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Black Power part 12
Sonny Carson and Jitu Weusi had been hired by the Dinkins campaign to do voter registration in Brooklyn, exactly the type of work that members of Brooklyn CORE had been doing since the 1960's. CORE had a well respected history with doing voter registration throughout the country. Cleveland CORE's voter registration efforts played a crucial role in the election of the very first Black mayor, Carl Stokes. Weusi, however, quit the campaign over the controversy created by Dinkin's opponent, Rudy Guilaini, over the poem he read on WBAI in 1969. Carson's past with such issues was also made out to be a controversy. When asked if he was anti-Semitic by a reporter from the New York Post, Carson responded, "I am anti-white. I don't limit my 'anti' to just one group of people."
Carson continued to be problematic for the Dinkins administration throughout his term.
He was villainized for the boycott he led against several Korean grocery stores. Dr. Claire Kim, however, in her PhD dissertation argued the boycotts were less an example of Black racism against the Korean community but instead spoke more to the existence of the racial hierarchy of American society.
As with the 1964 riots in Bedford Stuyvesant that started at a BK CORE rally, Carson was one of the central characters blamed for the 1991 riots in Crown Heights, There were a series of violent events by community residents during what was planned to be a peaceful rally led by Carson and others on the third night of the riots. Again, both riots were more a response to the killing of Black children by Whites than the rallies themselves.
It should also be noted that Carson, like Rev. Al Sharpton, was one of the very few leaders, including Black leaders, in the city with the foresight to support the Central Park Five, a well known case in which four Black and Latino teens were imprisoned for a crime they did not commit. It was not until years later that the city and media realized they were innocent.
Sonny Carson is remembered as one of the most significant and hated Black activists in NYC. In writing about his passing, the National Review's article had as its headline "Burn in Hell, Sonny Carson". City Council woman Christine Quinn went well out of her way to deny any attempt by supporters of Carson, such as City Councilmen Charles Barron and Al Vann, at naming a street after him. In using Carson's 'anti-white' comment from the New York Post, Quinn stated she would not allow it because Carson was not a 'uniter'. Supporters of Carson in response bum rushed the proceedings, unfurling a protest banner as they physically fought against police trying to stop them. Quinn's critics argued her actions and comments were especially hypocritical in light of the many monuments, schools and other municipal buildings in the city named after presidents and other prominent Americans known to be racists and slave owners.
Carson's actions have had an enormous impact on the dialogue of race in this city. His contributions and/or actions simply can not be ignored by his detractors. Quinn's response to Carson's supporters is especially troubling in that, just as in the case of Roy Innis of Harlem CORE, her demonization of Carson reflects not just on him but Brooklyn CORE.
Brooklyn CORE's legacy in this city can be seen in some of the children of its most active members.
The recently elected Congressman Hakeem Jeffries from Brooklyn is the son of BK CORE member Marland Jeffries. His other son, Professor Hassan Jeffries, is one of the leaders of a new generation of Civil Rights movement and Black Power scholars.
Jitu Weusi's son, Kojo Campbell is an assistant principal at Middle School 246 in Brooklyn. Weusi's nephew, Jelani Mashariki, is an Occupy Wall Street activist and candidate for city councilman representing Brooklyn.
Major Owens son, Chris Owens, who spent six years on his local community school board, was a State Committee member for the New York State Democratic Party and a district leader from the 52nd Assembly District in Brooklyn. Owens other son is Geoffrey Owens, the actor who played 'Elvin' from The Cosby Show. Set in Brooklyn, it revolutionized the image of Blacks on television.
Sonny Carson's son is Professor X of X-Clan, one of the more influential hip-hop groups of the early 1990's. He is remembered for his slogan, "This is protected by the Red, the Black and the Green..."
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