January 2008

Inspiration from MLK's Vision for Community

By Gayle S. Rose
Founding Board Member, WFGM

In his last months, Martin Luther King, Jr. was organizing the most aggressive project of his life: the Poor People's Campaign. He traveled throughout the country to assemble "a multiracial army of the poor"1 that would descend upon Washington. He envisioned a demonstration of such intensity and size that Congress would have to recognize and deal with the huge number of downtrodden Americans.

King wrote his final book in 1967, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? It was King’s analysis of the state of American race relations and the movement after a decade of U.S. civil rights struggles. He believed that past approaches to reducing poverty were flawed and in need of a radically different approach. King wrote:

We have proceeded from a premise that poverty is a consequence of multiple evils: lack of education, restricting job opportunities; poor housing; and fragile family relationships. The logic of this approach suggests that each of these causes be attacked one by one. Hence, a housing program to transform living conditions, improved educational facilities to furnish tools for better job opportunities, and family counseling to create better personal adjustments were designed.

In combination these measures were intended to remove the causes of poverty. While none of these remedies in itself is unsound, all have a fatal disadvantage. The programs have never proceeded on a coordinated basis or at a similar rate of development.

Housing measures have fluctuated at the whims of legislative bodies. They have been piecemeal and pygmy. Educational reforms have been even more sluggish and entangled in bureaucratic and political stalling. Family assistance stagnated in neglect.

At no time has a total, coordinated and fully adequate program been conceived. As a consequence, fragmentary and spasmodic reforms have failed to reach down to the profoundest needs of the poor. ²

It is ironic that Dr. King’s vision for a “total, coordinated and fully adequate program” to address poverty is being modeled in Memphis forty years later. The Women’s Foundation is attracting national attention with its leadership of the Memphis HOPE initiative; a private-public partnership addressing the intertwined physical and social problems in two public housing projects: University Place (the former Lamar Terrace) and Legend’s Park (the former Dixie Homes).

It is not surprising however, that women would connect Memphis HOPE with King’s central insight; that we are each strands in an inescapable network of mutuality, together woven into a single garment of destiny. That we are not here as self-interested individuals sufficient unto our selves, with no obligations to each other, but rather, we are all part of a community bound together as citizens with shared needs, mutual responsibilities and linked destinies. It is women who understand that across our city, our nation and our world, our fates and our interests are bound together.

The audacity of the Women’s Foundation to say yes to fund-raising an unprecedented $7.3 million for Memphis HOPE has raised a few eyebrows. And yet, we have courageously marched toward the goal. We are driven by the vision of helping families living in these impoverished communities become the masters of their destinies, not the victims of circumstance. We are driven by the “fierce urgency of now” and are dedicated to the “long and bitter, but beautiful struggle for a new world.” ³

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s vision for social justice continues to inform us, his dream continues to inspire us and his hope continues to move us forward through the work of the Women’s Foundation and Memphis HOPE.

To learn more about Memphis HOPE, click here >>

Footnotes:
1. Beyond Vietnam – A Time to Break Silence: Martin Luther King, Jr., 1967.
2. Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community: Martin Luther King, Jr., 1968.
3. Beyond Vietnam.

Courage To Make A Change

By Pam Jiranek
Marketing Committee Volunteer, WFGM

“I’m so blessed in so many ways,” says Carol Fox, with a deep-felt belief that can be heard even over the phone. Considering the upheaval Carol has lived through over the last few months, her positive outlook is even more moving.

After 29 years of marriage, the 52-year-old diabetic working mother of two sons finally found the strength and support she needed to leave her abusive husband and move into her own apartment. There, her boys, ages 23 and 16, no longer need to share a bedroom, and Carol feels a sense of security that has eluded her for years. Her husband’s unpredictable behavior, exacerbated by alcohol, made going home difficult as “you never knew what you were going to walk into,” she explains.

Now, at the end of her day, she looks forward to going home. “The moment I get out of work, there’s hot food at home for the boys, good food.” And, unlike times before when her husband was saying hateful things to her sons, now “I can lock the door…I can protect them in some way.” Making it feel even more like home is Carol's beloved Welsh Corgi. The rental agent was so charmed by the dog that, "She's written into the lease by name," Carol laughs.

Carol is one of the lucky Memphis women who have found the resources they need to leave an abusive situation with the help of Memphis Area Legal Service’s Opportunity Plus Program (OPP), which is part of the organization’s Domestic Violence Program. As Carol explains, "I didn’t know what I needed to do legally,” so she turned to the phone book, found Memphis Area Legal Services, and was put in touch with OPP’s director, Debbie Casey.

Read more >>

Domestic Violence Facts and Statistics

Domestic violence can be defined as a pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner.

Abuse is physical, sexual, emotional, economic or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person. This includes any behaviors that frighten, intimidate, terrorize, manipulate, hurt, humiliate, blame, injure or wound someone.

Domestic violence can happen to anyone of any race, age, sexual orientation, religion or gender. It can happen to couples who are married, living together or who are dating. Domestic violence affects people of all socioeconomic backgrounds and education levels.

• In 2005-2006, the Memphis Police Department reported receiving approximately 67,000 911 domestic violence related calls.
• Shelby County Pre-trial Services reported receiving approximately 350-400 petitions for protective orders each month.
• The surgeon general reported that domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women between ages 15 and 44, more common than automobile accidents, muggings and cancer deaths combined.
• Nearly one third of American women have reported being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.
• It is estimated that only 10% of battering incidents are ever reported to the police.
• At least 50% of all homeless women and children in the U.S. are fleeing domestic violence.

The above information was provided courtesy of Memphis Area Legal Service’s Opportunity Plus Program. To learn more, contact Debbie Casey at 901-523-8822.