Crime

OP-ED: Justin Fairfax Deserves a Fair Hearing: When African American men are accused of rape, a sordid history is evoked

HOUSTON FORWARD TIMES — Justin Fairfax, the lieutenant governor of Virginia, has asked the FBI to investigate allegations by two women that he sexually assaulted them.

Published

7 years ago

February 21, 2019

Frederick H. Lowe

By Frederick H. Lowe

Justin Fairfax, the lieutenant governor of Virginia, has asked the FBI to investigate allegations by two women that he sexually assaulted them. The alleged assaults, which occurred years earlier, were never reported to police or to physicians but were reported to the women’s friends.

Dr. Vanessa Tyson and Meredith Watson, the two women, indicated they are willing to testify at a hearing to impeach Fairfax. Virginia delegate Patrick Hope recently said he soon would introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax.

Tyson said that Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him after they kissed consensually while they were attending the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Meredith Watson says she was raped by Fairfax in 2000 while the two were students at Duke University.

Fairfax has denied the allegations of both women, but that hasn’t stopped almost everyone, including Senators Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), Mark Warner (D-Virginia), Kamala Harris (D-California) and Virginia’s Legislative Black Caucus from demanding that he resign.

The sexual assault allegations against him also have taken attention away from Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam who admitted wearing Black face at a Michael Jackson dance contest and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring wearing Black face at parties. Both men said they will not resign from office and they may survive.

Appearing on CBS’s Face the Nation, Gayle King interviewed Northam who said it was 400 years ago when Black indentured servants were brought to the Commonwealth. That comment seemed to go right over King’s head because blacks brought to Virginia were slaves. Indentured servants paid for their passage and worked for their employer a set number of years until they paid off their debt and were free. King claims she corrected the governor, but I didn’t hear it.

Margaret Brennan, Face the Nation’s host, asked King about the allegations against Fairfax.

She said Tyson’s and Watson’s allegations were very credible. King is a Black woman, but no Black men or someone who could add a historical context to rape allegations against Black men appeared on the show.

U.S. history has plenty of tragic examples.

On June 15, 1920, a white mob in Duluth, Minnesota, lynched three Black circus workers —- Elias Clayton, Elmer Jackson, and Isaac McGhie —- after Irene Tusker, a 19-year-old White woman charged that the three men had raped her, although a physical examination by a physician established she had not been raped, according to the book “The Lynchings in Duluth.”

Recently, Rick DeSantis, Florida’s governor, pardoned four black men for the 1949 rape of a white woman that never occurred.

U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (D., Illinois) and U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D., Illinois) said they will introduce legislation that would designate the site of the 1908 Springfield Race Riots a National Historic Monument after whites and immigrants burned down an entire black neighborhood after a White woman claimed a Black man raped her. The woman later admitted she made up the story.

Black women are not unbiased observers of the way society treats Black men. Some are sympathetic, while others know they have cachet with Whites, especially White men, because they are women and women who are expected to be especially deferential.

I have had this happen to me. I was a member of the Art Institute of Chicago. I was waiting in the gift area of the modern wing for my wife and son who were shopping nearby to join me.

A Black woman security guard, dressed in plainclothes, said to her White partner, ‘I am going to see what he’s up to.’ With an angry look, she pressed her face close to mine and said nothing. When my wife and son ran up, she told her partner, “Let’s go,” and they left.

Another abhorrent incident of this ilk took place while I was a fellow at Northwestern University. The fellows were waiting to visit Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart after twice clearing jail security. I was the only Black man among the fellows who were all younger White women except for one older Black woman and an older White man.

A Black woman deputy sheriff walked up to me and wanted to know why I was there. I explained to her that I was a fellow, which she didn’t believe. My answer angered her. She moved her watch hat with one hand in a threatening manner. Her other hand rested on the butt of her gun, leading me to fear that she was going to shoot me. I was waiting with the others to go inside the jail. I wasn’t breaking out. I wasn’t an inmate. I was an invited, registered guest.

At some point, I must have dissociated because I can’t remember what happened next. I was subsequently aware the deputy sheriff had left without explanation. None of the other fellows came to my defense to say I was with them. A few just stared at me. The Black woman fellow said something which I don’t remember.

I wonder who will come to Fairfax’s defense. People are already building gallows to lynch him over the Internet. He deserves a fair hearing.

This article originally appeared in the Houston Forward Times.

Frederick H. Lowe

Posts by Frederick H. Lowe

Up Next

The Association of Black Social Workers of Texas, Inc. Hosts 48th Annual Scholarship & Awards Luncheon and Meeting

Don't Miss

Jussie Smollett officially a suspect and faces felony charge

Frederick H. Lowe

1 Comment

#NNPA BlackPress

COMMENTARY: The National Protest Must Be Accompanied with Our Votes

Just as Trump is gathering election data like having the FBI take all the election data in Georgia from the 2020 election, so must we organize in preparation for the coming primary season to have the right people on ballots in each Republican district, so that we can regain control of the House of Representatives and by doing so, restore the separation of powers and balance that our democracy is being deprived of.

Published

16 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper. File photo..

By Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper

As thousands of Americans march every week in cities across this great nation, it must be remembered that the protest without the vote is of no concern to Donald Trump and his administration.

In every city, there is a personal connection to the U.S. Congress. In too many cases, the member of Congress representing the people of that city and the congressional district in which it sits, is a Republican. It is the Republicans who are giving silent support to the destructive actions of those persons like the U.S. Attorney General, the Director of Homeland Security, and the National Intelligence Director, who are carrying out the revenge campaign of the President rather than upholding the oath of office each of them took “to Defend The Constitution of the United States.”

In California, the primary comes in June 2026. The congressional races must be a priority just as much as the local election of people has been so important in keeping ICE from acquiring facilities to build more prisons around the country.

“We the People” are winning this battle, even though it might not look like it. Each of us must get involved now, right where we are.

In this Black History month, it is important to remember that all we have accomplished in this nation has been “in spite of” and not “because of.” Frederick Douglas said, “Power concedes nothing without a struggle.”

Today, the struggle is to maintain our very institutions and history. Our strength in this struggle rests in our “collectiveness.” Our newspapers and journalists are at the greatest risk. We must not personally add to the attack by ignoring those who have been our very foundation, our Black press.

Are you spending your dollars this Black History Month with those who salute and honor contributions by supporting those who tell our stories? Remember that silence is the same as consent and support for the opposition. Where do you stand and where will your dollars go?

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Congresswoman Simon Votes Against Department of Homeland Security, ICE Funding

“They need accountability. Republicans already gave these agencies an unprecedented $170 billion for immigration enforcement, funding they have used to conduct raids at schools, separate families, and deploy a masked paramilitary who refuse to identify themselves on American streets. This bill gives them more funding without a single reform to stop unconstitutional, immoral abuses,” she said.

Published

17 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12). File photo.

By Post Staff

Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) released a statement after voting against legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which supports Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB).

“Today, I voted NO on legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security through Feb. 13, 2026.

“ICE and CBP do not need more funding to terrorize communities or kill more people,” she said in the media release.

“They need accountability. Republicans already gave these agencies an unprecedented $170 billion for immigration enforcement, funding they have used to conduct raids at schools, separate families, and deploy a masked paramilitary who refuse to identify themselves on American streets. This bill gives them more funding without a single reform to stop unconstitutional, immoral abuses,” she said.

“The American people are demanding change. Poll after poll of Americans’ opinions show overwhelming support for requiring ICE agents to wear body cameras and prohibiting them from hiding their faces during enforcement actions. This is the bare minimum transparency standard, and this funding legislation does not even meet this low bar,” Simon said.

“Republicans in Congress are not serious about reining in these lawless agencies. Their refusal to make meaningful changes to the DHS funding bill has consequences that go beyond immigration enforcement. TSA agents who keep our airports safe and FEMA workers who help our communities recover from disasters are stuck in limbo due to Republican inaction.

“The Constitution does not have an exception for immigrants. Every person on American soil has rights, and federal agencies must respect them. The East Bay has made clear at the Alameda County and city level that we will hold the line against a violent ICE force and support our immigrant communities – I will continue to hold the line and our values with my votes in Congress.”

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Post Newspaper Invites NNPA to Join Nationwide Probate Reform Initiative

The Post’s Probate Reform Group meets the first Thursday of every month via Zoom and invites the public to attend. The Post is making the initiative national and will submit information from its monthly meeting to the NNPA to educate, advocate, and inform its readers.

Published

17 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) represents the Black press with over 200 newspapers nationwide.

Last night the Post announced that it is actively recruiting the Black press to inform the public that there is a probate “five-alarm fire” occurring in Black communities and invited every Black newspaper starting from the Birmingham Times in Alabama to the Milwaukee Times Weekly in Wisconsin, to join the Post in our “Year of Action” for probate reform.

Reporter Tanya Dennis says, “The adage that ‘When America catches a cold, Black folks catch the flu” is too true in practice; that’s why we’re engaging the Black Press to not only warn, but educate the Black community regarding the criminal actions we see in probate court: Thousands are losing generational wealth to strangers. It’s a travesty that happens daily.”

Venus Gist, a co-host of the reform group, states, “ Unfortunately, people are their own worst enemy when it comes to speaking with loved ones regarding their demise. It’s an uncomfortable subject that most avoid, but they do so at their peril. The courts rely on dissention between family members, so I encourage not only a will and trust [be created] but also videotape the reading of your documents so you can show you’re of sound mind.”

In better times, drafting a will was enough; then a trust was an added requirement to ‘iron-clad’ documents and to assure easy transference of wealth.

No longer.

As the courts became underfunded in the last 20 years, predatory behavior emerged to the extent that criminality is now occurring at alarming rates with no oversight, with courts isolating the conserved, and, I’ve heard, many times killing conservatees for profit. Plundering the assets of estates until beneficiaries are penniless is also common.”

Post Newspaper Publisher Paul Cobb says, “The simple solution is to avoid probate at all costs. If beneficiaries can’t agree, hire a private mediator and attorney to work things out. The moment you walk into court, you are vulnerable to the whims of the court. Your will and trust mean nothing.”

Zakiya Jendayi, a co-host of the Probate Reform Group and a victim herself, says, “In my case, the will and trust were clear that I am the beneficiary of the estate, but the opposing attorney said I used undue influence to make myself beneficiary. He said that without proof, and the judge upheld the attorney’s baseless assertion. In court, the will and trust is easily discounted.”

The Black press reaches out to 47 million Black Americans with one voice. The power of the press has never been so important as it is now in this national movement to save Black generational wealth from predatory attorneys, guardians and judges.

The next probate reform meeting is on March 5, from 7 – 9 p.m. PST. Zoom Details:
Meeting ID: 825 0367 1750
Passcode: 475480

All are welcome.