Although the forecast of extremely cold weather has put a damper on MLK Day celebrations in Northwest Florida, people across the region and nation are pausing to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this federal holiday.
WUWF's Sandra Averhart spoke with Arriegious Thomas, the newly-elected President of the NAACP Branch 5124 in Pensacola, to share some of his reflections on the legacy of Dr. King.
Sandra Averhart: What are some of your thoughts?
Arriegious Thomas: There’s been a lot of improvements as well as a lot of things that need to be improved. When we look at where we came from in regard to our voter rights, as far as housing, (and) education, there have been a lot of improvements. However, there’s still a lot of room for additional improvements in some areas. Some things have been rolled back and we are already aware of some of the programs that they've taken away. So some things still need to be done.
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Averhart: In terms of Dr. King's goals for racial equality in the U.S. and now, more than 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, what do you think he would be most proud of?
Thomas: Again, there's been a lot of improvement. As well as I’ve seen personally, in regards to wealth, in regards to African Americans. We have a lot of people who are in certain industries that have had a lot of opportunities to prosper.
Averhart: Like entertainment?
Arriegious Thomas: Entertainment. Sports. And, we’ve actually done well in the clothing industry. So we are now being allowed to establish wealth for generations and we hope that continues. Generational wealth is the key to me.
Averhart: So now, let’s move on. You mentioned some of the work that still needs to be done. You mentioned education as it relates to Black males.
Thomas: For me, that’s one of our hardest points. Reaching some of these young men is not easy. They see the gold and they want the gold. A lot of them don’t seem to understand that some paths they take to get the goal is going to wind them up in a situation that they don’t want to be in. Not just education in regards to the males, but education overall. The cost is one of the sticking points for me as well. When you’re talking about trying to get an equal footing in equal ground for all the people who are trying to go to college. I know people who have astronomical bills after that, and some of them just can’t afford to even start the process. If you start off living in, what I call the projects or the squalors, it’s tough to get out of that because you're fighting every day just to keep food on the table and to be able to go to school. And when you miss those two primary things, it makes it difficult to get ahead, period. So some of the housing developments that we've set up for, low-income people, they can be a lot better, a lot different.
Averhart: How do you think Dr. King's legacy continues to influence the NAACP today and the work that you continue to do toward a more just world?
Thomas: Well, I used to say as a simple statement: the mission hasn't changed. So we're still doing pretty much the same thing we've always been doing to fight injustice, inequality, and to make sure everyone is treated fair under the laws. so the mission hasn't changed. I think everything in regard to that is still going the same.
Averhart: Now one of the main focuses of the NAACP, I guess nationwide and certainly here in our community, has been your work in the area of voting rights. And this is something that you have been really involved in.
Thomas: Yes, I’m the committee chairman for political action, which also involves voters' rights and voter registration. Before the election, we had done 15 voter registration drives. The biggest thing with me, with voter registration drives, is I look for the person who has not registered before or someone who’s having a hard time figuring out where to go and how to get there to get registered to vote. Sometimes we will have some of the felons come to ask the question of us. Unfortunately, I’m not the resident expert in regards to what their rights are and how to get their rights restored. So we send them, mostly to the League of Women Voters (Pensacola Bay Area), who already have a program set up to assist those guys or women who will have records who are trying to get their rights back to vote.
Averhart: And you say unity when it comes to elections, cutting down duplication.
Thomas: Yes. We as NAACP have tried to make the work that we're all trying to do a little easier for all of us. Our prior president, Van Durant, reached out to the sororities, the fraternities, and the other organizations that were out there doing anything in regard to voter rights, and voter registration. And we would get together and all meet and put our ideas on the table and see the best approach to doing things that we were all trying to do, such as voter registration drives. We got a lot of information in regards to how, when, and where to try to do a drive. A lot of times we would set up one and that’s all that was there. One young lady had the idea of having a fair, so (there will be) some events for people to be doing. And that’s where you would get them to walk by the registration booth and hopefully, they would take the time to either register or have a conversation with you in regards to registering.
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Averhart: So we can’t ignore the fact that on this MLK Day, the spotlight is being shared with the inauguration of Donald Trump for a second term as President of the United States. Now, what are some of your expectations and or concerns, as we look ahead to the next four years under his leadership?
Thomas: For me personally, I understand changing up the guard, changing up command. I spent 20 years in the United States Navy and not everyone who was in charge I was crazy about; this is what I’m going to deal with now. I’m not going to concern myself with what may or may not happen, what he may or may not do. I deal with the things that are before me, not the things that I fortune-tell. I watch what’s going on and I react when I need to react.
Averhart: Do you have some specific things or areas of focus that you would hope that he would address?
Thomas: Yes, my biggest concern and I've heard him (Trump) say, it is the taxes. Taxes on veterans and peoples’ retirement checks. I mean, if you worked the masses of your life and you're retired, I don’t believe that that income should be taxed. The tax system that we have now is overtaxed. It’s overburdened. There’s too much red tape with it. If you would look back in the history books, you would see that the tax system continued to compile. So that’s one of the areas I would like to see him address.
The military, after serving 20 years, I know how some of the guys are dealing with — paying bills and pressures and the things that are on them. Make sure you maintain a focus on those young men because they are actually young men. And when they first come in, there’s a lot of stuff they put on them. Some of them can’t take it. And if you’re not paying attention, then we can have some bad things happen.
Averhart: Arriegious Thomas. Thank you very much.
Thomas: Thank you.
