{"id":4198,"date":"2018-06-09T17:58:15","date_gmt":"2018-06-09T17:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/dtu\/?p=4198"},"modified":"2018-08-11T00:38:37","modified_gmt":"2018-08-11T00:38:37","slug":"morehouse-student-follows-his-passion-finds-the-black-press-2-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/morehouse-student-follows-his-passion-finds-the-black-press-2-3\/","title":{"rendered":"JOHN HOPE BRYAND, OPERATION HOPE HOST “NEW ATLANTA” PANEL CONVERSATION AT THE GATHERING SPOT"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” specialty=”off” transparent_background=”off” background_color=”#1e4498″ allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” padding_mobile=”off” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding_tablet=”50px|0|50px|0″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” next_background_color=”#274ca0″][et_pb_fullwidth_post_title author=”off” parallax_method=”off” use_border_color=”off” title_font_size=”36px” meta_text_color=”#ffffff” title_font=”|||on|” parallax=”on” background_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0)” _builder_version=”3.9″ \/][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” transparent_background=”off” background_color=”#274ca0″ allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” padding_mobile=”off” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding_tablet=”50px|0|50px|0″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” prev_background_color=”#1e4498″ next_background_color=”#ffffff” _builder_version=”3.9″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” background_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0)” parallax_method_1=”off” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial” _builder_version=”3.9″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text background_layout=”dark” use_border_color=”off” text_text_color=”#ffffff” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial” _builder_version=”3.10.2″]<\/p>\n

By Daja E. Henry<\/a>, Ila Wilborn<\/a> and Natrawn Maxwell<\/a> (#TeamAuthentic, NNPA DTU Journalism Fellowship)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

On Tuesday, Operation HOPE<\/strong> welcomed an audience of roughly 50 people to The Gathering Spot<\/strong> for a panel discussion aimed at dissecting what redevelopment, revitalization, and gentrification mean for parts of Atlanta.<\/p>\n

Themed, \u201cNavigating a New Atlanta,\u201d<\/strong> panelists from various sectors of the community answered questions about the intersection of redevelopment and socioeconomics in the city.<\/p>\n

Panelists included Bryant<\/strong>, the chairman, founder, and CEO of Operation HOPE; Ryan Wilson<\/strong>, CEO of the Gathering Spot; Kate Atwood<\/strong>, executive director of ChooseATL; Suganthi Simon<\/strong>, program officer for the Arthur Blank Family Foundation; and Terence Lester<\/strong>, founder of Love Beyond Walls.<\/p>\n

Two of the more prominent questions to emerge from the discussion: What was wrong with the old Atlanta? Who gets the authority to define what this new Atlanta is?<\/i><\/p>\n

\"(Photos:

(Photos: Itoro Umontuen and Natrawn Maxwell \/ The Atlanta Voice)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Of approximately 50 people in the room, a little less than half raised their hands when asked if they were Atlanta residents. However, when asked if anyone felt included in the redevelopment decisions of the city, only two hands remained raised.<\/p>\n

While gentrification, revitalization, and redevelopment are terms that seem to convey the same concept, the idea of \u201cpushing low-income \u2014 mostly black and brown \u2014 people out of their homes to rebuild an upscale community for the wealthy \u2014 mostly white \u2014 people right in the center of urban adjacent neighborhoods because of its proximity and access to downtown\u201d seemed to be agreed upon by all the panelists as the style of predatory redevelopment that is bad for Atlanta.<\/p>\n

Wilson, the youngest among the panelists, recalled a quote that he had heard previously, \u201cIf you have come to help, you\u2019re wasting your time. If you\u2019ve come because your liberation is bound with mine, let us work together.\u201d<\/p>\n

“Atlanta has a social justice versus service issue,\u201d said Wilson, who explained his point using an analogy of dead bodies floating downstream. \u201cService would be to go and pull the bodies out of the river. Social justice would be to go up to the top and figure out where the bodies are coming from.\u201d<\/p>\n

West Atlanta native Shawn Walton responded to the idea of a \u201cnew\u201d Atlanta.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really hard to conceptualize what New Atlanta is or what it stands for. We know that things are changing,\u201d said West Atlanta native Shawn Walton. \u201cWe don\u2019t necessarily know if they\u2019re changing for the better or if they\u2019re being responsive to the Atlantans who have historically been here.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do know that opportunities are coming,\u201d he continued. \u201cWe want to make sure that opportunities are allotted to those natives, as well as correcting some of the sins of not only Atlanta but also America. We have to make sure that it instills accountability, equity, and making sure those who were previously disenfranchised from access will have that access and aren\u2019t being pushed out by the same things or people that are \u2018here to help them.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

After the hour-long panel discussion, guests were given the opportunity to converse over open-ended pre-arranged questions with panelists in a more intimate breakout setting at round tables.<\/p>\n

The Arthur Blank Family Foundation, one of the organizations represented on the panel, was involved in the displacement of the historic Friendship Baptist Church, which was where both Spelman and Morehouse Colleges were started and was an integral part of the black community in Atlanta.<\/p>\n

The historic building was demolished in 2014 to make way for a multi-million dollar football stadium.<\/p>\n

Friendship Baptist Church was, \u201cestablished in 1862 and independently organized in 1866, in the days after the Civil War, becoming Atlanta\u2019s first black Baptist autonomous congregation,\u201d according to the church\u2019s official website<\/p>\n

Maria Saporta, contributing writer for Atlanta Business Chronicle wrote in an article<\/a>, \u201cThe congregation voted on Sept. 22, 2013, to sell its beautiful white-stucco church and adjacent for $19.5 million so a new stadium for the Atlanta Falcons could be built south of the existing Georgia Dome and near two MARTA stations \u2013 an option that became known as the \u2018south site.\u2019 Mount Vernon Baptist Church, across the street from Friendship, also was acquired for $14.5 million, so the new stadium could be built on that site.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring and after that decision, strong sentiments were expressed, both within and outside the church walls, about two historic black churches having to be moved for a new football and soccer stadium,\u201d Saporta\u2019s report continued.<\/p>\n

Though Friendship Baptist Church finally reopened in a permanent location in 2017, it took three years to do so. Residents and parishioners said they feel that the reopening of a new building still does not account for all of the historical milestones and memories that were made inside of those walls.<\/p>\n

Friendship Baptist Church is just one of many examples of how people and corporations with no understanding of, nor any ties to a neighborhood and its very essence, barge in and claim it, and give their two cents when it\u2019s not wanted, in attempts to change it \u201cfor the better.\u201d<\/p>\n

A book signing was immediately held after the discussion to follow for Bryant\u2019s \u201cThe Memo: Five Rules for Your Economic Liberation.\u201d<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider color=”#1c4693″ show_divider=”off” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” disabled_on=”on|on|off” \/][et_pb_team_member name=”DAJA E. HENRY” position=”TEAM AUTHENTIC” image_url=”https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/group2_06.png” facebook_url=”https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/daja.henry1″ use_border_color=”off” twitter_url=”https:\/\/twitter.com\/dajaehenry” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial” _builder_version=”3.9″ saved_tabs=”all”]<\/p>\n

Daja has been an intern at the Congressional Black Caucus, the New Orleans Tribune and Where Y’at Magazine, a participant in the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Student Multimedia Project, a student at the Universidad Del Mar in Oaxaca, Mexico, and briefly, a crew member at McDonald\u2019s. Her latest read was A Mouth is Always Muzzled , detailing the effects of colonialism in Guyana and how art can be utilized in the development of a country.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_team_member][et_pb_social_media_follow background_layout=”dark” follow_button=”on” _builder_version=”3.9″ saved_tabs=”all” text_orientation=”center”][et_pb_social_media_follow_network social_network=”facebook” url=”https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/daja.henry1″ skype_action=”call” bg_color=”#3b5998″ _builder_version=”3.9″ use_background_color_gradient=”off” background_color_gradient_start=”#2b87da” background_color_gradient_end=”#29c4a9″ background_color_gradient_type=”linear” background_color_gradient_direction=”180deg” background_color_gradient_direction_radial=”center” background_color_gradient_start_position=”0%” background_color_gradient_end_position=”100%” background_color_gradient_overlays_image=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on” background_size=”cover” background_position=”center” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_blend=”normal” allow_player_pause=”off” background_video_pause_outside_viewport=”on” box_shadow_style=”none”]<\/p>\n

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Instagram<\/p>\n

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[\/et_pb_social_media_follow_network][\/et_pb_social_media_follow][et_pb_divider _builder_version=”3.9″ \/][et_pb_team_member _builder_version=”3.9″ name=”ILA WILBORN” position=”TEAM AUTHENTIC” facebook_url=”https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wilbornmedia” twitter_url=”https:\/\/twitter.com\/ila_wilborn” image_url=”https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/group2_05.png” saved_tabs=”all”]<\/p>\n

Ila Wilborn is on the President\u2019s List with over 200 community service hours in the Tallahassee community. Wilborn is also a published staff writer for The FAMUan , an active member of the National Association of Collegiate Scholars, Phi Sigma Theta National Honor Society, and the FAMU Chapter of NAACP.<\/p>\n

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Facebook<\/p>\n

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[\/et_pb_social_media_follow_network][et_pb_social_media_follow_network _builder_version=”3.9″ social_network=”instagram” skype_action=”call” url=”https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ila.wilborn\/” background_color=”#ea2c59″ use_background_color_gradient=”off” background_color_gradient_start=”#2b87da” background_color_gradient_end=”#29c4a9″ background_color_gradient_type=”linear” background_color_gradient_direction=”180deg” background_color_gradient_direction_radial=”center” background_color_gradient_start_position=”0%” background_color_gradient_end_position=”100%” background_color_gradient_overlays_image=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on” background_size=”cover” background_position=”center” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_blend=”normal” allow_player_pause=”off” background_video_pause_outside_viewport=”on” box_shadow_style=”none”]<\/p>\n

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[\/et_pb_social_media_follow_network][\/et_pb_social_media_follow][et_pb_divider _builder_version=”3.9″ \/][et_pb_team_member _builder_version=”3.9″ name=”NATRAWN MAXWELL” position=”TEAM AUTHENTIC” saved_tabs=”all” image_url=”https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/group2_04.png”]<\/p>\n

Natrawn\u2019s love for journalism developed through his curiosity about other cultures, dance and technology. An academic tutor and captain of a dance team, Maxwell has also proven himself to be a leader and a true teammate. His resume includes working as media director for A. Bevy Collegiate Group, media consultant for ERA Wilder Realty and a creative contributor for the documentary Politics With Us<\/em>.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_team_member][et_pb_social_media_follow _builder_version=”3.9″ \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” specialty=”off” prev_background_color=”#274ca0″][et_pb_fullwidth_post_slider posts_number=”21″ more_text=”READ MORE” use_manual_excerpt=”off” show_meta=”off” background_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.53)” background_layout=”light” parallax=”on” use_text_overlay=”off” background_position=”top_left” auto=”on” auto_speed=”5000″ auto_ignore_hover=”on” arrows_custom_color=”#f4bc00″ dot_nav_custom_color=”#f4bc00″ header_text_color=”#f4bc00″ body_text_color=”#ffffff” meta_text_color=”#ffffff” custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#f4bc00″ button_bg_color=”#1c4696″ button_border_color=”#f4bc00″ button_icon=”%%20%%” button_icon_color=”#f4bc00″ button_text_color_hover=”#e09900″ button_border_color_hover=”#e09900″ bg_overlay_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.53)” include_categories=”154,152,153″ custom_padding=”||100px|” custom_padding_tablet=”|||” box_shadow_blur=”10px” box_shadow_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.1)” _builder_version=”3.9″ \/][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Tuesday, Operation HOPE welcomed an audience of roughly 50 people to The Gathering Spot for a panel discussion aimed at dissecting what redevelopment, revitalization, and gentrification mean for parts of Atlanta.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,4,154,152,153,13,162],"tags":[108,169,164,26,167,141,171,166,170,25,163,165,72],"class_list":["post-4198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-atlanta-voice","category-chevy-dtu","category-daja-henry","category-ila-wilborn","category-natrawn-maxwell","category-nnpa","category-team-authentic","tag-atlanta-voice","tag-daja-e-henry-howard-university","tag-daja-henry","tag-discover-the-unexpected","tag-discover-the-unexpected-2018","tag-education","tag-hbcus-and-the-black-press","tag-ila-wilborn","tag-ila-wilborn-florida-am-university-and-natrawn-maxwell-claflin-university","tag-national","tag-natrawn-maxwell","tag-team-authentic","tag-transportation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4198"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4323,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4198\/revisions\/4323"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}