State NAACP president meets with local residents

Published 12:00 am Friday, June 22, 2001

About 50 people attended a meeting with Eugene Bryant, state president of the NAACP, at Beulah Baptist Church in Natchez Thursday.

Adams County Justice Court Judge Mary Lee Toles opened the meeting by asking the crowd to express concerns with a sweet spirit.

&uot;The bottom line is whatever you bring to the table let’s bring it in the … right spirit,&uot; she said.

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The purpose of the meeting was to discuss any problems but also to prioritize those problems so Bryant can help address them,Toles said.

&uot;We’re going after seeking solutions to problems,&uot; Toles said.

After giving praise to God, Bryant began by asking the crowd to stick to the matter at hand.

&uot;We’re not here to deal with personalities,&uot; he said. &uot;We’re here to deal with issues.&uot;

And the issues in Adams County are no different than in any other part of the state, Bryant said.

Bryant also said he the crowd may not agree on everything but that should not hinder conversation.

&uot;No one is either right or wrong,&uot; Bryant said. &uot;Just say what you feel like the issues are.&uot;

One of the issues the NAACP is trying to address now is to insure the safety of prisoners while incarcerated, Bryant said.

Changes on all issues need to be demanded and they also require a great number of people, Bryant said.

&uot;If the family of faith (was) strong enough to stand up and say what the issues are along with the NAACP, we wouldn’t have these problems,&uot; Bryant said.

Bryant said his purpose in Natchez was to take their concerns to the state conference of the NAACP. He then opened the floor to the audience.

After a brief discussion about racial profiling and unfair speeding tickets the meeting was closed to the media.