C TRI
EV
death. Homicide nd uicide kill
more of our 15-24 ye r olds than
ny oth r me . The percen ge
haven't declined. Th y have ri en.
Almo t 1qD ye rs ve p ed
lnce tb birth of J ck Johnson and
hat h ppened to Rodney King. At
time , Bl c women, I m
more pe imi tic than optimi tic.
That hurts. I h ve felt blow like
Joh on and King. Maybe they
weren't phy leal, but I felt them
neverthele . I feel the blow of
exi m bee use I am a woman.
White America is tired of talking
and dealing with racl m. Well,
gue what? So am I.
I am tired of wondering whether
or not I will h ve a future a wife
or a mother. Every year it looks
more and more di mal. Our Black
men from the ge of 15 to 44 are
uffering from alcohol/drug abuse,
imprisonment, unemployment or
THE P RALLELS between infection from the AIDS virus. Yet
Rodney King and Jack Johnson are ociety keep aying to us: Lay
too strong for me to ignore. I have down and we'll top beating you 0
witne ed nd continue to witnes hard.
Americ tell our Black men. "If I m tired of haring my hurts
only you had laid down, we nd frustrations with tho e who li -
wouldn't have beaten you 0 hare!," ten with an apathetic ear.
Many atched the videotape of People listen, but they refuse to
Rodney King being beaten by the . change .. Nothing infuriates me
police over nd over again. Every more than to be told, Go and tell
time it came on the news, people ran them they are being paranoid. If
to their sets. I could only watch it we are a people of paranoia, beat
once. The kicks nd the night stick ing seen and not een have planted
blow reminded me of Johnson. I tho e eeds.
remembered King trying to get up. In the arne Essence magazine
The more he tried to stand up, the i sue, David Dent, a televi ion
harder the blow . America watched reporter and freelance writer, wrote
in horror and ked, "How could an article entitled, Readin,' Ritin'
this happen?" I watched, cried and and Rage, How chool are
asked, "How could you not know Destroying Black Boy . He inter
it' happening?" It was as if half the views young Black boys all over
world was asleep and finally woke the country. One was quoted as
upl aying, When there's a fight at my
It i tragic it took a videotape to chool and it is between a white
wake people up. It w tragic so guy and a Black guy, they always
,__.".."y 'ill to t" t pit.
cvi" approach wbCn it co to They figure be alerted it. the'
i m �op'�on. It is traJic " e in q ystem,
•• oJ the jurors" sa1(1, It'oruy he a1C1 u the con�pt "L8y down .... nd we'll
down, the police wouldn't have stop beating you 0 hard" is being
beaten him 0 hard." practiced.
In the case of Jack Johnson, all What happened to Jack Johnson
filming was stopped com�letely isn't history, it is current news. We
whenever he defeated his white op- see it in our society. We saw it live
ponents. The only films shown in and in color on TV with ROdney
their entirety are of Johnson being King.
beaten by his white opponents and In 1987 I traveled to South
laying flat down on the canvas. The Africa. I witnessed apartheid first
world applauded such a sight. Un- hand. I wrote articles about my ex
fortunately, many applauded the periences. I lectured on the topic
sight of Rodney King being beaten. throughout the state. But eventual-
In 1989, Essence ly I had to stop. I was feeling like a
magazine devoted its entire hypocrite. In past five years, I have
November issue to Black men. The seen forms of apartheid in this
issue was entitled: OUR MEN ... ln country that would put the South
Love, In Trouble. William Strick- African governmental policies to
land, a political-science professor shame. I began to address these
in the W.E.B Du Bois Department . issues about our country to groups.
of Atro-American Studies at the They felt betrayed by my confron
Universi ty of Massachusetts at Am- tations. Many did not want to deal
herst wrote: Sixty young Black with what was going on here. It was
men compared with every ten far more comfortable to look across
young white men will more likely the ocean than in the city boun
ie violent, often self-inflicted daries of Detroit. Once again, Lay
Epic drama in Dearborn
TH P ODUCTIO taff
consi of two of the fine t
de igners in the Detroit area:
Brian Timmer, costume de ig
ner and Tom Anderson, et/prop
d igner.
Anderson h designed for
the Hilberry Company, Jewish
Ensemble Theatre and Nelon
Mandela' U.S. Tour in Tiger
Stadium (Summer '90). He w
recently prai ed for h,i prop
designs for The Man Of La
Mancha at the Birmingham
Theatre.
The Grea t Whi te Hope is
being directed by Detroit
actre s, Catrina Ganey.
Ms. Ganey has directed pre
vious productions at Henry Ford
Community College. Her"
credits include the well
received. To Be Young, Gifted
And Black, and Kennedy's
Children.
Ganey is excited about incor
porating dialogue form the
original Broadway cript which
JACK JOHNSON
CATRINA GANEY
Dlr ctor
down ...
In 1968, when The Great White
Hope wa first produced, another a child of God. The brute and
Black man was told to Lay down. bigots, the barterers and the bas-
For hi� reru al, his title wa tards re also.cbi ��e of G�
taken�' " Iicens 0" . I • .1-:- . I I� •
fi '�I ".,,1 it _e. I,.,lha'. W JlI: o b�Q''_
Ig�l\ l�n9Yr X t. .iCJJ ey w J is 1i til practi jn I
the prime years of hi Ufe. Many Chri rlan to try and keep that in
though he would stay down. But mind, and not grit my teeth until
like Johnson and King, he refused they break off into little stubs.
to stay down. he later went.on to Jack Johnson and Rodney King
win three titles. are a part of- my life because they
I do not want to pit one race represent parts of my life.
against another. Like Christ, they have suffered
But I will share my pride as an much pain for me.
African American woman. We ur- If they had tayed down, be it on
vived Slavery, Jim Crow and a canva ,a bloody street in L.A., or
hypocritical hatefulness of northern a dark, cold grave, I do not know if
discrimina.tion. The outbur t of I would have the courage and
anger tangibly. se�n, heard and. felt strength to keep getting up. I do not
from us when justice wa not given know ifl could endure the blows the
to Rodney King wa our way of world constantly gives to me
saying, You can beat me. But I everyday. But by the grace of God;
ain't laying down! I am glad I keep standing up.
In the pictorial book of Black .
women, I Dream a World, Maya
Angelou summed up my feelings
eloquently when he wrote: I am
convinced I'm a child of God.
That's, wonderful, exhilarating,
liberating, full of promise. But the
burden which goes along with that
is, I'm convinced that everybody is
(Catrina Ganey i a Detroit
actres and director of The Great
White Hope at Henry Ford Com
munity College)
GREAT WHITE HOPE - (l-r): Alonzo Greer plays Jack
Johnson and Jenifer Sourb ck plays Eleanor Bachman.
t of·1992
he ·Knoc
has been made possible from the
personal archives of director,
Edwin Sherin.
"The Great.White Hope is a
theatrical experience that
should not be missedl Broad
way at its bestl" (New York
rimes)
Henry Ford Community Col
lege is proud to present "a great
epic drama ... ", THE GREAT.
WHITE HOPE by Howard
Sackler. Winner of the Pulitzer'
Prize, Critics Award and Tony
Award, THE GREAT WHITE
HOPE promises to be a summer
slzzlerl This powerful play ex
amines hopes and aspirations by
telling a story loosely based on
Jack Johnson .... the first Black
Heavyweight Champion of the
world!
Performances dates for THE
GREAT WHITE HOPE are July
8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, at 8:00
p.m. and July 12 and 19 at 2:00
p.m. at Henry Ford Community
College in the Adray
Auditorium (MacKenzie Fine
Arts Center). Ticket prices are
$7 (General Admission), $6
(Faculty, Staff and Students)
and $5 (Seniors). For further
information and reservations,
please call, 845-6479.
This strong and engrossing
drama is featuring some of
Detroit and Dearborn's finest
performers.
out
SHERIN, TV (Law And
Order and L.A. Law) and
Broadway director was the
original director for the produc
tion. He has loaned his personal
Broadway script and other
priceless Great White Hope
memorabilia in support of
Ganey's production.
Jane Alexander, his
wife/actress, who received a
Tony Award and Academy
Award nomination for her per
formance in the original produc
tion has also donated and loaned
personal memorabilia from her
archives.
Henry Ford Community
College's production of The
Great White Hope was chosen
as a "recommended event,"
part of the 1992 Black Theatre
Network National Conference.
The 1992 BTN National Con
ference is being held at the We -
tin Hotel, Detroit, Michigan,
July 9-12, 1992.
Advised
Put this one on the 'must- ee'
list for the summer! The knock
out event of the season ... The
Great White Hope!
Winner of the
Pulitter PrIze,
Critics Award
and
Tony Award
Performance Dates
July 8,9,10, II, 1992 at 8 p.m.
July 12 nd 19, 1992 at 2 p.m.
July 16, 17, 18. 1992 at 8 p.m.
Tickets prices are:
General Admission - $1
Faculty, sLlff, students - $6
Senion - $5
PIeue be advised th � cOOtaIna m urI langu and scene not uitabl for vounger children. Vi wer discr non advised.
Dlr t � by C trln C n' y
. , Written by How rd ckl r
rborn, Michigan
• D
H nry Ford Community Coli 9
.1
. I