Activism

Dr. King and the ‘Spirit of Selma’ Inspired Post Publisher Cobb

Cobb said the “Spirit of Selma” and the philosophies of applied Christian activism, service and voluntarism espoused by King will be the themes of his MLK speech Saturday at the Genesis Society of the Temple Hill Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Published

4 months ago

January 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Cobb marched for Black voting rights from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rev. Ralph David Abernathy, and U.N. Ambassador Ralph Bunche, along with Oakland residents Milton Hare (a white gentleman at Cobb’s left and William Battles behind Cobb).

By Post Staff

Part 1

Post Publisher Paul Cobb is pictured above in 1965, with a pencil in his glasses, when he was a Post reporter and correspondent for the Afro-American Association’s weekly broadcast on radio station KDIA in 1965.

“The Post has partnered with Genesis to help educate African Americans and faith-based groups about the value of the discovery of family heritage roots.

“We will work with the family search organization, JustServe and prominent leaders like actor Blair Underwood to spread these messages about the potential bounties of the Freedman’s Bureau’s bank records to help repair our nation’s wealth gap,” said Cobb.

Cobb said his Civil Rights/Black activism began when he was a young member of the Afro-American Association at the same time as the parents of Vice President Kamala Harris attended the weekly meetings.

After forming the Oakland Black Caucus in 1968, Cobb and Gay Plair helped to protest Kaiser Permanente Hospital’s practice of performing unnecessary hysterectomies on Black women.

Noting that discriminatory health practices needed to be addressed, Cobb challenged presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy during his visit to Taylor Memorial Methodist Church that since he (RFK), Dr. King and his brother President John Kennedy (JFK) were pictured together on posters and tapestries that he should support the proliferation of community health centers.

RFK was killed in Los Angeles on June 6, 1968, the day after his Oakland visit, and two months after King’s assassination on April 4, 1968.

Cobb was selected to be a fellow at the RFK Memorial Foundation where he had an opportunity to help organize in communities nationally.

Next week in Part 2 -Cobb motivated by King moved to Atlanta in 2003.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

OPINION: LA’s Fires, Trump’s Felonies, and our Nation’s Burning Divide

Don't Miss

How I Accidentally Met (And Spoke With) Rep. Barbara Lee and Survived

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Activism

The Best Advice for Raising Children: Discipline That Makes Sense

In his book Developing Positive Self Images and Discipline in Black Children, Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu suggests that primary aims for socializing Black children should be: establishing goals related to God and the church; familiarizing children with religious texts like the Bible or Quran; educating them of Black culture like Khemetic (Egyptian) Civilization; enlightening them about Black leaders like Malcolm X and Sojourner Truth; and teaching them to strive to be employers, not employees.

Published

2 days ago

May 13, 2025

Oakland Post

Headshot of Dr. William A. Thomas. Photo courtesy of Dr. William A. Thomas.

By William A. Thomas, Ph.D.

In many African societies, the primary aim of socialization is to raise children to be socially responsible and eventually provide economic support to their parents and extended families. Ghanaian philosopher Kwame Gyekye taught that children are raised to be respectful of the wishes of their parents and extended adult family members.

In his book Developing Positive Self Images and Discipline in Black Children, Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu suggests that primary aims for socializing Black children should be: establishing goals related to God and the church; familiarizing children with religious texts like the Bible or Quran; educating them of Black culture like Khemetic (Egyptian) Civilization; enlightening them about Black leaders like Malcolm X and Sojourner Truth; and teaching them to strive to be employers, not employees.

Effective disciplinary strategies appropriate to a child’s age and development teach them to regulate their behavior; keep them from harm; enhance their cognitive, social, and emotional executive functioning skills; and reinforce the behavioral patterns taught by their parents and caregivers.

Below are some specific guidelines for disciplining children.

Listen to what children are talking about with interest and show them you understand their feelings. Remember, children mirror and learn about their emotional selves by hearing their feelings reflected back to them. Staying on target also means avoiding labels. When children fail to do what is expected, discussing it is helpful rather than saying how stubborn, lazy, dumb, or bad they are. By the same token, more positive labels can be helpful.

Dependability is another essential component of the discipline process. When parents are dependable, their children learn what to expect and are helped to feel secure. When parents are consistent, children learn to trust, that is, predict their parents’ behaviors with certainty. A child thinks, “When I spill something, I will always be asked to wipe it up.” A child thinks, “If I use foul language, I will always be corrected.” A child thinks, “If I take something that doesn’t belong to me, I will always have to give it back.” The ability to predict with certainty leads children to rely on their parents and the village/community in which they live. Children feel safe when they know what to expect.

Conclusions

It takes a village/community to raise the divine gift that is the Black child. Parents look to therapists for guidance concerning a variety of parenting issues, including discipline. Keep in mind that evidence suggests that corporal punishment is both ineffective in the long term and associated with cognitive and mental health disorders. When parents want guidance about the use of spanking, a child therapist can explore parental feelings, help them better define the goals of discipline, and offer specific behavior management strategies. In addition to providing appropriate education to families, the Bay Area Association of Black Psychologists (Bay ABPsi) can refer them to community resources, like parenting groups and classes.

About the Author

Dr. Thomas is a licensed clinical psychologist with a private practice in the SF/Oakland Bay Area and Beaumont. He is a member of Bay ABPsi, a healing resource committed to providing the Post Newspaper readership with monthly discussions about critical issues in Black Mental Health. Readers are welcome to join us at our monthly chapter meetings every 3^rd Saturday via Zoom and contact us at bayareaabpsi@gmail.com.