., that
>Charlie and his wife lost, I am respectfully asking people in position to do
>so to do the following:
>
>a. Writers, please send copies of your books, cds, etc., so that the Braxton
>family can begin to rebuild their library
>
>b. Magazine editors, please consider giving the Braxton family a year-long
>subscription to your publication, free of charge.
>
>c. Music industry folks, please, if you can, send an array of new, not so
>new, and classic (old school) cds from various genres. Charlie's tastes in
>terms of music are BROAD and I am sure he would appreciate any and
>everything.
>
>d. Book editors, please consider sending Charlie and his family a range of
>books, including literature, history, children's books, music-related books,
>etc.
>
>5) Lastly, I am respectfully asking magazine editors to offer Charlie, who
>is
>one of the most brilliant and talented writers/thinkers I have ever met in
>my
>life, some writing assignments, as his family could use the money right
>away.
>
>I THANK all of you for taking the time to read this, and here is detailed
>information about Charlie Braxton and why he is so important to so many
>people around the country:
>
>"Charlie Braxton is a poet, playwright, and journalist currently
>residing in Jackson, Mississippi. He was born in McComb, Mississippi.
>Charlie s family was engaged in the Civil Rights Movement,
>particularly since a good portion of it took place in the Deep South.
>At Jackson State University Charlie was active in campus and community
>politics, working with several organizations: He was president of
>JSU s Student Government, a participant in the Free Eddie Carthan
>Committee, a supporter of the Black and Proud School as well as the
>anti-apartheid movement.
>
>Charlie worked closely with the now defunct Mississippi Institute for
>Economic and Technological Resources. He is also the former publisher
>and editor of The Hattiesburg Informer. Today, Charlie mentors young
>people around social issues and the music industry. In fact, Charlie
>either consults or manages a handful of Jackson-based hiphop artists
>and entrepreneurs.
>
>As a writer, Charlie Braxton's work has appeared in numerous
>publications including The Source, Vibe, Murder Dog, and Doula. He
>has written cover stories on various figures in hiphop like Outkast,
>Master P, the Notorious B.I.G. and the Fugees. His poetry has
>appeared in literary publications such as African American Review,
>Cutbanks, the Minnesota Review, Drum Voices Review, the Black Nation,
>The San Fernando Poetry Journal and Sepia Poetry Review.
>Additionally, Charlie's poems have been anthologized in Word Up:
>Black Poetry from the Deep South, In the Tradition, Soul Fires, Step
>Into A World, Bum Rush the Page, and Role Call. Charlie's Ascension
>from the Ashes, a volume of verse, was published in 1990 by Blackwood
>Press. Charlie is presently co-producing a documentary on the history
>of Southern hiphop, entitled Southern Explosion, and penning a book on
>the roots and evolution of hiphop culture....."
--
"The only real revolt is the revolt against war."
Albert Camus
Alison Croggon
Home page
http://www.users.bigpond.com/acroggon/
Masthead Online
http://au.geocities.com/masthead_2/
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