Dr. Richard Danford is president of the Jacksonville Urban League, overseeing a non-profit organization that has some 340 employees and serves the community by trying to achieve educational, economic and social equality. Danford is a graduate of Florida A&M University and received a doctorate from the University of Florida. In 1968, Danford served in Vietnam with the Americal Division. Prior to joining the Urban League in 1992, he worked at Edward Waters College as dean of students and executive assistant to the president. He then served in City Hall under mayors Tommy Hazouri and Ed Austin. Danford is married to Ch. 4 reporter Joyce Morgan and has three children. His daughter Faith is a senior at Florida A&M University, and Morgan, 7, and Richard III, 6, attend Ft. Caroline Elementary School. Danford’s conversation was with Daily Record editorial director Fred Seely.
Question: How do you assess race relations in Jacksonville today?
Answer: Better than when I came here in 1977, but we still have a long way to go. But we’ve made progress. A lot of progress. When I first got here, blacks and whites didn’t talk much. They didn’t go to each other’s homes. They weren’t open with each other. Jacksonville back then was as separate as the two sides of the river, but bridges are starting to be built over that river. People are finding other people. I know there are white people who grew up here but who don’t have any idea where Myrtle Avenue is, or what happens there. We’ve had a long way to go. Duval County Public Schools were under a court order to desegregate for 30 years. Thirty years! The largest city in the country in land mass and we lived under a court order for 30 years!
Q: We’ve seen a lot of public attempts at “togetherness” over the years. It seems like they come when something sets off a spark, like the time a local judge made comments about mixed marriages and we ended up with Jesse Jackson leading a parade and a big race “summit” at the convention center. We all get together at a meeting, hold hands, hug each other, and then I go to my home in a white neighborhood with a white church, and you go to your home in a black neighborhood and a black church.
A: Of course, you’re generalizing. I live in Arlington. I have white and black neighbors. I go to church with whites and blacks. But your broad thought is correct. What’s been done in the past was effective only for the moment. There has been no long-range effort. If we’re going to bring people together, it has to be one-on-one. We need forums for that interaction. But it does seem as though we are perpetually starting something and hardly ever bringing things to closure.
Q: So, what are we going to do?
A: First, we need to take the dialogue to the next level. We have to get rid of the labels and stereotypes and look at each other as fellow human beings who have a singular personality. You may look at me and say I’m a liberal because I’m black or work for a non-profit or liberal organization. You don’t know that, but that’s the stereotype. Do I think you’re a conservative because you are white? We should not oversimplify a highly complex issue. Don’t put people in a box. Here’s what you can do: have a conscious awareness of the need of diversity and ask these questions: How many African-Americans work with you? Is there diversity on your boards? How about your neighborhood? Your church? Where you go and what you do everyday? We should not think black or white, we must think — people. If you see a new person in your circle of influence, encourage that person. If it’s a civic group or the like, encourage that person to return. People want to be where they’re welcome, black or white. However, I realize many of us don’t have employment situations that afford this time and flexibility to serve on non-paid boards and committees. So we need to expand opportunities and the economic base for all, to make that happen.
Q: You’re on a lot of civic boards?
A: Yes. As head of the Urban League, I have always felt it part of my responsibility to give back, not withstanding the hundreds of volunteers who help us with our mission. I believe you have to work at effecting change. One of the strengths of the Urban League over almost a century has been an emphasis on inclusion and bridge building across racial and economic lines.
Q: At the Chamber’s recent Martin Luther King Breakfast, the speaker (Bryant Rollins) said we should have a Diversity Institute, which would be a place to study the local racial situation and work toward improving it. Is that a good idea?
A: Absolutely. It’s greatly needed. Many cities have one.
Q: Why don’t we?
A: Usually, they’re affiliated with a university. For example, several years ago, the Chamber visited Fisk University in Nashville. Their Race Relations Institute was an eye opener and the work there was well received by the participants. We also have the National Urban League’s Equal Opportunity Institute. I look forward locally to working with Bryant and other like-minded individuals and organizations in developing a “Diversity Institute” for this area of the country.
Q: If an organization took the leadership and started one, what would it do?
A: It would, most importantly, be a center for creating a better society. The Urban League has certainly focused on eradicating barriers to equal participation in the economic and social mainstream of America. In this, I see a more broad participation by many organizations and individuals working to make Jacksonville one of the most progressive cities in the world. One, as Martin Luther King said, where people are “judged by the content of their character rather than by the color of their skin.” And, of course, we have the 2005 Super Bowl, an opportunity to showcase our progress racially.
Q: How would it get started?
A: Actually, it has already started with conversations around this issue. The recent JCCI report “Beyond the Talk: Improving Race Relations,” is a very powerful and legitimate document. It’s as close as it gets in terms of what has happened, the present situation and a blueprint for the future. The Study Circle’s effort also has been a big help in bringing people together.
Q: Should we get people together and challenge them to take that report and do something meaningful about the way we look at each other here?
A: Absolutely. The first recommendation of the report is for the mayor of Jacksonville to take ownership of the race relation problems in Jacksonville. Accordingly, our next mayor should commit to bringing the entire community together to create a vision for equality and inclusion. Likewise, I feel that each of us can play a role in interracial interaction and bridge building. It is very important to treat people by the way they feel, and not the way you feel.
Q: What about affirmative action?
A: It’s amazing that we are still having this conversation. I see this issue as continuing to divide people and cause a lot of animosity. My basic opinion is that in regards to education, there are benefits to diversity. Race neutral plans are ineffective and have bad consequences. Given the fact that higher education is becoming a necessity for most employment sectors, it is imperative that institutions of higher education are able to recognize the importance of race in their admissions processes. When I look back, I can’t believe all of my graduate school classmates got into the university based only on their test scores.
Q: Does it all come back to economics?
A: Yes and no. Yes, racism and discrimination do exist, and they will most likely remain constant. But in America, it really boils down to economics and class. There is not a lot of class without wealth. I’m concerned we will have a class struggle because of economics. Remember, if we have more access to acquiring materialistic things and the wherewithal to utilizing services, all of us would be better off. Spending is equal opportunity.
Q: So money is the big issue?
A: Absolutely. There has always been wealth in the white community. More recently, African-Americans have moved upward economically. Poverty, however, disproportionately exists within minority communities. Adding to this wealth are the pro football players and their access to capital. Additionally, several minorities have benefited considerably from the Better Jacksonville Plan.
Q: But there’s definitely a black middle class.
A: Yes, and they need to help. But for some reason, black people who have made it or who are making it feel that a large part of their success story is to get away from other blacks. I know many professional African-Americans in this city and I encourage them to find a way to give back to the community. However, in all honesty, participation from blacks that are able to do so is not as forthcoming as one would or should expect. This is unfortunate, and we, not whites, should take the blame.
Q: How diverse is the Urban League?
A: The Jacksonville Urban League is perhaps one of the most diverse organizations in the city. Over half of our board members are white and our staff is very integrated. However, people should know that the Urban League, founding in 1910, is the nation’s oldest and largest community based movement devoted to empowering its constituents to enter the economic and social mainstream. The Jacksonville Urban League was established in 1947 by involved citizens to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights.
Q: At the MLK breakfast, I saw dozens of African-American businessmen and women. They obviously were successful people, capable people. But I don’t see them elsewhere. Not in civic clubs, not on volunteer boards. Are they not being encouraged?
A: On many boards there simply aren’t enough African-Americans represented. In most instances, it is the same few who represent the whole. I often get calls from other organizations seeking suggestions for board participants. We must increase the pool if we want more representation.
Q: Will it ever get settled?
A: The issue of race will always be there in the foreseeable future.