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coco A NEW VOICE FOR CHATTANOOGA TRAVELING WHILE BLACK REAL TALK ONE ON ONE ROUND MIDNIGHT YOUNG BLACK AND RELFECTIVE WITH NATHANIEL STEPNEY MY MOMENTS WITH MONK

MARCH 2020 Untitled circa 2019 by Nathaniel Stepney 2 6 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 9 12 REAL TALK WITH VISUAL ARTIST NATHANIEL STEPNEY 14 MOVING BEYOND FEBRUARY FOR BLACK HISTORY BY CARMEN J DAVIS 18 CORONAVIRUS CAN T KILL CULTURE BY SHANE X 22 FOOD FOR THOUGHT BY TEAM RISE BLESSED AND HIGHLY FAVORED BLACK IN PARIS A WOODSON CARPENTER MY MOMENTS WITH MONK BY EMILY MORGAN

BLESSED AND HIGHLY FAVORED Symbolism of Hope Still Exists There was a groundbreaking event that occurred during Black History Month this year TryLove Foundation a minority led nonprofit that focuses on improving life of middle class citizens who endure economic and social hardship hosted a invitation only breakfast event featuring one of the Civil Rights Movement s leading theoreticians and tacticians in the African American struggle for freedom and equality in the 1950s and 1960s The Reverend James Lawson Reverend James Lawson was a key adviser to Dr Martin Luther King Jr on nonviolent direct action strategies in the Civil Rights Movement who describe Lawson as the leading nonviolence theorist in the world He discussed the key role he played arranging the lunch counter sit in s during 1960 s in Chattanooga and Nashville Lawson has spent most of his COCO MAGAZINE the life fighting for justice introducing non violent principles to historic groups like the Freedom Riders 423 402 0452 www risecha org FULL TRUTH MOMENT I had the opportunity to work with the founders of TryLove Foundation Antonia Poland and Cynthia Wood owners of Davis MAILING ADDRESS P O BOX 406 Waynes in preparations of Reverend Lawson s visit He is Cynthia s uncle Chattanooga so booking his appearance was going to be just a little easier than Tennessee 37401 booking other international speaker which such a extensive and distinguished background CONTRIBUTORS A WOODSON CARPENTER His wisdom compassion and grace filled the room His message that we NATHANIEL STEPNEY JAMES MCKISSIC all must commit ourselves to peaceful means of resolving conflicts and EMILY MORGAN realize that that justice is everyone s responsibility is just as important today as it was during the civil rights movement Reverend Lawson spoke the truth of a life walked in love stated my friend Katelyn Kimie Director of Public Art Chattanooga During the event I was awarded the 1st TryLove Foundation Phillip E Wood Servanthood Leadership Award I can t begin to explain why this particular award means so much to me personally and professionally Antonia Cynthia you both are so extremely talented and giving You continue to break down barriers not only as two successful black women entrepreneurs but as two black women that continue to overcome the odds and provide positive life changes through your private and public philanthropic funding and impact investment within our community I admire and love you both immensely It is because of this type of kindness I believe that the symbolism of hope for our community still exists SHANE R MORROW Editor In Chief

COMMUNITY SHOUTOUTS SPLASHyoutharts blackgirlchatt dippedfresh1 A free apprentice style art The supportive network of Black Gourmet Food And Desserts school for low income at risk kids women in Chattanooga you ve Customized For All Your Wedding housed in a working artist studio been looking for Party Events And Catering Needs a t o G t u o shout noirnooga chattboutjerk Highlighting businesses and Weddings parties and events events for the Black community Make sure you look out for where in Chattanooga this Caribbean food truck will pop up next LET US KNOW Send us an email or tag their profile on our social media about a creative of color you want to shout out

IN REMEMBRANCE Well we re movin on up To the east side To a deluxe apartment in the sky Movin on up To the east side We finally got a piece of the pie Ja Net DuBois American actress singer songwriter dancer and TV s 1st African American Adoptive Single Parent B SMITH American Restaurateur Fashion Model Author Businesswoman Syndicated Television Host 1st Brown Skinned Model to be featured on the cover of Mademoiselle magazine in 1976 The B Smith with Style Home Collection which debuted at Bed Bath Beyond in 2001 is the first line from an African American woman to be sold at a nationwide retailer and includes bedding tabletop and bath products Often referred to in mainstream media as the Black Martha Stewart

BLACK IN PARIS BY A WOODSON CARPENTER I ended this most recent lap around the sun with a New Year s kiss unlike any I ve had the crisp Parisian air blown across my lips It was sensation It was feeling It was nothing I could hold have or lose It was smoggier than I expected which was fine The smog suits me even offers a soft reflection The city and I were both hazier and heavier than anticipated but still ordered and floating It was colder than normal too I know there s an analogy in the cold too something about beauty existing independent of the weather I ll figure it out eventually

I ve lived 200 000 hours in my nearly 26 years Those 200 or so hours spent in Paris were some of the best lived in what was easily the most beautiful place I ve ever been Now I don t know what really makes a place a place but I do know that it was the whole of the place a singular though amorphous collection of things that moved me Folks have asked me what my favorite thing about Paris was I suspect that they anticipate the naming of a building or food or artwork or something else discrete and easily definable however I m not sure it works like that At the very least it doesn t work that way for me My mind works in trifles and wholes In other words every little thing was my favorite thing and all of it together was my favorite thing It was the simple being and sharing of space and time that made it special and I got to be and share all that lovely with two of the most exquisite hearts on the planet The experience of this splendid novelty sprang up in the context of deep friendships old love and new love and altered love all wrapped up together I went to Paris bearing questions I could not identify and found answers I cannot even now articulate And this is a life Is it not This may be the great thing that Paris is and does Its essence is the reflection of a life Much like a life the city and one s experience in the city cannot be overly dissected and truly understood Given the abstractness of the above reflections I offer the following as summary and peace offering to whoever reads it the trip was dope I had a great time I want to go back as soon as possible All the art and food and people and places were impossibly captivating I have another hundred essays and songs and poems in me I want to move there and maybe not come back Long live Paris Long live art Long live rebellion Long live love Bonne ann e

No Title Nathaniel Stepney 2019 No Title Nathaniel Stepney 2019

REAL TALK WITH NATHANIEL STEPNEY Why do you think it s important for black people to support black visual artists The importance of supporting black art is at a high level If it s not supported unfortunately black people will lose voice of expression in the art We recently got an opportunity to sit down and their community connect with local visual artist Nathaniel Stepney What s next for Nathaniel Stepney I ve just been featured at the How did you get started as an artist BlackBoyartshow in Atlanta and I say I began drawing at a young age then started that I wanted to represent the painting at the age of 13 While in high school humbly town Chattanooga well I was I continued to develop my skills where I received I am working on a received a Congressional Merit Award for one graciously that I would love to be shown of my paintings which was submitted by one of project locally in June my local teachers What artists inspire you I would have to say Richard MacDonald and Steve Huston Tell us about what you re working on now I m currently working on a series of images reflecting People of Africa or of African descent My vision is to capture their essence with values of black and white oils and acrylics From the style of our hair to taking that dope selfie Our culture is always changing and evolving and I m blessed to capture some of these moments NAT STEPNEY NATHANIEL STEPNEY

How does your art celebrate Black culture I love our culture We are a unique people a strong people and loving people I celebrate black culture by painting our everyday people because they re the ones I come in contact with We are one No Title Nathaniel Stepney 2019

Girls are capable of doing everything men are capable of doing Sometimes they have more imagination than men Katherine Johnson IN REMEMBRANCE

My Moments With Monk by Emily Morgan In my first exploration into the colorful world of jazz I began my foray with Thelonious Monk s Misterioso This descent set the path one could describe as a pleasant yet charmingly chaotic encounter At first listen as an inexperienced jazz virtuoso I had thoughts of unease and moments of tension My head scrambled to find the words to describe this newness that was simultaneously going into my ear holes Thoughts such as Where is this going and Is Monk trying to trick the listener and keep them guessing with each unpredictable note protruded into my psyche Continuing on whilst trying to somewhat ignore those questions I did something somewhat foreign to me I just sat with what I was hearing Instead of folding clothes or doing some other mundane task that I typically do when listening to music I chose to be active in my engagement with this auditory newness that Monk was bringing me

Closing my eyes I felt as if I was just another audience member in a low key cafe where Monk would be casually performing The audience seems to be an integral piece to Monk s puzzle The audience engages with him and he calls out to the crowd various times signifying to me that this performance is more of an interaction between the two parties instead of a formal production It is also noteworthy to mention the nonverbal chemistry and ease that Monk shares with the band While Monk seems uninhibited by the band when he descends into a solo he and the band manage to find their way back to another in plain sailing fashion Moving beyond crafty clumsiness that one might recall with a first listen Monk elevated the experience for me that wasn t just casual listening like one might do in an elevator or waiting room I felt like I was somehow intertwined in the experience No two songs are similar yet Monk s transitions between tracks seem effortless and brought me a feeling of calmness that washed over me and continued to stay with me for the rest of my day Each instrument s solo as well as their synchronicity offered me a new admiration for the genre and the musicians behind their instruments

As Black History Month comes to an end there becomes a challenge to keep the community actively engaged to learn more We asked one of our city s Arts Culture advocates Carmen Davis to share with us some additional facts about some of Chattanooga s historical black figures that we may not be fully aware of Shortly after the end of the Chattanooga campaign Civil War and the Union occupation of the city two men one William Uncle Bill By Carmen J Davis Lewis a former slave who had earned enough money as a to free both him and his family and the other John S M MO OV VIIN NG G blacksmith Lovell his free born nephew spearheaded the business B BEEY YO ON ND D development among African Americans along East 9th Street FFEEB BR RU UA AR RY Y MLK FFO OR R Let s talk about nephew B BLLA AC CK K was a larger than life African American entrepreneur who H HIIS STTO OR RY Y Lovell started his career during the Civil War with fifty cents and some skill as a barber in the refugee camps Renaissance Park area He later gambled managed prostitutes and sold whiskey from a tent on Market Street and by the end of the war was able to buy the block of property on Market Street between 9th and 10th streets where the old slave jail had been located Miller Park Here he constructed a large brick building that he called Mahogany Hall Featuring drinking gambling dancing and prostitutes it came to be known as the most notorious place Chattanooga has ever known It was also highly profitable Lovell invested heavily in real estate During the late 1800 s he helped organize and sponsor several large groups of local African Americans for emigration to southern California and other parts of the far west So many were going that the newspapers spoke of a western fever among the local Negroes He even organized one group of immigrants that went to Mexico and established themselves there John Lovell died at his home after a few weeks illness on November 26 1898 His third wife a devout Christian arranged his funeral services and burial through the Wiley Memorial Methodist Church at Fifth and Lookout Streets Lovell had performed numerous works of charity and was known for his loyalty to his friends At the time of his death he was one of the richest men in Chattanooga He had sold his Mahogany Hall property a few years before his death but still owned considerable real estate His wife estimated his property to be worth around 50 000 1 554 042 17 today compiled from multiple sources

Clarence Bernard Robinson CB Robinson was born February 4 1911 in Chattanooga TN known then as Hornesville now Eastdale He was an educator and Tennessee state representative 1974 1992 from District 28 and was a founder of the Black Caucus in the Tennessee General Assembly For 39 years CB Robinson distinguished himself as a professional in the field of education as a teacher and principal and was at the forefront in various teacher organizations including the Chattanooga Educational Association and the American Federation of Teachers organizations which have worked to improve the quality of education in Chattanooga Most notable were his works in the early forties and fifties in achieving equalization of teacher salaries regardless of race and a tenure law in Chattanooga that guaranteed teachers security from unfair termination without due process Additionally Robinson worked to ensure equality of access to public facilities in Chattanooga having led the fight to open up the Chattanooga Public Library to Black citizens in the early 1950s He also was a leading force in efforts to desegregate public facilities such as restaurants buses and movie theaters to Blacks and worked as a leader in the creation and development of the James A Henry Branch of the Y M C A In 1974 Robinson was elected to the Tennessee Legislature as a State Representative where he served for 18 years He as elected Chairman Emeritus of the Black Caucus for the Tennessee General Assembly and served on the Democratic Platform Advisory Committee in 1980 He was a founder and co chairman of the Tennessee Voter s Council and Local Chapter President In 1981 the CB Robinson Bridge was built over the Tennessee River carrying DuPont parkway Robinson remained active in the civic affairs of Chattanooga for many years after he left his political office Robinson died in 2002 and was survived by his wife a daughter and several grandchildren taken from multiple sources

Reverend Cleavant Derricks was born on May 13 1910 in Chattanooga Tennessee to John Thomas Dirk Derricks and his wife Ora Mae Kinamore Derricks Derricks was not a household name in gospel music circles nor did he ever become wealthy from his songwriting Rather he spent a lifetime devoted to the Lord s work composing and performing some wonderful songs directing choirs and ministering from the pulpit Derricks was helping his mother sweep out a theater in Chattanooga where he found 5 and the inspiration to write Just a Little Talk with Jesus That money went to pay for a music lesson at the Cadek Conservatory of Music in Chattanooga one of the first such schools to admit blacks He later swapped his song for about 50 songbooks that he sold at churches and gospel meetings for about 10 cents each Receiving formal music training at the Cadek Conservatory Derricks would later study at Tennessee Agricultural and Industrial State College now Tennessee State University and the American Baptist Theological Seminary in Nashville Beyond his songwriting prowess Derricks was noted for capably directing choirs including Washington D C s Vermont Avenue Baptist Church Choir which was comprised of more than one hundred voices His ministry would also take him to churches throughout Tennessee in Dayton Knoxville and Jackson and to Beloit Wisconsin For more than a decade Derricks was pastor of the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Washington D C before returning to Tennessee where he built Knoxville s Ebenezer Baptist Church in the late 1940s Derricks is most noted for writing Just a Little Talk With Jesus We ll Soon Be Done With Troubles and Trials When God Dips His Love in My Heart When He Blessed My Soul and the lesser known but equally good I Want the Light From the Lighthouse to Shine on Me In January of 1975 in need of money to pay medical bills he went to Nashville visiting Canaan Records to ask if they would publish some songs He said he had not written songs for many years and was gun shy about telling them who he was Once the company realized who he was and verified it they were interested in recording some demos with him They found out he was still good at writing songs and they recorded two albums using him and several members of his family The first album was Reverend Cleavant Derricks and Family singing his own Just a Little Talk With Jesus in 1975 The album had nine other songs Derricks had written The next year 1976 they released a second album Satisfaction Guaranteed He did the recording with a 105 degree fever that he thought was a cold Instead it turned out to be colon cancer He also began to suffer with memory loss due to his illness The producer for the albums found out that Rev Derricks had not been compensated much for his well received and popular songs and so contacted a licensing service and got them to pay royalties for the last six years to Derricks Derricks would receive a check for 14 000 dollars A few short months later April 14 1977 Derricks passed away

The most The most important thing important thing is to try and is to try and inspire people inspire people so that they can so that they can be great in be great in whatever they whatever they want to do want to do IN REMEMBRANCE

Coronavirus Can t Kill Culture As coronavirus Covid 19 continues to spread and disrupt the daily lives of people across Chattanooga and beyond forcing many to stay home due to school and work closing and self quarantine we are compiling some interesting and informative activities to get your arts and culture fix from home via the internet Online Art Tours Resources Explore Google s Arts Culture Platform where they have digital documentation of more than 1 200 international institutions From virtual tours to high definition images of works from the collections you could get lost for hours on this site

PBS Black Culture Connection Your resource and guide to the films stories and voices across public television centered around Black history and culture Explore Watch Connect READING IS FUNDAMENTAL March is designated as National Reading Month Our selected author is the Towering Novelist of The Black Experience Toni Morrison She was the 1st African American Woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature She was the author of 11 novels as well as children s books and essay collections Among them were celebrated works like Song of Solomon which received the National Book Critics Circle Award in 1977 and Beloved which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988 President Obama stated that Toni Morrison was a national treasure as good a storyteller as captivating in person as she was on the page Her writing was a beautiful meaningful challenge to our conscience and our moral imagination What a gift to breathe the same air as her if only for a while

The politics of Jesus and the politics of God are that people should be fed that people have access to life that people should be treated equally and justly Reverend James Lawson

FOOD FOR THOUGHT What is the difference between isolation and quarantine Isolation and quarantine are public health practices used to stop or limit the spread of disease Isolation is used to separate ill persons who have a communicable disease from those who are healthy Isolation restricts the movement of ill persons to help stop the spread of certain diseases For example hospitals use isolation for patients with infectious tuberculosis Quarantine is used to separate and restrict the movement of well persons who may have been exposed to a communicable disease to see if they become ill These people may have been exposed to a disease and do not know it or they may have the disease but do not show symptoms Quarantine can also help limit the spread of communicable disease HHS gov U S Department of Health Human Service FACTS STILL MATTER TRUE or FALSE A vaccine to cure COVID 19 is available FALSE True There is no vaccine for the new coronavirus right now Scientists have already begun working on one but developing a vaccine that is safe and effective in human beings will take many months TRUE or FALSE You can protect yourself from COVID 19 by swallowing or gargling with bleach taking acetic acid or steroids or using essential oils salt water ethanol or other substances FALSE True None of these recommendations protects you from getting COVID 19 and some of these practices may be dangerous The best ways to protect yourself from this coronavirus and other viruses include Washing your hands frequently and thoroughly using soap and hot water Avoiding close contact with people who are sick sneezing or coughing In addition you can avoid spreading your own germs by coughing into the crook of your elbow and staying home when you are sick TRUE or FALSE Ordering or buying products shipped from China will make a person sick FALSE True Researchers are studying the new coronavirus to learn more about how it infects people As of this writing scientists note that most viruses like this one do not stay alive for very long on surfaces so it is not likely you would get COVID 19 from a package that was in transit for days or weeks The illness is most likely transmitted by droplets from an infected person s sneeze or cough but more information is emerging daily TRUE or FALSE A face mask will protect you from COVID 19 FALSE True Certain models of professional tight fitting respirators such as the N95 can protect health care workers as they care for infected patients For the general public without respiratory illness wearing lightweight disposable surgical masks is not recommended Because they don t fit tightly they may allow tiny infected droplets to get into the nose mouth or eyes Also people with the virus on their hands who touch their face under a mask might become infected People with a respiratory illness can wear these masks to lessen their chance of infecting others Bear in mind that stocking up on masks makes fewer available for sick patients and health care workers who need them