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After a split vote on the same matter at a previous meeting, the Asbury Park Board of Education last night unanimously approved Bro. Min. John Muhammad to speak at three district schools this month.

Muhammad is a community activist and founder of the GANG [Going After the Next Generation] Organization, as well as a minister in the Nation of Islam. He has spoken at Asbury Park’s schools each year since 1996. He will be assisted by Min. Sylvia Coleman, presenting “The Cease Fire Movement” at the middle school, alternative school and high school this month.

At the May 27 council meeting, four board members, Angela Ahbez-Anderson, Rev. Geneva Smallwood, Gerard Dalton and Barbara Lesinski, voted not to approve the speaking engagement. The remaining four board members voted yes, meaning the motion did not carry on the 4-4 vote. Ahbez-Anderson and Smallwood were absent from last night’s meeting, as were board members Joseph Raines and Kevin Michel.

Muhammad and Coleman spoke to the board members present at last night’s meeting to explain their credentials and experience. Board members had previously questioned their qualifications, asking for more information on their backgrounds.

“I’ve been coming [to Asbury Park schools] since 1996, inspiring people in the way of integrity and self-respect,” Muhammad said. He has spoken at Johns Hopkins University and Stockton College, as well as numerous high schools throughout the country, he added.

Superintendent Denise Lowe said at the May 27 meeting that Muhammad is able to connect with the students through his speaking engagements, and “there were things that were said that [students] wouldn’t say to anyone else in the district.” The students requested his return, she added.

Coleman also spoke, sharing her history with the board. She was born in Newark and used to be a gang leader. She is now a minister who focuses on youth outreach and preventing young people from joining gangs. She has a degree in counselling and psychology.

“I had a white picket fence and still went out in the streets,” Coleman said. “Children who are black, white, green or yellow are joining gangs not because they’re bad kids, but because they don’t feel loved.”

Coleman’s specialty is connecting with the young people, which not everyone can do, she said.

“They come to me in gangs,” she said. “We’ve been successful in getting some youth out of gangs.”

Gang activity is a problem in this area, she said.

Board member Lesinski said the main reason Muhammad and Coleman were not approved at the last meeting was a lack of information.

Board member Gregory Brewington said he had met Muhammad years ago when he was speaking at the middle school.

“This is a known entity,” Brewington said of having the two speak to students. “This is an investment.”

District teacher Delsy Getty also spoke on behalf of Muhammad, who is an Asbury Park alumnus.

“That person was my student in seventh and eighth grade,” she said. “He was smart … One of the best kids, and one of the best things about Asbury Park.”

The board later voted unanimously to approve Muhammad and Sylvia’s presentation, which will target boys and girls in two separate groups at the middle school, alternative school and high school, on June 11 and 12. The cost of the presentations is $750 per session, with a total cost of $2,250.

For the story on board’s first vote, click here.

 

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