PowerPoint; SF Mayor Willie Brown, Tommy Davidson

Production and broadcast of PowerPoint is made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This is PowerPoint, an Information Age clearinghouse for issues affecting the African American community, the nation and the world, and now PowerPoints Kenneth Walker. It's a shining city on a hill, a mix of ancient missions made of gold in Spanish tile, a haven for artists and writers, cable cars clinging down to Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown and skyscrapers that kiss the sky, and then there's that golden gate bridge arching across a Pacific Bay, framing San Francisco, where many a heart has been left. PowerPoint is coming to you live from San Francisco, celebrating the public radio conference and

one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Our distinguished guest this hour, his honor, Willie Brown, Da Mayor of San Francisco. Willie Brown is a legend in California politics, his intelligence and powers of persuasion and charisma have done much to improve the lives of all Californians. He's also been mentor to some of California's and the nation's political giants such as Maxine Waters and others. We're going to talk with Mayor Brown about politics, California style, and you can take part in this discussion by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255, that's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Call now and call a friend. Tell them PowerPoints on the air live from San Francisco. Our discussion with the

legendary Willie Brown begins in a moment, but first, PowerPoint news with Verna Avery Brown. This is PowerPoint, news and information to empower the community. I'm Verna Avery Brown. As expected, Pakistan detonated two more nuclear devices over the weekend, but it says it's done for now. Pakistan's foreign secretary did not announce a moratorium, but did offer to begin peace talks with India. A lawyer for a Nigerian woman living in a Washington suburb fighting deportation to her country says forcing Virginia unequata to return home with her daughter would constitute torture. Attorney Morton Sklar, director of the World Organization against torture USA, says unequata's 10 -year -old daughter would be circumcised if they were deported to Nigeria. That's a violation of the convention against torture ratified by the U .S. in 1996. A convention against torture

prohibits any action that produces severe pain or suffering that's inflicted on an individual either by the government or with the acquiescence of the government. In this case, the torture claim that we're raising in Virginia's case really relates to her daughter as well as to herself. And it's the problem of female general mutilation, female circumcision, which is done in an atrocious way by many people in the developing world, particularly in Africa. And the problem is that Virginia had a child here in the United States who was born in the United States and is an American citizen. And the result of her deportation would have been that her 10 -year -old daughter Sharon would have been sent back to Nigeria with her and subjected to FGM. Well, some people would say that's not torture, that's tradition. It is tradition, but it also amounts to pretty severe

pain and suffering as many women who have undergone it would attest to. It's something that the United States government, as a matter of public policy, has established as a crime here in the U .S. and is something that has prohibited here in the U .S. And so it's a complete anomaly that the U .S. government would accept the fact that it can't be done here, but it can be done when someone is sent back to their home country. Is there no room in Nigerian law or tradition for her to simply decline to have this practice performed on her daughter, the female circumcision? What would happen if she simply refused to have that done? Declining is not an option for anybody in this circumstance. The cultural tradition in many African countries is that it's performed on young girls automatically. In Nigeria, more than 50 % of the girls are subjected to it. Many people have tried to protest the practice and keep

it from happening with their daughters. And it has caused them a great deal of difficulty and the daughters are forced to undergo the practice anyway. The INS accepted the petition filed by the attorneys and released Virginia unequata from detention after holding her for three weeks. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas continues to be persona non -grata in some circles. The nation's largest organization of African -American lawyers is embroiled in debate over whether to disinvite Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to serve as their main speaker at their annual convention this July in Memphis. The invitation was extended over a month ago by the chairwoman of the National Bar Association's Judicial Council, Judge Burnett Johnson of the Louisiana Supreme Court, and Thomas accepted. But after 25 other board members learned of the invitation, they objected and have begun lobbying other members to have the invitation withdrawn. Judge Alvin Chambliss, a member of the NBA and a law professor at Texas Southern University, is outraged by their efforts to disinvite Thomas. If we are going to be an open society, if

we can at least be intellectually attuned today, and we could at least speak this man and give him the courtesy of listening to what he has to say, and I'm also saying that this would never happen in the white community. I don't know of a white jurist. I don't know of a white public official every time he or she goes to speak. You know, you got crowds of people talking about disinvite. It's not crowds. It's just certain individuals, you know, that's filmed by that liberal Eastern establishment. It's more white than black. Even though you got blacks, you know, obviously just the Higgin -Boggmas is on man. But you have that kind of mentality that basically says this man should be crucified for the longest he lived. Those seeking to withdraw the invitation to Justice Thomas include retired federal appeals court judge, Alion Higgin -Boggham, currently a Harvard University law professor who has written extensively about Justice Thomas

and who says he has done more than any other African American to turn back the clock of racial progress. The Delaware chapter of the NAACP last year objected to an invitation to Thomas at a youth festival prompting the controversial justice to back out. He delivered a speech on manners at an eighth grade awards ceremony last year in Prince George's County, Maryland, after being invited, disinvited, and re -invited. From PowerPoint news and information, I'm Verna Avery Brown.

Kenneth Walker. And welcome to PowerPoint Live from the Public Radio Conference in San Francisco. Our guest this hour, Willie Brown, Damea. Learn about the art of the deal from the man who may be the best deal maker in America. We'll hear about the front lines of the battle in California on diversity and affirmative action. We'll talk about why Willie Brown just may be the most powerful politician in California, including Governor Pete Wilson. And we'll hear about Willie Brown's extraordinary rise from small town Texas to become one of the most remarkable political figures in all of America to take advantage of this unique opportunity to speak with the amazing Mayor Willie Brown. Call the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1

-800 -989 -8255. Mayor Willie Brown, welcome to PowerPoint. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. How are you? I'm doing fine. How are you doing today? I'm good. Great. You know, a lot of people call you the most powerful person in California. They say you still got your connections from being Speaker of the House. You raise a lot of money for Democrats all over the state and being Mayor of the most important city in the nation to any Democrat hoping to win the most important state for the White House in the year 2000 gives you unparalleled influence with the federal government. What do they leave out? Well, I don't think that's accurate, frankly. I know that there are some things that go with being the Mayor of San Francisco and being the Mayor of this very unique city. But I really think it is an inaccurate assessment of my power, so to speak, to attribute it as being at that level. On some days and on some occasions, I can do things

on behalf of my city that probably no predecessor mayor has done. But that's a long line of friendships and chets that are outstanding. And that's about the extent of it, though. I do work harder than most, though, at trying to achieve the goals that may need it to be achieved. Clearly, though, you're a man who loves power. You love to hold it and love to wield it. Well, I want to make sure that it's in hands that want to abuse it. And I desperately try to acquire it and protect it so that it will not be abused and to use it sparingly. After all, in my opinion, every time you use power, you lose power. Is there no one with whom you could not do a deal if you had to? Can you think of anybody? Oh, sure. There are lots of people I couldn't do deals with. For example, I would find it very, very difficult to deal with any of the people who bomb abortion clinics. I would find it impossible to do a deal with a client's Thomas Award

Connolly, a foreign example. I would find it almost equally as difficult for some of those jackals in the Congress to do business with. But in most cases, you are right. I will set across the table and believe me in any negotiations when we leave the room, you will not tally up a loss on my side of the table. What would prevent you from sitting down with a client's Thomas Award Connolly? I don't believe that they were first capable of making a deal. They are so rooted in a philosophy and a course of conduct that is so ultimately counterproductive that they virtually spend full time reinforcing their belief as idiotic as it may be. They spend full time reinforcing it and you really can't deal with people that are that committed to a course of action that may make no sense. You really need to be in a room, negotiated with people who

are rational, who are reasonable, and who are not simply trying to protect their preconceived notion of what reality is. In a way, didn't the whole term limits movement in America start with and was focused on you? Certainly the term limits in California was focused on me. Whether or not somebody had the same idea in Texas as some of the place, I really don't know. But at the legislative level, on the statewide basis, I was the poster child for the campaign. I was the reason why they wanted term limits in place. My years as speaker of the California State Assembly caused them heartache and heartburns and a lot of other things. They tried every method in the world to get me out as speaker. They could not beat me at the polls. They could not beat me in the halls of the legislature. And they could only destroy the entire legislative body

to get to me. Why? And they did that. Why was it so important to get rid of really brown to the extent that if you got a tear down the whole legislator to do it, we'll do it anyway. Well, no black person who's ever held a public office has exercised the same power that I exercised and to have exercised it in a way for the benefit of people. I changed the whole makeup of the law house of the legislature in order to pass the anti -partite legislation that Maxine Waters authored. I would often do those kinds of things. I shut the state of California budget down because of Pete Wilson's attempt to take more than a billion dollars away from public education. And you will recall that in that year we went without a budget for 63 days and that was almost single -handedly or Willy Brown effort. Those kinds of incidents created

a need to get rid of Willy Brown. No one else would take the risk that I would take on programs of that nature. And body politic on the Republican side wanted to get rid of me. I also proved to be formidable in the campaign process. They elected Reagan twice. And on each of those occasions I always maintained a majority in my house. They elected George Bush. I still maintain a majority. They elected two Republican governors, Pete Wilson and George Duke Major. And I still controlled the law house of the legislature. You at some point would have to conclude there's no way to beat him in the room. Maybe we should just, you know, destroy the whole universe. And that way we'll get rid of him. I was probably like a cockroach in a nuclear war to them. We are talking with Damea, Willy Brown, Mayor of San Francisco. You can join our discussion

by calling PowerPoints toll -free hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. You know, I think relatively few people across the country have some sense of the distance that you traveled. This tremendous personal journey from manyola, Texas. Yes. Very small town where you came from an impoverished family with a mother not wed to your father. Tell us about what life must have been like for you back then. Well, you know, I didn't know it was as romantic as it now sounds. When you're living in manyola and everybody else is in the same set of circumstances. When you're in that segregated world, you really don't know that there may be a world beyond it. And so you are not nearly as anguished about your situation as you would be if you could do it from a distance as I am now so doing it. In those days, picking cotton was a natural part of my being. And

harvesting potatoes, peanuts, tomatoes, berries. That was what I was supposed to do as sweeping the floors and barbershops and shining shoes for living. And getting my quarters, my tips out of the spectrum. There was no loss of dignity with reference there too. And not, you know, being aware that when you walk on the streets and there's a car coming, you'd better get farther enough off the roadway because it may be some white guy driving it. And one of the great sports they had was seeing how close they could come to hit in the black person without hitting him. In many cases, they came too close and did it you. So those kinds of things were just kind of normal for that day and time. They taught me great survival skills though. Great survival skills. How do I avoid that as cars? Absolutely. They'd have served me till this day. And so when people talk about the high and the mighty and the majestic willy brown and the imperial willy brown, I have to kind of chuckle to myself because not one of those persons have ever had to do any of the things that I had to do then

and that I could do again if it, that's what it takes to survive. Now, but in those circumstances, which at the time you thought were normal, how on earth did your vision or did it extend from that day to this? I had two hell of a incredible females in my life. My grandmother, Annali Collins, and my mother, many Collins Ford, my grandmother raised the five children that were many children. Many, her daughter, went away to Dallas, Texas and other places to live over somebody's garage and work in their kitchens and only to come home on weekends. But those two women were convinced that they had uniquely talented children and that those children could conquer the world and they did everything in their power to give us that self -esteem and that self -confidence, or some people may call it arrogance, but that self -confidence to

propel us far beyond anything that we could have envisioned. They knew that there was a better world someplace for us and they insisted that we pursue it and that we pursue it aggressively and that we do so with honesty and with integrity and believe me, the hardness of those two women, and I thought it was hard then because they would never praise you, you were expected to make A's, you were expected to be the best there was, you were expected to conduct yourself properly, you were expected to win any fight you got involved in. And if you didn't, they were severely disappointed, but they never praised you for it. It was what you were supposed to do and they expected you to do it and they never put you down, you understand, if you really didn't do it, but they didn't push you to the point where rewards came in a way that would give you the big hand, so to speak. My mother died in 1993, even at that late

stage in her life, she would never, never, never, never fully acknowledge what I had achieved. I recall when she came to the legislature and I had her on the rostrum and I presented my mother for my colleagues and my mother was very religious and I said no mama no matter what you do, you know, this is not exactly a religious place, just be kind of polite and say hello. And so I introduced my mother and she stepped up the podium and with all these guys in the room, only about four or five blocks and the place was totally silent and what having all these white guys, she said could we borrow heads and we could pray and she looked over me and winked. That put me in my place, I never should have told my mother how to act and I now know that. So we're talking with the amazing Willie Brown, if you want to take that unique rare opportunity to talk with one of the most interesting people on the planet, give the PowerPoint hotline a call at 1 -800 -989 -8255, that's 1 -800 -989 -8255. For people

today in similar challenged circumstances, would you recommend that for parents, for mothers, for those family figures who are in authority that high expectations as they had for you is really the key. Absolutely, I think we all, frankly, achieve based on what we expected to achieve. If there are no expectations, there is zero performance. I say that to teachers regularly. I say that when you, in your class, you ought to operate on a theory that every child in there can be a 3 .75 or a 3 .95. Every child in there has the ability to ultimately achieve, ultimately overcome. And if you expect that for those children, they'll reach it. But if all you're doing is maintaining them, they will stay at the maintenance level. And that's a tragedy in America for most of our public schools. Exactly, including,

I imagine, the city of California, I mean, the city of San Francisco. More so than the city of San Francisco than probably any other place. Why is that the case in places where we go? Prior to the time that people like you were here. Okay, but prior to the time that Rojas came into the school district, you really didn't have the perspective that the teachers had to get the students to perform. There was still this maintenance attitude out there. Bill Rojas has come along. He's a controversial, real controversial superintendent, as a matter of fact. Many of the teachers have problems with him because he holds the schools accountable for the failure of students. If students for whatever reason don't meet the national average in testing, he says it's the teachers fault, not the students fault. If the students don't pass at college entrance level, he says it's the teachers fault, not the students fault. And he keeps reorganizing the teachers. I have been in battle with him on some of this. But it's all

exactly the way it was for us and the South. In the South, at those separate but equal schools, I'll tell you a story. I had a professor in geometry. He was the coach, Charles Gregory. He knew nothing about geometry. I mean, absolutely nothing. But the white school board didn't care. They didn't care who taught black students. They didn't care if you didn't learn geometry. Well, Gregory knew he knew no geometry. He knew he had been hired to be the coach, but there was no money for a math professor. He was the math professor. He set us down and said, listen, you're going to commit to memory. Everything in this geometry book. And you're going to be graded on how well you do on the memory side. Now, Gregory, I didn't understand one theorem, theorem 90, theorem 83. I could recite them though verbatim. I could even go down to the number of the page that they were on. And I got consistently A's in all those classes. But you know

what it did for me? It gave me a phenomenal memory. I literally can look at 30, 40, 50 pages and give you back practically everything on those pages. Gregory didn't do a whole lot for my geometry, but he did a hell of a job for my law career. The Powerpoint Hotline is 1 -800 -9898255. We're going to go to the phones now and talk with Glenn with station WVAS in Montgomery, Alabama. Welcome to Powerpoint, Glenn. Hi, good evening, gentlemen. Good evening. Mr. Brown, I had a question about getting Black Americans back into the voting process. It seems like many people in our community have been discouraged. I think that's partially by design, not to participate. And I think with as hard as we fought to get that right, I don't understand why that's happening. And I'd like to know what do you think we can do to get us back to the polls?

Well, I think you will acknowledge that each time there is an exciting, interesting, black candidate on the ballot, invariably there's an increased level of participation by persons of African -American descent. The same process visits itself upon other ethnic groups, particularly when they don't have a previous history and a previous habit of being involved in the electoral process. It's unfortunate that that really is the only time that there appears to be the discipline, willingness to go vote no matter what, and they do so, frankly, out of great pride. Those of us who hold public office, particularly African -Americans, must invest a considerable amount of our resources in trying to tap that black gold pool. I do that here in San Francisco to the incredible displeasure of many of my opponents and critics, and a recent election in San Francisco involving a stadium issue. Ordinarily, folk in our

community vote under 20 % on stadium issues and on issues that are just like initiatives. Well, this particular bond issue, this particular issue, was so important to the job delivery system under welfare to work that I made it a personal crusade of mine. I literally made it a referendum on my mayorship. The disproportionate turnout in the African -American community prompted a major investigation. They first went to the criminal courts to say there's something wrong, somebody has cheated, and all those kinds of things. The public housing projects turned out in record numbers. They questioned whether or not those people had been registered to vote and all the other things. They questioned whether or not there was honesty. Well, it so happens that they found one name of one person that appeared to be a vote that maybe should not have been cast. The woman had moved to Oakland. They went to visit this poor lady, and she said, oh, yes, I

voted. And I didn't like what that mayor said, and I voted against it. I said, thank you to my mother. I know, my mother, in fact, the fat one. So each time there is an elevated level of participation on a disproportionate basis, there is a suspicions that somehow this is not the normal history of African -American communities. I'd say to all of my fellow Black elected officials, you ought to make it the number one agenda, number one item on your agenda. If you can't turn out the same percentage of persons in the African -American community on any given vote for any issue or for any candidate, as they are doing in the other parts, you really have not done your job. If they only show up when Jesse Jackson's on the ballot, or when Willie Brown's on the ballot, or when Wellington Webb and Denver's on the ballot, or when Ron Kirk and Dallas's on the ballot, or when Bill Campbell and Atlantis on the ballot, or Dennis Archer and Detroit's on the ballot,

that's only time they show up. If that's only, yeah, Lee Brown and Houston, if that's the only time they show up, that is not good, because that's not an institutional change. What you want to do, while you have the job, and while you have the attention, you've got to establish a process by which 100 % of the vote turns out when they're discussing dog catcher. Thanks Glenn for the call and the comment and the best to you and WVAS in Montgomery. Our toll -free hotline once again is 1 -800 -989 -8255, that's 1 -800 -989 -8255. I understand that it was your uncle Izzy. It's he. You used to own a famous gambling joint here in San Francisco, where it used to be California. Well, it was not so famous. You know if you got a gambling joint, see legal, so it didn't have a name. It was well known among the gamblers. But he brought you to California. Absolutely. He convinced my mother.

And you know, my mother, as I said, was an extremely religious woman. I mean, she, whole deal with God, you know, and hereafter. Oh, that point. We're coming up on 29 minutes into the hour. We're talking with Doméa, Willie Brown, Mayor of San Francisco. Our conversation will continue on PowerPoint when we come back. Internet services for PowerPoint are provided by World African Network, offering news, information, sports, and entertainment for African and African -American communities through broadband and new media technologies. The web address is www .waenonline .com. That's www .waenonline .com. You're listening to Public Radio, and this is PowerPoint

with Kenneth Walker. Welcome back. We're talking with Mayor Willie Brown of San Francisco, live from the Public Radio Conference. Before our break, we were talking about how you got to California. The best sales job my uncle has ever done was on my mother. He absolutely convinced her that I would not physically survive in Texas and that he was offering me shelter, a safe house. He was not wrong, right? Aside from your ability to duck fast cars, he probably wasn't too wrong, was it? Well, I don't know. You know, I got asked to go home from Preview A &M. I'm not sure that I could have made it in any of those Southern schools. My attitude was a needed some adjusted. I was a little too forward and a little too independent and a little too adult. And in addition there too, my idea is about, you know, the world were dramatically beyond being an undertaker or a school teacher. What were there? I really wanted to be a mathematician in the worst

sort of way. In spite of the fact that I knew no math, I believed that the world was controlled from a scientific standpoint and that math was kind of the key to that, you know, like E equals MC square and that kind of stuff. I was into that. All the while I didn't realize all I did is committed it to memory. And I was good at it, I thought. And so I wanted to do something in the world of mathematics. We're going to now take a call from our studio audience here. Go right ahead. Could you state your name and your affiliation before you? Yes. Good evening. My name is Maria Martin and I am the executive producer of NPR's Latino USA, produced out of the University of Texas at Austin. But about 18 years ago when I was a young reporter I covered the legislature in Sacramento and it was an eye -opening experience to cover the legislature when you were the speaker of the House Mayor Brown. My question has to do with bilingual education. This Tuesday the voters

of California will go to the polls to decide the future of bilingual education in this state. And I'm wondering if as expected the voters do approve what some people call a sink or swim education policy. What the city of San Francisco is prepared to do so that it's thousands of limited English speaking Latino and Asian students do not indeed sink. There are more than 100 languages spoken in the public schools of San Francisco. We have 70 ,000 students and a majority of those students are students of color. And within that majority of those students have English only as a second language. It is not their primary language. It would be absolutely foolish to think that there could be any restrictions imposed by any state action that San Francisco would be bound to follow. We would be incapable of functioning as a school district. If we had to follow those kinds of restrictions. 227

which is the measure you are referring to is not an isolated number. There has been over the last several elections in California. A similar effort made. There was something called Prop 63 several years ago which was an English only measure. And then there's been Prop 187. There's been Prop 209. So there's been a consistency of the pattern of trying to maintain the good old boys system of operating. As the population among persons of color continues to rise in California and sometimes shortly after 2000 we will constitute a majority. I .E. the combination of all the racial minorities will constitute a majority when they are formed together. White people will be in the distinct minority in this state. An effort is being made by some of those persons to maintain their power and their control. They have been successful at it over the last 20 years because

we have not turned out equal to our numbers at the ballot boxes and making decisions about who should be what. Slowly but surely however this sleep in monster is growing into Godzilla and believe me 227 will not slow it down. No matter what the voters do people who teach school are going to have to reach those students and they're going to have to do so in many cases in the first language of choice for those students. One of the most amazing things about this whole issue of bilingual education. Do you understand how much smarter you have to be in order to master two languages? Because you just can't master the languages. You also have to master the culture and the nuances and the feeling and the movement to be able to actually speak them. You can read them but in order to communicate you really got to know exactly what you're talking about

when you use the various phrases and there are some languages in which they're just slight modifications of the same word that means something. You really have to be very sharp and to suggest that somehow if you already have mastered English like I allegedly have that that's where I should stop. Do you understand how handicapped I really am when I travel worldwide representing San Francisco. I feel really backwards and awkward in that I need a translator and not one of the leaders in China needed a translator. Not one of the leaders in Vietnam needed a translator. Not one of the leaders in Korea needed a translator. Not one of the leaders in Japan needed a translator. Only this monolingual person from Texas needed a translator. I think 227 will in case in many cases if it was imposed forever people

in this state being monolingual. In this world of global activity that's a dumb thing to do. We in San Francisco would never want to be identified as dumb. We're coming to you live from the public radio conference in San Francisco and we have Domea. Willie Brown to talk to him you need to call the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. As a follow up to that last question, California always seems in the last several years to be on the front line of this war on diversity and affirmative action. And your side seems to be always losing the battle. What's going on here? Well, it's because we don't show up at the polls in sufficient numbers. Many of us are not yet registered because we are citizens and those of us who other leaders have not dedicated ourselves to maximizing our participation in the political process. You understand that those items originated in California because California is virtually the first state that is going to see the

flip where the racial minorities as a group become the majority. New Mexico will follow Arizona will eventually follow Texas will eventually follow Florida will eventually follow and then there are some other states that will be forthcoming. But California is number one. We are our school district is probably under 40 under maybe even under 30 percent white under 30 percent white. You understand what that's going to mean in a very short order? No, it's just amazing. It's going to mean frankly that the adults who will be doing the voting are going to be in the same proportion. We're going to go down to 30 percent white people and in the 70 percent none white people. And it's going to be that way in every aspect of life in San Francisco. Although white people still dominate, they still dominate in every aspect of power and control. And you would think they ought to be comfortable doing that rather than fighting us on these meager things lack affirmative action or lack bilingual

education. You would think they would embrace those because it would enhance the whole body politic but oh no that's a potential erosion of power. And as a result of that there is great hostility particularly among the more conservative groups. One eight hundred nine eight two five five that's one eight hundred two five five. We're going to take another call from our studio audience here. Please identify yourself in your affiliation. My name is Lotus Yifong and I'm a resident transplant and voter in San Francisco. My mother used to plant rice in China and then our family ended up in Albuquerque, New Mexico where I couldn't learn Chinese or Spanish or my Mexican American friends either because there was no bilingual education in those days. So I've picked up my street Spanish the hard way. But I was standing behind you when you announced for your candidacy of mayor in the Western edition. Where we live in the Peace Plaza in Japan town which

commemorates World War II and the dropping of the bomb on Hiroshima. So my concern about all the races and classes and ideologies of people that we have living in San Francisco, California and the United States and the world that we need more programs like PowerPoint that will bring the voices together. And also we have a resource in San Francisco, the minority television project which is now Channel 32 which we would like to see operate in a way that we can bring these issues out because I would not have been able to raise my kids in the public schools in San Francisco with kids bust from the Western edition to Chinatown from the mission to Chinatown. Sharing bilingual programs and multicultural programs together. I mean we had black Spanish speaking and Chinese kids doing a

play together about how Chinese kids were segregated and had to sue, go to court, maybe tape versus the then superintendent of schools in order to have the right to attend a school that was previously Italian American and most of those kids were the children of immigrants. Let's give the bear a chance to respond to some of that. My point about the housing issues in San Francisco is we have Prop E which is very confused. Well it's not confusing and divisive but it raises the official issue of affordable housing in such a way that it makes it appear that most Chinese are on the landlord's side when it's not a racial issue. We have just as many Chinese who are tenants and everybody of every color. Well for the benefit of this national audience you should know that San Francisco is one of those rare cities that have what's called ring control. More than 70 % of the people who live in San Francisco are tenants. Some

years ago there were major battles over how tenants and landlords would get along in this little 49 square mile place. A place that has limitations on how tall you can build buildings. There are a place where you must preserve every old thing that's here that's ever been built. We see value in much of it. A place where planning and land use constitutes the major political sport for us in San Francisco. So in spite of all of those kinds of things a deal was worked out between landlords and tenants that has worked now for almost a decade. The proposition that's referred to by the person at the mic would change that it would remove those restrictions from a ring control standpoint on structures that have fewer than four units.

That's probably somewhere in neighborhood of 15 20 % of the housing in San Francisco. And it would result in a catastrophic problem for lots and of people. It has no race implications or whatsoever. It has landlord versus tenant implications and landlord versus tenant implications only. And I would guess that nationwide in every urban area the situation is somewhat similar. In San Francisco it's a bit more critical because we have zero vacancy on the residential side in this city. Things are so good. Unemployment is at 3 .5%, which is probably one of the best in the nation. We have an incredible amount of capital investment going on in this city because people want to live here and we have so few square feet of land. And we have very few structures that can be expanded because of all the previous limitations of which I spoke. But

you can see the crisis becomes one of enormous proportions. If suddenly triple and quadruple rental bills were sent to people who are now spending maybe 30 % of their income for rent. Housing and particularly the problem of the homeless have been particular problems for you. Major. Major. I mean at one point you were denying that homeless people lived in the park and you reversed yourself. You said you were relying on the park officials comments to you and you want said that you didn't have a clue about what to do with the problem. Have you learned anything since then? Well I didn't say I didn't have a clue. I said I'm not sure the problem is solvable at a city level because the homelessness is basically a combination of three or four things. The populations made up 40 % veterans. The national government has decided to abandon the veterans. They don't provide housing accommodations for them anymore. They don't provide extensive health

care for them anymore like they did 15, 20, 30 years ago. They don't provide educational assistance and they are totally out of the mental health business with reference to veterans of this nation in the manner in which it's needed. And as a result of that veterans on goal live on farms veterans live in urban areas. That's 40 % of the population and then there's a great change in the mental health picture in this nation. Do gooders said people who are suffering from any mental problems are better off if they are not a harm to themselves or to others being close to where they live. That means you return them to cities and you shut down the mental health facilities hospitals throughout the state. But you didn't provide any money for community mental health facilities that would give them the connection they need in order to survive and get their medication. That's part of the homeless group. And then of course there's the advent of poverty. When you cease to provide people with money for welfare and things of that

nature you end up with these people being poverty stricken. They don't go to farms. They don't go to the suburbs. They go to where there's a concentration of people that may give them a handout i .e. urban areas. And if you are as generous as San Franciscans are both at the governmental level and personally. And if you have as many people coming through who are tourists that are also equally generous it becomes a lucrative place to be if you're homeless. Absolutely. If you're homeless or if you're poverty stricken we do drug treatment on demand for an example. We're moving to mental health treatment on demand in San Francisco. We provide shelter like you would not believe. We provide more money for what's called those who are on general assistance. No state money, no federal money. We provide general assistance. I'm in the process of doing universal health care to cover the other 130 ,000 people who live here that are not now covered. Now if you lived in Oakland for an example, which is just across the bay, it's a $4 .00 bark

ride, you get $222 a month if you're general assistance in Oakland. You get $345 you're in San Francisco. It takes no genius to figure out. You spend $4 of that $2 .22, and next month you've up your salary by more than 120 bucks. Why would you think they would not come here? And so consequently to the extent that we do comprehensive programs, continuance of care and all the other things we increase the population disproportionately. I don't suggest that we ought to shut the barters down, but I think everyone should understand that unless we address the issue regionally, statewide or nationally, the incidents of homelessness will always be greater in places of generosity and tolerance than there will be in places of ignorance with reference to people civil rights, civil liberties, and a discarren population. 1 -800

-989 -8255 is our toll -free hotline. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. We're going to go to the phones now and talk with Melvin with Sister Station KTSU in Houston. Welcome to PowerPoint Melvin. Yes, I'm calling from Houston. I was just calling to get his opinion on Mayor Lee Brown. Do you think Mayor Lee Brown is a mayor for the people? Well, Lee Brown's only been elected about three or four months and he got elected by the people. He also incidentally participated in an effort to kill what was comparable to 209 in Houston, 209 in California. And he succeeded in doing that. Lee Brown has a distinguished career behind him. He was part of the Clinton administration as a drug czar. He's been in law enforcement for a while. He has highly educated in the world of public administration. I think Lee Brown has a chance to move Houston like no predecessor mayor. And I'm excited about his

candidacy because and his stewardship of that city because you understand if he becomes more successful, I'm going to figure out the connection between the Brown families that represented Willie and Lee. Thanks a lot Melvin for that call. The best to you and KTSU in Houston. We're coming up on 49 minutes into the yard. Our discussion with Domea Willie Brown continues when we come back. Still ahead on PowerPoint in our next hour and insightful, hilarious and unpredictable conversation with one of the nation's wildest and funniest comedians and actors. Tommy Davidson. We'll talk about his new film and about life as a comedy star in a changing Hollywood. Stay tuned. Welcome back. I'm Kenneth Walker.

We're talking with Willie Brown, the amazing mayor of San Francisco. We're coming to you live from the public radio conference. We are now going to take questions from the audience. Please identify yourself in your affiliation. My name is George Thomas. I'm the general manager of KTSU radio station in Houston, Texas. Mr. Brown, it's it's an honor here to be here to talk to you. We have two connections. You're from Texas. I'm from Texas. You a prayer of you, man. I'm a prayer of you, man. I know. Remember they sent me home. I was only there two weeks. I understand. I do understand. I don't even think they have a record. Or at least I hope they don't. But we do. We are in Houston. We have the largest African -American audience of any public station in the country and we're located on the campus of Texas Southern University. And my question to you talking about Mary Lee Brown, he is a member of our radio station incidentally. But the point I wanted to make to you is that you spoke of your mother and you spoke of your grandmother and you say these

were the two individuals that minute to you and to where you are today. And I think that what's going on in our country the day that one of the questions that I would like to hear you address is the question. I would like to ask you a question. What do you think about institutionalized racism in America that they seem to. This is a question everybody sides steps. Nobody want to deal with this issue. But I think that this is one of the issues that America is going to have to deal with. Well, you know, I think it's totally American to be a racist and it's equally as American to deny it. And that's the problem. Bill Clinton has attempted to put the issue of race on the front burner. And it's been rejected consistently. It was on the front burner starting at about 1954 when Brown versus a Board of Education was decided. It was made even more relevant when Rosa

Parks refused to give a proceed in Montgomery. And then that followed with a series of rides, freedom rides, sit -ins, all kinds of demonstrations. And I suppose 1963 all America was riveted on what happens with reference to the race issue. Montgomery and Memphis and a whole bunch of other things were on our minds in every way. Selma was on our minds. And then of course, 64 and 65. You had the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act. And then Martin King's death. And Martin King's death is probably the point at which America began to put race on the back burner. And it's been on the back burner since that time. We've not been able to move it forward. You would assume it would go to the back burner if there were, you know, if there were no reasons. If there are, if the reasons that cease to exist, why we need governmental attention to the issue. But you just look around you. How many

persons of color have you seen in the boardrooms of America? How many persons of color have you seen at the home of the universities in this nation? How many people of color have you seen in the world of finance in this nation? How many people of color have you seen in any of the respective things that we've been denied for so many years to be a part of? It's clear racism is still a major problem in these United States. I think it was the both who in about 1903 or so said the issue of the number one issue in this nation is the issue of black and white and race. And then John Hope Franklin, 70 or 80 years later, said the same words and the same thing and believe me, each of them were equally as accurate. We all denied. We denied at the congressional

level. We denied at the state level. We denied at the city level. And when I say the reasons why I'm being given a bad time is because I'm black. I'm almost coward into not seeing it anymore because people say, oh, you know, he has a chip on his shoulder. Well, no, that's not true. I've got a redwood forest on my shoulder. In a few minutes, we seconds, we have left like 10 or seconds or less. You're running the laboratory. How do we build continue to build coalitions among people of color in this country? We evidence a conscious awareness of the existence of racism. And we constantly call it to the attention of everybody. And we constantly address it on behalf of Latinos on bilingual education, Asians on the kinds of things. That's going to have to be the last word. On Asians as reverse discrimination. Asians are so much

smarter than most. They don't want a lot of money. Thank you, Mayor Brown. PowerPoint live from the Public Radio Conference was produced by Debbie Williams, Tony Regusters and Reggie Hicks and San Francisco. And directed by Tom Woodward, Verna Avery Brown, Kay Marshall, Eric Lewis and Cynthia Roberts in Washington. The technical staff included Ray Fallon, Neil T. Valt and Michael Cullen and special thanks to Monte Carlos of KQED, Monique Cheeks of the Cheeks Agency, Cheryl Flowers of the Pacific, a network and Don L. Reese for PowerPoint. I'm Kenneth Walker. Last time on PowerPoint, as we looked at black male teen academic achievers, our comment question focused on the current epidemic of school -based shootings by teens and easy access to guns by teenagers. Here's what some of you had to say. Yes, I'm calling from Columbia South Carolina. I'm a single father with two little boys. I've got a five -year -old boy. And I've got a seven -year -old boy. And I really think the problem lies within the home. I take care of my son.

I go to church every Sunday. I was listening to your show tonight. And it ain't African. It ain't white. It ain't Mexican. It ain't Japanese. That ain't where the problem lies. Problem lies. And who's taking care of who? And you've got a lot of people in these families that are just not taking care of their children. As PowerPoint celebrates the city of San Francisco and looks at politics, California style, we want to know what you think about Proposition 209, allegedly designed to create racial balance. It's been responsible for a drastic decrease in admissions by blacks and Hispanics to California colleges. Is Proposition 209 a done deal? Or should it be revisited at the polls? Tell us what you think. Call PowerPoint's comment line at 1 -888 -682 -6500. Especially those of you listening to PowerPoint on a tape -delayed basis. This is your chance to sound off. The number again is

1 -888 -682 -6500. We'll play some of your comments on next week's program. If you would like a tape or transcript of this or any past edition of PowerPoint or to make listener comments or program suggestions, please call PowerPoint toll -free at 1 -888 -682 -6500. Here's what's coming your way next week on PowerPoint. We've talked with astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle, done an historic simulcast with a Native American radio program and launched a dialogue of America from an African American perspective. Next time on PowerPoint, the best of PowerPoint. And PowerPoint news with Verna Avery Brown. Join us right here on this public radio station. PowerPoint is made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's radio program fund.

This is PowerPoint, a production of Hicks and Associates. Tommy Davidson has a list of film and TV credits a mile long, including his current leading man role, opposite Jada Pinkett -Smith in their new film, Wu. Tommy Davidson joins us next. To talk about Black comedy and life as an

actor in a changing Hollywood, stay tuned. There's more PowerPoint just ahead. way next week on PowerPoint. The world and now

PowerPoint's Kenneth Walker. From the heyday of Fox television's outrageous and hilarious in living color to an enviable list of film and television credits, including strictly business with Eddie Murphy and his current hit release, Wu, with Jada Pinkett -Smith, Tommy Davidson has had an original eye and ear for comedy in drama. And as PowerPoint continues coming to you live from the public radio conference in beautiful San Francisco, we're going to serve up a delightful and probably a bit of a wild and unpredictable hour of comedy and insightful discussion with Tommy Davidson. We'll talk about the art of comedy today and look behind the scenes at Hollywood and how Black actors are fairing in TV and film. And you can talk with Tommy Davidson by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Our discussion begins

in a moment. But first, PowerPoint news with Verna Avery Brown. This is PowerPoint, news and information to empower the community. I'm Verna Avery. production and broadcast of PowerPoint is made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This is PowerPoint, an information age

clearinghouse for issues affecting the African -American community, the nation and the world. And now, PowerPoint's Kenneth Walker. From the heyday of Fox television's outrageous and hilarious in living color to an enviable list of film and television credits, including strictly business with Eddie Murphy and his current hit release, Wu, with Jada Pinkett Smith, Tommy Davidson has had an original eye and ear for comedy in drama. And as PowerPoint continues coming to you live from the public radio conference in beautiful San Francisco, we're going to serve up a delightful and probably a bit of a wild and unpredictable hour of comedy and inside -field discussion with Tommy Davidson. We'll talk about the art of comedy today and look behind the scenes at Hollywood and how black actors are fairing in TV and film. And you can talk with Tommy Davidson by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800

-989 -8255. And if that's 1 -800 -989 -8255, our discussion begins in a moment. But first, PowerPoint news with Verna Avery Brown. This is PowerPoint news and information to empower the community. I'm Verna Avery Brown. President Clinton has slapped sanctions on Pakistan after a second round of nuclear testing this weekend. Clinton condemned tests conducted by Pakistan and India as a self -defeating cycle of escalation. The sanctions block any renewal of US military and economic aid and jeopardizes a billion dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund. Retired Army General Colin Powell says there's no doubt a lot of Gulf War veterans are sick, but says there's still no clear link between the Gulf War and Gulf War syndrome.

The former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff says sick veterans should receive medical treatment and some should receive compensation. The Pentagon has admitted as many as 100 ,000 US troops may have been exposed to nerve gas, but contends the doses were too small to have caused any long -term health problems. Whether poking fun at celebrities, politics, or everyday life, Black comedy has always been a unique expression of popular culture. But as PowerPoint's Cheryl Flowers reports, the popularity of profanity and language, like the use of the inward by many Black comedians, may not have everyone laughing. Hey, so if I say nigga all the time, I say nigga a hundred times every morning makes my teeth white, nigga, nigga. I say it, you think it's what a small white world. For many comedians like Paul Mooney, the use of the inward is a regular part of the routine, but although there is ongoing debate about its usage, comics like Mooney say comedy helps give the word a different meaning. Nigga was a word that was

used among Blacks, a sort of a secret password. That's my nigga, nigga, please. I'm not enslaved by the word, I'm not changed to it. The word has nothing to do with me, with the definition. I've taken it and made it positive. It's a weapon that I use. I think the overuse of the word diminishes its power. But many African Americans like therapist Francesca Jackson disagree. In the 60s and 70s, you know, when we began to adopt it and started calling each other out, I was always offended by that. It's like, well, you know, why are we adopting the ignorance of other people onto ourselves and making it funny? And that's a question often answered by activists and comedian Dick Gregory, author of a book titled Nigga. And he suggests the controversy over certain languages often created outside the Black community. And since comedy helps challenge people to look at the broader issues. This is a game that we got to stop playing. And how do you flush it out? You bring it out to class it. I mean, the word, nigga, if you go

6 ,000 years before the Egyptian dynasty, the word meant kings and queens. All right, they switched it around. It's a very interesting. If you welcome Carl Rockefeller and say he broke, he'll laugh at you because he not broke. And the people who that word of fin, you know, they have a right to be offended by it. But because, you know, I have a right to be offended by the way you fix your hair. I really have a right to do this. I don't have a right to stop you. Okay. And if I'm offended by it, that's my hang up, not yours. And so that's basically where we are. For PowerPoint News, I'm Cheryl Flowers. Former NBA star magic Johnson is joining the Miami Heat, but it's not a comeback. Johnson is teaming up with the NBA franchise to build a movie theater near the new Miami Heat Arena. Johnson's company has built first -run theaters in urban neighborhoods in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Houston. A PowerPoint movie critique on Warren Beatty's new film, Bullworth, can be summed up with just one word. And ironically, the word also begins with Bull and rhymes with it. Get the picture? For PowerPoint News and Information, I'm Verna Avery Brown.

... I'm Kenneth Walker and welcome to PowerPoint Live from the Public Radio Conference in San Francisco. Our guest, this hour, actor and comedian, Tommy Davidson. He got his break in the groundbreaking TV series in living color and has starred in several motion pictures, including

strictly business, Ace Ventura when nature calls and booty call. He's currently starring with Jada Pinkett -Smith in Wu. To have a word with this outrageously talented performer, you want to call the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Tommy Davidson, welcome to PowerPoint. Thank you. Nice to be here. It's great to have you. You know, one would never know from watching you perform that you were adopted as a baby by a white fan. Wow. You're going to go right there. Go Right to the point. Well, I'm black, so it's kind of hard to tell. Well, that must have been one heck of a training ground for a life in comedy. Well, actually, you know, it wasn't meant that way. I think that it really has helped my comedy because it broadens my audience really and my perspective on society is really broad, you know. So the audiences that I get kind of reflect the way that I was raised,

how I was raised in a majority black neighborhood, but it was integrated, you know, and my family was from the Midwest. So it's just an interesting insight. That's all. Well, I gather that your birth mother was a friend of your adoptive mothers, both were civil rights workers in Mississippi. What can you tell us about your birth mother? Well, the interesting thing I met her actually about two years ago, and for the first time and she and my mom worked doing immunization for the kids down in Greenville, Mississippi right now, 64 during the civil rights movement. So it was, my whole upbringing was very interesting in the way that it worked out. I mean, we moved to Washington, DC during the riots when the king had got shot, I remember that. We were laying on the ground and tanks were going by and

soldiers were going by and there was all this tear gas. So it was really interesting, but I don't really know that much about my birth mother because I just met her, not too long ago. All I know is that she was active in the movement, and my mom that raised me was active in the movement as well. So I kind of got all of that in me. It seems to me that your family background must give you some unique insights into, I guess, the sometimes funny stereotypes that whites and blacks try to impose on one another. Yeah, I think it's more like just straight truth about people, you know, and just being on both sides sometimes is just incredibly insightful because I'll be in situations where I'll have whites saying this about black people, and then I'll be in another situation where I have black people saying that about whites. And here I am in the middle going, well, that's not true, you know, about either side. So it's just interesting being in the middle of all of it, you know, sometimes. But when push comes to shove, our perspective is very black. The thing about

being adopted by a white family was that it really, really made obvious the racism to me that was going on because I'd go to school, me and my sister would go to school. I mean, different situations. Your sister who was white. And I would go to school and I would be late. We both would be late at the same time, but I would be the one who had to go to detention. You know what I mean? And I'd end up in detention after school, and she'd be sent to class. You know, it's those kind of subtle racists. There'd be another one or two examples of that kind of thing. Oh, I can tell you, we were in Puerto Rico one time, and this is funny, actually. We were on the side of the road, and there was this guy, there was this guy that was guiding us all around, you know. And we stopped on the side of the road, they were roasting this pig, you know, and he said to my whole family, you know, would you guys like some pork, you know, and they said, yeah, and then he turned to me, he said, hey, my man, how you like some of that pig? It's just the differences in the way that people

see it, man, I was like, yeah, I'll take some. We're talking with comedian and actor Tommy Davidson. You can join our discussion by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. I can imagine when you were coming up, if you ever had any white girlfriends, if they ever took you home to meet mom and dad, this must have been some pretty interesting stuff there. I actually never had any white girlfriends. My sister had black boyfriend. So I never really had to worry about that, but in my neighborhood, that wasn't an issue really. I grew up in the kind of neighborhood where that wasn't looked at as something that was taboo. Okay. You know, and I think I was fortunate in that way. Did this family experience make it difficult to relate either to black people or to white people? No, actually, my family made it easier to deal with everyone because my family is very, very, very, um,

they identified with the struggle of just the working people in general. And I was taught, you know, about racism very early. And I was taught, um, how do you get that from, from a white mother? How does a white mother teach a black son about racism in America? Well, I mean, all white people aren't the same, you know, and I come from, unfortunately, I came from, from white people that understand about how the world works as it relates to, to classes and not race, and then how that reflects back on race. And so I gained that perspective. I mean, there's a part of my family that's very conservative, I have an uncle Jerry Spins who's an attorney. I don't know if you know this attorney Jerry Spins with a cowboy hat. Right. Um, very right wing. Very um, he's an uncle. He's an uncle. Yeah, he's my uncle. Um, yeah, yeah. Um, also have uncle Tom was white, so, uh,

but, but I, I think that that's one of the things that, that when you, when one of the, one of the perceptions that, one of the perceptions that I've been given about whites is that they're different kinds of white people too. Right. You know, and all white people aren't racist. Right. And all white people aren't hip. As a matter of fact, there's some very, very, very hip white people. Some, here, but then some black folks have meant to say the truth. Mm -hmm. And I can also imagine that, that, that when the country goes through this, these cathartic logic experiences with these highly charged racial incidents, uh, like the O .J. Simpson case, that you must have a unique perspective on stuff like that. Well, I, I think that that's not a case of race, that's just, just a case of, of abuse and there was, you know, unfortunate murder that took place. And people got hurt, you know, I'm pretty simplistic about the way I perceive the world. You know, I don't look at everything as race related. Right. And I think one of the things that we have to watch out

for is black people as being reactionary about that, you know, even though racism does exist, you know, I don't think that we have to be that hypersensitive about it. Right. Once again, we're talking with comedian and actor Tommy Davidson, now starring in the motion picture film, Will, you can join our discussion by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Your first professional gig was as to do stand up comedy in a strip club in, in, in the nation's capital. Now, now, naked women must be a pretty tough actor, follow. Yeah, actually, what? No, what happened was it was, it was really circumstantial to tell you the truth. The friend of mine was working at the club. Right. He had been trying to give me the due comedy for years. The guy knew me since I was eight years old. Right. And he always thought I'd be a good comedian. And so he called me one night and he said, look, the girls take a break for about 15 minutes. Just come down, get on stage and try it out, excuse me. And I did it. And it

worked. And I've been doing it ever since. It worked. It's a real simple story. How did you know it worked? What guys who had just, I mean, their minds must still be on the most recent red thing. I mean, how did you know it worked? As in Canvas all or something like that. I just got to then did my stuff. And I, I think that's been pretty typical of my career, really, it's under any circumstance I can cut through and get to the audience and make him identify with me. What happened to your career after that? It started. It began. At first it was kind of a joke. I played around with it and I was like, well, that was fun. What am I going to do? I stayed at the club for a couple of months and then I started doing talent showcases around watching a DC where I'm from. And then a local promoter saw me and he liked my act and he put me on a show. He put me on a major show. He put me on a show with Paddy DeBel and I did a show

with Paddy DeBel and fresh out the box. I did real well. And so I started doing shows with him. Then another promoter caught wind on me and I started doing Evelin Champagne King, Kenny G. So I was doing all the big acts that started coming to town. So from that point, I did the Apollo Theater when it was in, when it was a real contest when it, you weren't, you weren't meant to lose, you know, on TV. They want you to lose so the clowns can come out. But this one, everybody really wanted to win, you know? And so I went there and I, and I got into the finals of that one and that's where I met a gentleman, Sinclair Jones, who, who later became my manager, but he said, I think you got the kind of talent and kind of skilled to do television and film. And anything you want to do with your career, why don't you take up, he gave me a plane ticket and said, why don't you fly out to LA with me for a day? I mean, for a week and let's see how things work out. So I went out there for a week, kicked ass for a week, and decided that the West Coast was where I needed to be, to

build a career, it's 12 years ago. We're going to take calls not only on the phone, but from our studio audience here, if you're interested, line up with the mic, when you're called upon, ask questions, identify yourself and your affiliation, for our listeners at home, you can call the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255, that's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Now, one of our home girls, whom you just saw walking the door, gives me a little skinny about you and your kids, as you used to start these little groups and go around singing and whatnot, that you always were a performer. Yes, true. You've always known you wanted to perform. Well, I wanted to be a singer. You know, I wanted to be a singer in playing bands and a guy used to come and get me ever since I was six years old, a guy would come to my house, take me up to the school, somehow he convinced the janitors to give us a room or something. We take a little record play and we rehearse all day, and I can't remember losing one talent show for about, for about at

least, 9, 10, 11, for at least five or six years, we want everything. And so I always wanted to be a singer. And from that experience, I learned a lot of discipline about rehearsing. Is singing something you think you might add to your professional repertoire? Yeah, it's going to happen. It's But I want to do it the right way. I don't want to put out a commercial album per se. It has to be commercial to some degree, but I want to put out the kind of album that, you know, transcends time, you know, like, Stevie Wonder's songs in the key of life or if we're in fires, that's the way the world of Carol King's tapestry, you know. Well, you, when you were coming up, music, at least African American music, for the most part, tended to focus more on love than on lust. Today's music that a lot of the young kids are listening to must come as a bit of a surprise to you. What do you think of it? It doesn't come. Today's music doesn't come as a surprise to me because look at today, today's music is just a reflection and what's going on today,

really. I mean, and at the time when we were coming up, it was a different time. And I think that the unity among us, among blacks, was different. You know, I think the awareness was up, you know, and we were struggling together at the time. And it wasn't called R &B, you know, it was called Soul Music. Right. It's called Soul. You know, and the music awards would be like, and the Soul category, you know, in Soul Man's Soul, you know, hey, like power, you know, remember that, say it loud? And so we were very aware of that, all that stuff when that was going on. So, you know, we had albums that came out that reflected the times, you know, like what's going on album with Marvin Gaye, you know, which was very, very progressive album. Right. You know, and we were just a lot more nostalgic, a lot more loving about each other, you know, lyrics. And I think that that's changed. I mean, I think it, I think there's a direct parallel with the music that's going on now, and what's going on in

our communities. We love each other, we killing each other, stealing from each other. So, you know, it, you know, one of the like, you know, hoes and bitch on records, that's our mentality now. I don't think that we're totally to blame, but we got to be realistic about where we are in order for us to get forward. We're talking with actor and comedian Tommy Davidson, you can call the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255, that's 1 -800 -989 -8255, we're going to go to the phones now, and speak with Barry in. They're going to curse me out, man. With Sister Station KTSU, welcome to PowerPoint, Barry. Even in general, I wish I was in San Francisco this time of night, wonderful, rain and cool. Mr. Davidson, do you plan to expand your acting into more dramatic roles? Yeah, I like to. As a matter of fact, the role played by Morgan Freeman and Deep Impact. Yeah, I'd like to. I

think that Morgan Freeman's role in Deep Impact was more of a commercial role to me. I like to play some more, more redeeming roles where you have a character that changes for the positive, you know? And so those are the kind of things I would like to do. Barry, thanks a lot for the call, the question, and the best of you in KTSU in Houston. That leads me to, I've noticed in some of the things that I've read about you, Tommy, that you constantly comment that you don't have the freedom in one project or another to do really what you want to do. What would you do with this freedom as yet? I have a whole lot of fun with it, I know that. And I don't think that it has anything to do with my inability as a performer. I just think that it's the way that politics are set up and just the way that the whole corporate structure is set up in LA and in Hollywood. What do you mean by that?

I just think that there's a certain amount of control that the studios and the networks have over the material that gets on the air. And so you can only influence but so much. Now, if I had total input and I'll be putting out some very, very profound, very, very spiritual, very, I'll be putting out some really good work. And it's hard to do that. I mean, when you go to a network that controls the input, so you bring the network a script and they have to to approve the script. And your script is about, let's say, a young brother from Chicago who's a VP at IBM, who's dad dies and leaves him the record store over in the hood. And he goes and he inherits the record store in the hood and tries to bring him back into the computer age. And you pitch them that kind of story. Well, they're in control if they want to pick up a story like that. They'll either do that or they'll take two brothers and put them in outer

space. They make the choice. Now, actually, you've just completed a screenplay. Yeah. Is that something of the theme that your screenplay deals with? Yeah. And so that's why I decided to start to write for myself and start to do some things for myself. Being a performer is one thing. Getting in front of the camera and doing things for people is one thing. But then getting behind the ideas is another thing. So it dawned on me after a lot of struggle and a lot of frustration. I'm going to have to start to create my own material regardless if it gets on or not. I would rather be struggling trying to do something positive for us than struggling not. So we're talking with Tommy Davidson. Our hotline at PowerPoint is 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Some people might get the impression. You see these black films almost a kind of renaissance in the last couple of years anyway. And they might get the impression that you black people in Hollywood have reached the New

Jerusalem. I mean, that there shouldn't be any problem with creative control. Just what is the state of the industry that keeps you and other creative types from getting those kind of ideas on the screen? Ask that again. What prevents you and other black creative people in Hollywood from getting your ideas on the screen? I think that it's a combination between the studios believing that you're going to make money with a particular type of idea. And just your persistence and your wherewithal and your awareness of the business and your ability to be able to utilize the powers around you to get that done. You know, it's a combination of the two. Are you finding as you move through the studios that more or fewer of the people you have to talk to to get the idea approved are black or not? Well, none of them are black. Really? No.

A few of them are. But, you know, when I think about black, it's more than a color, you know, to me black is a culture. Right. You know, and it's very rare that you find the studios identifying where you're really, really coming from as a culture. Right. You know, so that's where I run into most of my problems. The studios half the studios don't understand what they're putting out when it comes to black projects. They just figure what blacks like this or blacks like that. And I think that that's very disrespectful to our community because we're just as multi -dimensional and multi -faceted as any other culture in the world as a matter of fact, probably even more. Because we're exposed to more cultures as a people here in America. You know, we're the only community in this nation that has to deal with every single minority and whites. You know, we're thrust right into the middle of everyone's community. And so we have an understanding of Asians, we have an understanding of

East Indians, we have an understanding of Jews, we have an understanding of whites, we have an understanding of everything that we're exposed to. So, wouldn't that make our perspective a lot broader? You know, I mean, after all, you know, don't we go to the movies? Don't we want to tell them? Unfortunately, in five greater numbers than other groups in this country. So, it's sort of disrespectful when you have a studio head. And these are the kind of things that I deal with when no one is around. You know, I'll go into a studio and I'll have a guy, I'll come in for a meeting with him and he'll say, you know, tell me what black people want. You know, and I don't be going in there saying, what Jewish people want? You know, because I can't do that, because I'm not Jewish. Well, what are some of the preconceptions? Do you think these Hollywood tycoons believe black people want? What do they think black people want? Well, I don't think it's preconceptions. I don't think they

even have any type of awareness about what we're all about. So, it's the displacement of their reality, because they're from a whole different world. You know what I mean? So, the hard part is being able to sell an idea, because I don't think that they even have the slightest idea of what we're really all about. Well, obviously, they have some preconception because they say, yes, no, no. Maybe yes, yes. Right, but I think that that's based on money. Okay. So, and that's based on its math for them. So, they all go, okay, well, boys in the hood made what? Okay. Okay. That's what that made. Then, let's make boys in the hood kind of movies. Seriously, that's why it was so good that the movie, waiting to exhale made money. That was so good for us. It was so good for black folks, because the thing about it was the thing about waiting to exhale is it wasn't about guns, drugs, and violence. It was just about the human being,

the human person, you know, and they made it extra special was the black woman. Here was this perspective that had never been seen, you know, and so the more that we can expose different images globally, then the more we're going to be looked at as different. We're talking, we're telling that actor and comedian Tommy Davidson, you can join our discussion by calling our hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. We're also going to take calls from our studio audience, if they just line up at the mic and identify themselves and their affiliation. We're coming up on 29 minutes into the hour. Our discussion with Tommy Davidson will continue when PowerPoint comes back. Internet services for PowerPoint are provided by World African Network, offering news, information, sports, and entertainment for African and African -American communities through broadband and new media technologies. The web address is www

.wanonline .com That's www .wanonline .com You're listening to Public Radio, and this is PowerPoint with Kenneth Walker. Welcome back. Once again, we're talking with actor and comedian Tommy Davidson. Our

toll free hotline here at PowerPoint is 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. And members of our studio audience also can join the discussion by lining up at the mic, identify yourself, and your affiliation. We are now going to go to the phones and speak with Deborah with Sister Station KTSU in Houston. Welcome to PowerPoint, Deborah. Hi. My question is, why are there so many negative roles accepted by Blacks? Black actors, you mean? Yes. Tommy? First of all, I can't speak for individual actors and their choices. But from my experience, it's difficult to turn down work. And it's a tough thing for us to be up against because we're given that choice. And you know, that's usually what's been used against us anyway as a community to

keep us out of things. You know, to keep us out of certain neighborhoods, all you got to do is raise the price. You know, economics plays a really, really big role in our oppression, really. And so, if the only roles that are available are pimping hos, you know, and you're trying to eat, you know, you have to make a choice. But we do have choices. I mean, you can not take the role and work at Taco Bell or whatever, you know, until you can find a better role. I mean, we've done what we've had to do over these years so we can't stop. Thanks a lot, Deborah, for that question and the call, the best to you and WKTSU in Houston. Actually, recently, you encountered some of that same kind of criticism with booty call. Yeah, yeah. Can we talk about that? Talk about booty call. Booty call, I think, you know, there was a lot of criticism from the black community about booty call. And a lot of criticism in general about booty call. And I think the name booty call pretty much gave

the movie, you know, a negative outlook. I thought booty call was a very, very good comedy, you know, all it was was a comedy. And if you saw that movie, it was everything but a booty call. You know, the first thing that Jamie says in the movie, the actor Jamie Foxx says in the movie to my character is, I don't do nothing but booty calls because I don't like going out on dates. And my character says, well, tonight you're going to go out on a real date. So the movie was about a night and a real date. So I think that that was blown out of proportion. So it's a double -edged sword really because, you know, you have the studio that's promoting the show directly towards the black community by using devices like showing the girls, but on the billboard, like as if that's going to be the thing that attracts us to a movie. You know what I'm saying? And I think that that's playing us,

you know, for less intelligent. Because I went to see Sphere, and all I had was the word Sphere. And it sucked. But, you know, a lot of black movie goers do seem to be falling. Well, I think of, well, I think Bill Boers. Well, you know what? I think that they would have went to see booty call because of me and Jamie. And Biblical, you know, not because of the butt was up there. Also, so you have the studio that's pushing that kind of thing. And then you have a limited release in theaters, which lessens the chance of your movie making the kind of money that it can really make. And it was a relationship movie. And the good thing about the movie was it had a safe sex sentiment in it. You know, because some girls would not have sex without no condom no matter what. So the movie was about these two guys going all around the city trying to try to have safe sex. It was the last time you seen brothers do that. You know, so I thought that that was a very good perspective on film. And another thing about it where I thought it got blown out of proportion.

It's booty call one number, the comedy. It's a comedy. You know, and Bill Cosby came out and said a lot of negative things about the movie. And but based on what he had said in the article, he couldn't have possibly seen the movie. So I think he violated one of the universal rules of truth, which is contemporary to investigation, you know. And also the thing of the reason why I put an emphasis on the fact that it's just a comedy is that why is it that when a black comedy comes along and it's just a comedy. You know, it's it's it's buffoonery, you know, and it's looked down at. But when a white when when a white comedy comes out, it's looked at as campy. You know, and it's looked at as a cult film. And you know, I think that booty call was a lot more tasteful than porkeys. What was porkeys about? How free do you feel as an actor? How free do you feel as

an actor to comment on the screenplay or suggest changes and shots or or certain elements of the character that you feel are particularly maybe particularly demeaning? How free do you feel to do that? If I'm hired for the job, I do have a certain amount of freedom because of my savvy as a pro. So I can work with directors, I have experience working producers, I have experience working with writers, experience working with actors, experience working with set designers. So I can get in there and I can really use my expertise to work with them. And I think a lot of that experience came from me just being in the general workforce period from from I hop to the hospital I used to work at where I was in situations where I had to work with all different types of people. Like we do, it's black folks, we got to work with all kind of people and we got to get along and we got to find ways, you know. And so I think that once I'm hired for a job, then I'm able to do those kind of things at a higher degree, not to the point that I would like to or not completely. The only way that that's going to happen to

the degree that I would like it to happen is if I'm not hired for it, it's if I create it and do the hiring. Actor, comedian, Tommy Davidson, you can join this discussion by calling the PowerPoint hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. We're going to take a call from our studio audience here today if you can identify yourself in your affiliation, go right ahead with your question. Hi, I'm Sharon Thomas from NJN New Jersey Public Radio. And hi Tommy, my question to you is what happened to between brothers and does it seem like in your opinion that black television shows are pulled much more swiftly than let's say white shows. We saw the end of Seinfeld recently and when Seinfeld first went on the air, it didn't really catch on that quickly and they were given probably a year or so

before it really started to catch on and they did some reworking of the show. Black shows seem to go before anybody really had a chance to get into an interesting here, what you think about that. What happened with the in -between brothers, I don't actually know because I do not know what those networks do and why they make the choices that they make. That has been canceled up front. Yeah, up front, I'll let you know that right now. And black shows don't get a chance to get on the air or get a chance to get a following. But there's something that I noticed about the way that the networks have been working and I don't know if I'm validated by statistics by what I say, I'm just speaking with totally from my own perception of what I see. And it seems to me that as long as the networks need us, they use us. Now you see a lot of black shows on UPN and you see a lot of black shows on the water and their new networks so they need shows. So they're going to run our shows and show our shows and they really get the kind of exposure and the shows

get a chance to catch up and all that stuff. But it seems like when the network gets larger, once we build the network, we become less important. And I'm speaking from my experience with Fox. Fox, you know, counting on us as a show. Stuck with us and when I speak about us, I mean in living color of the show, produced by Kenia and Irene Williams. Stuck with the show, you know, even when the numbers weren't there, but then when it became a really large network, it was dropped like a hot potato. You know, why would you think that is just at the moment when you're about to start making real money? Why would you think that would be? You know, I haven't come to really understand that honestly. Honestly, I haven't because I don't have that kind of insight into that part of it. And I can only speak on my perspective, you know. I just wish that it's my desire just to see it so. But

business is business. And they got the handling business the way they handle their business. I just would like to see them have a little bit more respect and a little bit more appreciation for what we have to contribute artistically to television. You know, now if the things that we were contributing were lessening the state of the art, then I wouldn't have any problem with it. Right. But if you cancel a show about four professional African -American men and they're loved for each other, you know. And you try to put on a show about a white guy who wears a dress, then that's very disrespectful to me, to black people and to black men. And there have to be some kind of, there doesn't have to be. But it's my desire to see it so that networks who are in a position to do what they want to do with shows would have a little bit more social responsibility about this world in general.

That's a new concept. Actor comedian Tommy Davidson, you can call the PowerPoint hotline by dialing 1 -800 -9898255. That's 1 -800 -9898255. We're going to go to the phones now and speak with Eric with Sister Station W -E -A -A in Baltimore. Welcome to PowerPoint, Eric. How are you doing tonight? Okay. Yeah, good. You're talking, even though I don't agree with everything, you said I find to be very intelligent and insightful. I noticed, and you probably noticed, too, that slight when black men we do come out, they will have a tendency to pit them one against each other doing the same weekend, such as, you know, Malcolm X. The film came out the same time as Bodyguard did. And also it appears that Rosewood came out the same period of time as a booty called it. And it seems like, you know, those two movies and both sets had to compete against one against the other. And a lot of times they weren't the same type of a movie, you know. Do you find that to be true? Well, I mean, I think that that's just business.

And they just know how to play Black folks, that's all. I mean, there's a McDonald's across from every Popeye's, too. So it's like, you know, it's just knowing where the money at, you know what I mean? Eric, I want to thank you for the call and the question and the best to you and W -E -A -A -N Baltimore. Let's take another call, quick call from Tracy, it's in Baltimore with Sisters Nation W -E -A -A. Welcome to PowerPoint, Tracy. Hello. Hi, Tom. Hi. Hi. How are you going to talk to Thomas? Yeah, you can. I have a question that do you do religious pay, play a big part in your life? And if you do, how do you let it fit into your roles or being a comedian? Say that again. Religious. Does that play a big part in your life? If it does, how does it, how do you fit it in with your roles and your being a comedian? Well, it plays a really, really big role, but I think more from, I try to avoid when it comes to my work,

any religious standpoint and speak from a standpoint of just spirituality, because everybody has their own perception, you know, and their own choice in religion. But when it comes to spirituality, you know, that is the major backbone of all of my work. If you take a look at everything that I've done so far, that was my choice. Everything that I've done so far, that was my choice. You'll see that at the core of it, you'll see that it's about having faith and about healing. And it's about making this world a better place. Strictly business was about a brother from the hood who hooked up with a brother who had a corporate background. Both of their lives were different. He was a conservative brother. The other brother was a very progressive brother. They got together

and they took a black bank and did some really, really big business and I think that what that did for our community and the world in general is, is it gave us a lot of faith and faith to me has everything to do with God. So there it is right there, you know. Tracy, thanks for the call and the question, the best to you and W -E -A -A and Baltimore, we're now going to take a question from our studio audience. Please identify yourself in your affiliation. Hi Tommy, I'm Kathleen Jackson with National Public Radio. And I have two questions, one personal, one professional, a little related. Both my sons are adopted. I got brought them into our family as infants and they're eight and nine years old now. So my first question is, do you have any advice for me because you seem to have, you know, adjusted and have come out very well? And then my second question is,

Ace Ventura, when nature calls, was that one of the movies that you did for the money? I don't let my kids watch that and it's not because of your role, but it's because of you. So those are my two questions. The first one I would say, what are your children black? Yeah, they're black. Okay, just love them. Yeah. Just love them. I mean, that's my advice. Just love them. And let them know as much about the world. And it's total global expense, all cultures, you know. You know, I can't parent your kids for you, you know, but for me, I can share with you some of the things that help me grow into a broader man. As far as the second one goes, yeah, I did it for the money, but not solely. Not solely for the money. It looked like a good role. It was fun to do. Jim Carrey is a really, really good friend of mine. And the thing about it, even

though it was a spoof, you see, and this was really important. I said, I'm not going to do no movie about Africans or African warriors. And it not be legit, you know. So I was very, very aware of the art department and how to handle that. So because I'm so tired, Lord, of seeing, you know, the portrayal of tribes and stuff in Tarzan and all this. So I went in there very, very aware of that. But the art department was really, really meticulous in their research. The stuff that we had on was actually legitimately from tribes. Southern Africa, I mean, the stuff was real. And they really put a lot, lot of work into it. Had to keep in mind that it's just a comedy. But as long as culturally, they were coming from the right place. As far as the warriors and stuff went, I was going to do the role. And so it had a double meaning for me. I chose that role at a time when I really, really needed the role financially. And I made an artistic choice too. And also a

personal choice because Jim was a friend of mine too. We're going to go to the phones now and speak with Carlton with Sister Station W -H -Y -Y in Philadelphia. Welcome to PowerPoint, Carlton. Yes, hello, how are you? Fine. Yeah, that was the first time I'm listening here. Great. Yes, I was just listening to the show and I'm very interested in the topic. But I was wondering, should there, like, a black business group maybe looking at purchasing a network or, you know, maybe starting a network? I don't know. I don't know the answer to that one. Well, I can tell you, Carlton, that a few years ago, several years ago, now Bill Cosby sent out some feelers to purchase NBC, which he made the number one network. Well, they quickly showed in the door, even though, if not personally, I'm sure he could acquire the necessary funds to do it. And that's as close as I know as an African -American has come to purchasing

viable commercial network in America. Of course, you have Robert Johnson, who is the chairman and principal owner of the Black Entertainment Television Cable Network. And that's very substantial operation and Bob is doing some pretty interesting things over there. But that's as much of an answer as I can give you, Carlton. I want to thank you for the call and the question. I hope you come back to PowerPoint and the best of luck to you and why -y in Philadelphia. We are talking with actor and comedian Tommy Davidson, live from the public radio conference in San Francisco. You can join our discussion by calling our hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's 1 -800 -989 -8255. Our discussion with actor comedian Tommy Davidson will continue when PowerPoint comes back. Here's what's coming your way next week on PowerPoint.

We've talked with astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle, Dun and Historic Simulcast, with a Native American radio program and launched a dialogue of America from an African -American perspective. Next time on PowerPoint, the best of PowerPoint. And PowerPoint news with Verna Avery Brown. Join us right here on this public radio station. Welcome back. I'm Kenneth Walker.

We're talking with actor comedian Tommy Davidson about his remarkable career and personal life story. You can join our discussion by calling our hotline at 1 -800 -989 -8255. That's We're now going to take a question from our studio audience. Please identify yourself and give your affiliation. Good evening. My name is Charles Hudson. I'm the traffic manager and gospel musical coordinator at KTSU in Houston. Wonderful. Tommy, it's good seeing you again. You too, Brad. Tell me, what was it like on the set of Wool with Jada and everyone else? It was a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun, man. We worked very hard on that movie. And Jada is a consummate pro. And I just want to thank her for wanting me for this movie. Because I went in for the audition. And as soon as we read this stuff, she said, I want you for the part. And that was very important to me because she was very instrumental in me getting the part in the first place.

The movie didn't do as good as we wanted it to do. So, y 'all go out and see this movie. It's like, kill y 'all. Because I damn near dad making his movie. I intend to say it. But the thing, the good thing about Wool, the wonderful thing about Wool that I love the most was that it was just about two human beings from two different places once again that found themselves and found each other and raised their life to a higher level. And that's what we're all trying to do. I really can't let you get away without doing some of your famous impressions. Oh, don't make me do that. We got to have some. I do them later. We got just one or two. I'm doing late. We cooking. We cooking here. Let's take another question from our studio audience. I also would like to say good evening and Tommy. And Kenneth Walker. Welcome to San Francisco in the Bay Area. My name is Al Glen. I'm with KECG FM Elcerito, California. Wow. Tommy, there seems to be a perennial issue with Black Hollywood not having the means of total vertical integration from start to finish from the conceiving of an

idea for storytelling, the production of it, the marketing and promotion of it, and finally the distribution. When I spoke to Bill Duke a couple of years ago, he was in town for the Black filmmakers Hall of Fame event. He said there are great opportunities that are being untapped in the areas of distribution. At this convention this year, high technology, and the advent of using technology to create alternate distribution options is key. Seems to me, in a Black entertainment profession, there has to be technicians that can seize the Internet and somehow leverage it for the kind of distribution that conventional Hollywood just refused to leverage for Black folk. So I'm just saying that in your community, in Black Hollywood or Hollywood, what suggestions would you have to

kind of unify folks to be conscientious to embrace this technology so that one is not at the mercy, and their destiny is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice and be sensible and wise about embracing the Internet, which is supposed to be a level play and feel for everybody. Yeah, I'm glad that you raised that because that's a new option for me in my life right now, and that's new information. And so I'm now moving towards different options like learning about the whole distribution business or even having the Internet within my business structure. As far as... So it's really about gaining more information so that I can move and groove like I need to. You know, it's almost like to simplify it, and just to simplify it for me, it's almost like when we left the South and we didn't know anything about land owning, you know, we rented, you know, it's

purchasing property wasn't even something that we were even aware of. We didn't even have that perception. You know what I mean? So it's like, it's new information. As far as the unity goes, and how can I promote the unity? I don't know, because they crazy out there. For example. Good. Oh, okay. Yeah, I'm gonna say they crazy out there. But, you know, one of the things that we lack the most, one of our communities, you know, one of the resources that we lack the most is unity. You know, the information about distribution, the information about studios, the information about different things like that, there's brothers out there that have that information that we're not sharing that with me, man. I've had to gain a lot of that information on my own. I've been in circles with people who have knowledge, who have knowledge of all of these things, and we're not sharing those resources with me.

That's not to blame that on them, because they don't have to do anything they don't want to do. You know, my desire to see it as such is different. I would like to see that. Do you have a website? No. You don't? Okay. But I'm working on that right now. You're working on that right now. Well, at some point, the next time you come, you will have the website address for our listeners. I want to thank you so much, Tommy. Thank you. As my personal home, for coming on the broadcast, it's been an honor. It's got started. The end of pleasure. Yes. We're just getting cooking here. And once again, we've been talking to Tommy Davidson Live from the Public Radio Conference in San Francisco. PowerPoint Live from the Public Radio Conference was produced by Debbie Williams, Tony Regusters, and Reggie Hicks in San Francisco, and directed by Tom Woodward, Verna Avery Brown, K. Marshall, Eric Lewis, and Cynthia Roberts in Washington. The technical staff included Ray Fallon, Neil T. Vault, and Michael Cullen, and special thanks to Monte Carlo's stuff, KQED, Monique Cheeks of

the Cheeks Agency, Cheryl Flowers of the Pacifica Network, and Donnell Reese for PowerPoint. I'm Kenneth Walker. Last time on PowerPoint, as we looked at Black male teen academic achievers, our comment question focused on the current epidemic of school -based shootings by teens and easy access to guns by teenagers. Here's what some of you had to say. Yes, I'm Cullen from Columbia South Carolina. I'm a single father with two little boys. I've got a five -year -old boy, and I've got a seven -year -old boy. And I really think the problem lies within the home. I take care of my son. I go to church every Sunday. I was listening to your show tonight. And it ain't African. It ain't white. It ain't Mexican. It ain't Japanese. It ain't, that ain't where the problem lies. The problem lies in who's taking care of who.

And you've got a lot of people in these families that are just not taking care of their children. As PowerPoint celebrates the city of San Francisco and looks at politics, California style, we want to know what you think about Proposition 209, allegedly designed to create racial balance. It's been responsible for a drastic decrease in admissions by blacks and Hispanics to California colleges. Is Proposition 209 a done deal or should it be revisited at the polls? Tell us what you think. Call PowerPoint's comment line at 1 -888 -682 -6500. Especially those of you listening to PowerPoint on a tape delayed basis. This is your chance to sound off. The number again is 1 -888 -682 -6500. We'll play some of your comments on next week's program. If you would like a tape or transcript of this or any past edition of PowerPoint or to make listener comments or program suggestions,

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