"If you kill a person, you're a murderer. If you kill a community, you're a billionaire." - Melissa Dooley, Houston Artist
March 24 Petition & Press Release
* * * CONTEST WINNER! * * *

Congratulations to David Powell, Nicole Schulman, Patricia Moore, and the Residents Council/Friends of APV, for the winning entry in the Freedmen's Town history contest. The $1,000 award will go toward the collaborating artists in creating a museum display, based on the prize-winning Story of APV.

Four additional awards of $250 have been presented to the following community leaders to fund internships for grantwriting and educational outreach:

  • Darrell J. Patterson, Founding Director, Fourth Ward Health and Educational Center for Youth, 713-269-2857
  • Lenwood E. Johnson, Free Man's Neighborhood Association, 281-709-3001
  • Gladys M. House, Founder, Freedmen's Town Association, gcarpetdepot@aol.com
  • Catherine French and Catherine Roberts, HCC Sociology and Rutherford B.H. Yates Museum

    Previous honorees are also recognized for outstanding efforts in promoting Freedmen's Town/Fourth Ward in Houston, as a national landmark for African American and immigrant history:

  • Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Al Davis,Chair, Harris Co. Hist. Comm., for securing funds to preserve Gregory School as community center/musuem
  • Anita Garten and Ramona Davis, Past and Current Presidents, Greater Houston Preservation Alliance
  • Councilwoman Annise Parker and Architectural Historian Stephen Fox, Rice Community
  • Pamela Rooney and Courtney Key, Graduate Students in Social Work/Architecture
  • Gladys House and Marcus Chery, Freedmen's Town Community Leader and Youth Leader
  • Barbara Youngs and Minister Dewayne Lark, Research, letters and petitions on gravesites and related legal issues
  • Brian Wallstin, Houston Press; NY Times Sam Howe Verhovek 3/15/98
  • Anne Sparks, Preservation TX Reporter; Joey Richards/Galveston Daily News.
  • Lynn Edmundson, Historic Houston, and Darrell Patterson, Director, Fourth Ward Center for Youth
  • Fred McGhee, Lenwood Johnson, Amilcar Shabazz, Mark Roberts, Educators/Lecturers on Civil Rights History
  • Liz Gilbert, Reginald & Rhonda Adams, Mark Smith & Rapture, David Powell/Patricia Moore/Nicole Schulman, Writers/Artists

    Metallic buttons and bars courtesy of .

    Poem for Fourth Ward Youth

    Poem for Fourth Ward Ministers

    Houses of the Dead (c) Bluebeard

    Song for Freedmen's Town

    Land Grab Song

    Court Reformation Song

    Reparations Song

    Eviction Song

    4th Ward Country Song (yeehaw!)

    Photograph by Paul Davis

    • Freedmen's Town history & timeline
    APV Story - Contest Winner!
    Fourth Ward Mural Project (color pics)
    Freedmen's Town Threatened
    Resident Council Resolution Sign On!
    Gravesite Petition
    Newsphoto of Fourth Ward Youth!
    Lenwood Johnson on APV History
    Allen Parkway Community Campus
    Groundbreaking on 3 new houses!
    Fourth Ward Center for Youth
    Save JD Hospital for 4th Ward
    Youth Master Plan 4th Ward Resolution
    12 Ways to Invest in Fourth Ward Youth
    Fourth Ward Wishlist
    Previous Petitions and Press Releases
    To honor volunteers, educators, and leaders in your community, please join Launch Point, John Gable, and the Power of Ten network in helping all neighborhoods and charities in need of community centers and resources for families and children in crisis. Contact Olivia Reiner at 713-829-0899, and the National Campaign to LISTEN TO THE CRIES OF THE CHILDREN, a Division of Hear O' Israel International.

  • To find out more on Freedmen's Town, call Lenwood Johnson at 281-709-3001 or email: apv1@ev1.net or apv1@peoplepc.com. For a brief history on Freedmen's Town, download here: FTAbrief.txt or FTAbrief.doc; or visit the Freedmen's Town Association at 1318 Robin, 713-739-9414, c/o Gladys House, e-mail: gcarpetdepot@aol.com. To help charter a youth bank, contact Darrell Patterson at 713-269-2857. To join in historic church restoration under a community trust fund, email: houstonprogressive@yahoo.com. To help research Constitutional and civil rights violations, see general list or contact Emily at 867-5998 emilynghiem@hotmail.com.
    "All things work together for good to them that love God,
    to them who are called according to His purpose." (Rom. 8:28)
    To add your webpage, comments, or suggestions, e-mail here:

    houstonprogressive@yahoo.com

    Other sites recommended for Constitutional reform:

    Fully Informed Jury Association or U.S. Constitution or Corpus Justice: 281+405-8998

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