Introduction by J.T. McLawhorn
By James T. McLawhorn, Jr.
With this edition, the Columbia Urban League celebrates the 20th anniversary of publishing The State of Black South Carolina: An Action Agenda for the Future. It is modeled on The State of Black America, published by the National Urban League. We began our publication in 1988 because of the historical significance of South Carolina as the port of entry for so many of our enslaved ancestors, and thus as "home" to African Americans throughout the country. We believe that one way to judge progress of African Americans is to assess progress at home. If home is not well, no place is well.
Although it was a modest start, the publication was recognized by The State newspaper in an editorial stating: "(F)or years, the Urban League has been a voice of reason and moderation in the ongoing struggle to promote better understanding between persons of different races and backgrounds and boost the quality of life for all Americans.
The local affiliate fostered that image recently with a detailed, well thought-out and timely report on the State of Black South Carolina" (January 30, 1988).
Our publication really took off when Dr. Kenneth Campbell volunteered to become its editor with the third edition in 1990. Under his leadership -- gained from years of newspaper journalism experience and college teaching as well as his commitment to the community -- the publication moved to the next level. Through his guidance and close working relationship with the authors, the articles are well-focused on significant quality of life issues that particularly impact African Americans in our state. The articles are carefully researched, written and edited with an appropriate balance of scholarship and popular interest for the general audience, scholars and policymakers.
Dr. Campbell not only has edited the past five publications, he has designed and laid out each edition, taking them to the printer camera ready, which is a significant financial saving to the Columbia Urban League.
We also sincerely thank the more than 50 authors who have volunteered their services over the years. Most are college professors, but they also include lawyers, activists, ministers, and researchers. The research articles and essays in The State of Black South Carolina would be welcomed in refereed scholarly journals in the authors' respective fields. Some of the authors in this edition have written for us on multiple occasions: Dr. Gloria Swindler Boutte, Dr. George Bradley, Dr. Tina Marshall-Bradley, Dr. Lucy Reuben, Dr. John Cole, Dr. Andrew Billingsley, and Dr. Kenneth Campbell. Others who have written multiple articles over the years are Dr. Burnett Gallman, a physician; Mr. Ernest L. Wiggins, a University of South Carolina journalism professor; the late Dr. Ed Hayes, a USC education professor; Dr. Augustus Rodgers, a USC social work professor; Dr. Rickey Hill, a South Carolina State University political science professor who now teaches at Mississippi Valley State University; Dr. Thomas E. Thompson, a USC education professor who is now Dean of Graduate Studies at South Carolina State University; and Dr. Joann E. Thompson, a public school educator. Their multiple writings show their commitment to the cause we represent and to the community, of which they are such a vital part.
The contributions of all of the authors over the years are invaluable. We commend them for the quality of their scholarship and for sharing their work directly with the community and policymakers. It is because of their diversity of interests and ideas and their expert research and analysis that each edition of The State of Black South Carolina should be mandatory reading for all who strive to improve the quality of life for African Americans and, indeed, all residents of the state. To all of the authors, we say "thank you" for helping to make South Carolina a better place for us all.
Much has changed during the two decades of the publication -- and we applaud the progress. We don't take credit for the changes, although we do believe we have contributed to the conversation. Still, too much has remained the same; we must be ever diligent in our efforts to move forward, to eliminate the disparities in the education of our children, our health, and our economic situation.
As we reviewed all of the articles starting with the first edition, two themes rose above all others: cultural connection/cultural competency and poverty. Along with race, these two themes largely explain the inequalities experienced by African Americans in South Carolina. We believe they can be successfully addressed through creative and perhaps nontraditional solutions to make the quality of life in South Carolina the best it can be for everyone.
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