From the Desk of Herman "Skip" Mason hmason1906@aol.com Iota Chapter, Spring 82(Morris Brown College/Atlanta, Georgia) Eta Lambda Chapter since 1984 Historian, Pastor, Author, Entrepreneur and Lecturer

Dear Brothers:

As always I thank you for your kind letters. If you have not heard from me personally it is only that  I have about 600 plus emails saved waiting to be answered. You will hear from me either directly or through the historical moment if it is a question that should be shared by all of the readers. I  had a great weekend. I was invited to speak at a Scholarship Banquet. My topic "When Something is Wrong with my Neighbor, Something is Wrong with Me." We ought to replace the word neighbor with brother often!  That afternoon I 
flew to Huntsville, Alabama for the Sunday's Men Day Service.  A very special thanks to my beloved brothers for your support, especially the brother who told me he drove all the way from Jackson, Mississippi just to hear me preach.  My sermon topic was from Exodus & and 2nd Chronicles. The topic was"A Do Right Man." I examined the disobedience of  Moses's nemesis, the Pharaoh of Egypt and Solomon's fall from grace. It was Aretha Franklin who said, "You gotta be a do right, all right man!'" God reminds us to "humble 
ourselves, pray and seek his face and turn from our wicked ways."  Well, the printing presses are turning, cranking out pages and pages. Soon and very soon.....It's coming brothers, its coming. Our brother Martin Luther King spoke some prophetic and powerful words in August of 1956, I share a few of those words with you as I begin to provide just a brief glimpse into the lives of our General Presidents. Thursday's issue will focus on three R's and its not reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic. It will look at transforming our rich history to allow each of us to  Refocus, Recommit and  Reclaim Alpha.  I believe (because you tell me in your letters) 
that the many of the readers of  Skip's Historical Moments are being empowered by a higher calling to come back into the "House of Alpha." God is about to do a mighty work in this house and move in the lives of brothers and this organization in a magnficent and magnanimous way. We have no other choice because that's what the Jewels would want us to do.  (Sounds like something T.D. Jakes would say, so you better "get ready, get ready, get ready!). I will have a major announcement in Thursday's edition also.   Enjoy 
this issue and please pass SHM on to others!
 

THIS NOBLE ASSEMBLY OF ALPHA MEN

By Skip Mason

"...God grant from this noble assembly, this noble assembly of fraternity men some of the leaders of our nation will emerge. God has blessed you with great intellectual resources and those of you who represent the intellectual powers of our race.  God has blessed many of you with great wealth and never forget that those resources came from people in the back doing a little job in a big way. Never forget that you are where you are today because the masses have helped you get there and they stand now out in the wilderness, not being able to speak for themselves, they stand walking the streets in protest just not knowing exactly what to do and the techniques.  They are waiting for somebody out in the midst of the wilderness of life to stand up and speak and take a stand for them.... "

Brother Martin Luther King, Jr, August 1956
 

DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE WERE FIVE GENERAL PRESIDENTS WHO SERVED DURING THEIR UNDERGRADUATE DAYS:

1st- Moses A. Morrison(Beta)
2nd- Roscoe C. Giles(Alpha)
3rd-Frederick H. Miller(Epsilon)
4th -Charles H. Garvin(Beta)
5th -Henry Lake Dickason(Kappa)

The 1st General President-
 Moses A. Morrison

"As the first General President, Brother Moses Alvin Morrison work was instrumental in the expansion of Alpha from  four chapters to seven. It was during his term that Epsilon, Zeta, Eta chapters were chartered. 
The members of his administration all would go on to serve as General President. His vice president was Henry Arthur Callis; Secretary,  Simeon S. Booker and Treasurer, Roscoe Conklin Giles. 

The first Annual Fraternal Address was delivered by Past General President Morrison at the Fifth Annual Convention in Columbus, Ohio in 1912. Brother Raymond Cannon, who was attending his first convention made notes of his address. He said that Brother Morrison  "urged the preservation of the bond beloved for the fraternity." He spoke of his struggle to keep back tears of joy over the progress Alpha Phi Alpha had made up to that time and congratulated the administration on its success and progress…"

The 2nd General President-
 See SHM No. 14    for information on Roscoe Conkling Giles

The 3rd General President
Frederick Harvin Miller

Miller's early education was acquired from his mother and at Stringer's Academy in Mound Bayou, Mississippi. Following graduation, he was accepted to the University of Michigan and entered in the fall of 1906.Brother Miller was initiated as a member of Epsilon Chapter at the University of Michigan in the fall of 1909,  the same chapter that made W. E.  B. DuBois an Honorary member in earlier that year. Miller graduated from the Literary College in 1910 and entered the Law Department.

FROM THE LIPS OF A JEWEL:

"Our responsibility does not lie dormant until another depression or wave of injustice strikes us. We possess tremendous power in joint thought, planning and action that remains unused still... Our council should be our clearing house for analysis of these problems, for our study and planning; for our programs and strategy. After fifty years, as the vocal representative of 15 million American citizens we should be in position through joint action, to lay before every new Federal Administration our continuing needs and the plans we propose for their alleviation. The ultimate fulfillment of the social purpose of our organization is threatened only by our own narrow selfish vision."

Jewel Henry Arthur Callis, 1952

FROM THE LIPS OF A GENERAL PRESIDENT:

"I would urge that brothers individually, would continue to be inspired to worthy actions through the ideas and visions of the fraternity and its leadership, and strive for even greater achievements in the future than we 
have had in the past."

Charles Harris Wesley, 1949

SKIP'S QUOTE FOR TODAY
"A Ph.D. was not required to serve this purpose, but, rather, a "Bh.D."; a "Burning hunger and Desire."  Obviously you are qualified.  Know of asurety that many of us would rather pay for a book to learn more of the Jewels and their real lives than for the opportunity to fund lawsuits or the delusional permission to gather and out-Alpha one another."
From Brother Derrick Pope, Iota, Spring '84

SKIP'S SCRIPTURAL QUOTE FOR TODAY
Shared by Brother Fred James

"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into diverse temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire wanting
nothing!"
James 1:2-3
 

A PICTURE WORTH SEEING:

From the December, 1954 Sphinx:

With  a pair of reading glasses, a tweed blazer and silk tie,  a young Brother Willie Brown presents a trophy and roses to the Delta Omicron and Alpha Epsilon 1954 Sweetheart. Now the Mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown served as the lay member (now known as the Assistant Regional Vice President.. 
Brown was initiated into Delta Omicron.

AN ALPHA CHAPTER MOMENT:

Q-Who was the first man rejected for membership by Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Chapter.

A- He is only known as Mr. Brown and he was not voted upon by common consent of the members present at the meeting on October 16, 1906.
 

FROM THE EMAIL LETTER BAG:

Greetings Once Again Brother,

I read your piece and I had some questions of my own.  If brothers get upset, then maybe I got them at least thinking...  Only those who feel they are not holding the light high would be offended anyway.

As the Black Greek System has gone from betterment, uplift and service to suspension, expulsion, and imprisonment, it has occurred to me that ignorance may ruin our beloved fraternity and many BGLO's thereafter. How did we get here? How did Alpha go from Fraternity to Facade over the years? And those BGLO's after us who said we weren't upholding what we were founded upon, really don't have a clue.  They made the problems far worse trying to imitate Alpha instead of respecting their roots.  When did we think we could make it when all sense of brotherhood could be replaced by legal litigation and political hysteria?  What is a secret society?  It was my understanding that intake is business of the fraternity, not the media and judicial 
system. ALPHA BUSINESS is ALPHA BUSINESS!!!  Why have so many brothers risked extinction of our organization with lawsuits to fulfill some adolescent need for attention?  Why has the character in the aspirants been reduced to if can they afford the fee, let them in? Deep within the hearts of those who hold the light high is a love to meet or surpass the expectations of our BELOVED JEWELS.  I have been challenged several times, yet brothers can't recall their last community service project, nor when their chapter meetings are. Individuals in chapters focus so much on their chapter that maybe their chapter letters should be worn instead of A-Phi-A.  Alpha is now run by a bunch of cliques.  THIS IS NOT HIGH SCHOOL!!!  Pride in the chapter should not succeed the overall focus of the organization.  BROTHERS, (FOR I MEAN THIS SO DEARLY!!!) it is important to REDEDICATE ourselves to Alpha.  What has happened, has happened what will we be in 2000?  It was the belief by so many before that we possessed what Alpha's are made of, let's not let our organization down.  It's not what Alpha can do for you but, what you can do for Alpha.

Fraternally yours,
Bro. S. Crudup
 
 

FIRST IT WAS A KAPPA, NOW A SIGMA TRIES TO DOWNPLAY OUR PLACE IN HISTORY. 
READ THIS BROTHERS:

>From: DeepThought98@collegeclub.com
>Subject: Regarding the Kappa, Omega, Sigma Conspiracy
>
>I received a very disturbing email accusing Kappa Alpha Psi, Omega Psi
>Phi, and Phi Beta Sigma of omitting Alpha Phi Alpha from their rightful
>place in history as the first Greek letter organization established for
>African Americans:
>
>". . . After a review of the fraternity histories, I have a found a
>similar and quite disturbing pattern of  what is a blatant omission of
>an important historical fact. That fact is that Alpha Phi Alpha was the
>first Greek letter fraternity for African-American college trained me to
>succeed. The second fact is that not one of the three history books of
>those who came behind us (namely Kappa Alpha Psi, Omega Psi Phi and Phi
>Beta Sigma)  gives any credit to Alpha Phi Alpha  in establishing the
>fraternal movement Not a single one. As a historian who recognizes that
>laying a foundation for any period of history, I find their omission
>inexcusable and without merit." 
>
>I find this last sentence very interesting as it has come to my attention
>that the author of this email message made an "inexcusable and meritless"
>omission of his own.  The whole point of the message was that Alpha Phi
>Alpha was denied their rightful place as "the first."  But in actuality,
>Alpha Phi Alpha was not the first greek letter organization for African
>Americans.  As Sigma history notes, "Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, (now
>designated Boule') organized in the city of Philadelphia in 1904, is
>probably the oldest Greek-letter organization among Negroes in existence
>today.  It followed very closely the pattern established by Phi Beta
Kappa, for its founders emphasized scholarship, congeniality, culture, good
>fellowship, and a record of achievement."  As for organizations within
the NPHC, which are the only organizations people pay attention to nowadays,
>Alpha Phi Alpha was established first; but historically, they are second.
>This also invalidates the author of this message's second claim that
Alpha Phi Alpha began the fraternal movement.  Phi Beta Kappa began the
>fraternal movement, and Sigma Pi Phi began the black fraternal movement.
The author's general tone is correct . . . history is an important part
of any organization's present and future, and to exclude portions of history
>is falsifying your identity.  I hope that this correction is accepted and
>this accusation dismissed because you must know where you came from to
>know where you are going!!
>
>Deep Thought, Fall '98
>Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
><deepthought98@collegeclub.com>
>
SKIP'S RESPONSE: 
Dear Deep Thought:
Your thoughts may be deep, but your reasoning is very shallow! As the author of the "disturbing article" you have cited,  I stand fully by my claim. What you have here is a play on semantics (word use) on your part. 
Sigma Pi Phi was the first African-American fraternity of record to be established. That is true, however, Alpha Phi Alpha was the first for college trained men  founded on a college campus. Subsequently Alpha Phi Alpha started the fraternal movement for African-American Greek letter fraternities and sororities on college campuses. That is a fact that cannot be denied and it behooves me to think that members of your organization as well as the others are to small and shallow to recognize that and try to counter that claim with non substantive and shallow pundits of pathetic pathos to prove your points otherwise.

We are aware of Phi Beta Kappa's role in the fraternal movement. Our distinguished historian Dr. Charles Harris Wesley cites that fact in the second paragraph of the introduction unlike your historian and author of your book. (At least in the copy that I have in my possession.)

Your history book text begins in 1914 and gives absolutely no background for the fraternal movement at all. That is inexcusable from a historical standpoint! Stop trying to discredit Alpha as being the first and begin to 
recognize its rightful place in the history of fraternal organizations! 

Revisionist history is only applicable when there is substantial evidence to change the course of subject at and. The year 1906 will always come before 1911, and 1914 and Alpha will always precede Kappa, Omega and Sigma! 
 

OH THAT HAND SIGN QUESTION AGAIN. HERE'S ANOTHER RESPONSE:
Skip, the hand sign, first came to my use in 1975, at Florida State Univ.  (iota delta). It was started by Bro. Vernon (Truck) Mc Knight but had a totally different meaning. Suffice to say, it has evolved to be recognized
as the "sign of the times"          

Clifford T. Lee Iota delta 74
Pres. Zeta Upsilon Lambda Fairfax,VA.  
99, 00.

A BROTHER SPOTTED THIS IN A BOOK: 

Regarding Jackie Robinson as an Alpha.

In the book "Jackie Robinson--A Biography"
by Arnold Rampersad.

Page 63

"For Robinson, the next few months were a respite from the intense athletic activity of the previous two years. In the spring, he stuck to his promise and emphasized his studies.  Taking courses in English, French, physiology, and physical education, he also finished work in algebra and geometry started at Muir Tech.
If he attended spring football training in Westwood in March, he did so as a spectator.  He also played no basketball for UCLA.  However, suiting up for an Alpha Phi Alpha team in a statewide league of
Negro fraternities, "the Black panther," as the California Eagle dubbed him, scored 25 points in leading the Alphas to victory."

This is the only reference to Mr. Robinson's affiliation with Alpha in this text.

Can we extract from this reading that Jackie Robinson was a brother of Alpha Phi Alpha?

Andre Blackman
Alpha Gamma Lambda

SKIP'S RESPONSE: Thanks for sharing that. I believe that Jackie played for the team but was not a member. I know that had Jackie Robinson been an Alpha, we would have known it as we know of Jesse Owens and other notables. He has never been in the Sphinx Magazine nor is he listed in the history books. I 
know that it was common for some non Alpha men (particularly those who were interested in the fraternity or Sphinxmen)  to play on some of these teams. The assumption is that that  Jackie was interested in Alpha. It was shared with me that he was drafted shortly before he could complete a pledge process.
 

TO OBTAIN BACK ISSUES OF SKIP'S HISTORICAL MOMENTS, GO TO
http://www.baylor.edu/~Roderick_Robeson/skip (my temporary web site)
Pull up About Skip and go to Skip's Historical Moments. There you will be able to retrieve back issues in their entirety.

No 1- Callis's First Wife
No 2- The Ties That Bind: Lyle and Hedgeman/APHIA/AKA
No 3- Charles Chapman, A Poet?
No 4- The APHIA/Delta Connection (Most requested issue)
No 5- Frederick Douglass: He was the Spirit of the Fraternity
No 6- Rev. A Wayman Ward: The Author of the Fraternity
No. 7- Abram L. Simpson, Author of the Fraternity Hymn and other Alpha Songwriters
No. 8- Revisionist Fraternities: The Omega, Kappa, Sigma Conspiracy
No. 9- The Daughter of Jewel Ogle
No 10- How Alpha is Portrayed in Current Literature
No. 11- Duke Ellington and Alpha Phi Alpha
No. 12- Jewel Vertner Woodson Tandy's Connection to  Tuskegee
No. 13-  The Mothers of the Jewels, Part One
No. 14- Jewel Jones Mother: Mrs. Rosa Kinckle Jones/ Dr. Roscoe C. Giles
No. 15- Jewel Murray Mother: Mrs. Anna Evans Murray
No. 16-  Jewels Ogle and Tandy's Mothers
No. 17- Mrs. Annie Singleton and the Mothers of Ithaca
No. 18- Jewel Eugene Kinckle Jones: Truly A Servant of All
No. 19- Alpha and Sigma Pi Phi(The Boule)
No. 20- The Sphinx Club and Pledging 1906-1930
No. 21- Masonic and other fraternal ties to the Seven Jewels
No. 22-DuBois and Alpha Phi Alpha: Was it the pride of his heart?
No 23- The Book: The Talented Tenth
No. 24- Jewel Ogle's Grave/Alpha's Second Honorary Member
No. 25- Having Their Say: Letters from the Brothers
No. 26- Jewel George Biddle Kelley, An Eternal Neophyte and Advocate for College Brothers
No. 27-Charles Henry Chapman: The Reclaimed Jewel
No. 28-The Lighter Side of Alpha(White Brothers in the Fraternity, pt. 1)
No. 29- The Lighter Side of Alpha, pt. 2
No. 30- Egyptian Excursion/The Jewel's Granddaughter visits Atlanta
No 31- Jewel Murray Speaks
No 32- Having My Say: Skip Mason Speaks
________________________________________________
THE TALENTED TENTH:
FOUNDERS AND 30 GENERAL PRESIDENTS
OF  Alpha
By Skip Mason
Foreword by Brother Andrew Young

Published by Four G's Press, c. 1999
Winter Haven,  Florida
480 pages; 28 cm, 100+ photographs
ISBN: 1885066-63-5
$25.00 (soft back)
$32.50 (hard back)    
To be released in June '99(hardbacks in July) 
ORDER FORM, PLEASE PRINT, FILL OUT AND MAIL .
_____________________________________________________________________

$25.00 (Soft back)                  $32.50 (Hard back)
This is still prepublication price. So get it while it lasts!

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To order, send order form, check or money order made payable to Skip Mason to:
Skip Mason/The Talented Tenth    564 Blake Avenue, SE  Atlanta, Georgia 30316

_____________________________________________________________________
 

Skip's Historical Moments is a twice weekly newsletter used to dialogue and discuss issues of historical importance to men of Alpha.  This newsletter is sent to over 4,000 brothers.  If every brother would send this to ten brothers this communication would reach a network of  45,000 or more. If you don't want to forward, please forward to me email addresses and I will add them to the list. The list is growing by leaps and bounds. Send your questions, queries, comments to hmason1906@aol.com Advanced apologies to you if you are receiving each issue more than once. Some names appear twice on the email distribution list.

DISCLAIMER:  THIS PAGE IS NOT AFFILIATED WITH THE NATIONAL ORGANIZATION. ALLCOMMENTS ARE THOSE OF THE EDITOR. SOURCES ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST. APOLOGIES IN ADVANCE FOR ANY SPELLING ERRORS.