Public and Civic Club Talks
REMARKS PRESENTED AT INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE ELMORE COUNTY AFRICAN-AMERICAN HERITAGE ASSOCIATION
[Talk given by Judge John E. Enslen, Probate Judge of Elmore County, at the Wetumpka Civic Center on February 18, 2018.]
Expression of Appreciation
I commend and congratulate the 12 churches which make up The Elmore County African-American Heritage Association. Your purposes are praiseworthy, and I wish you much future success. Thank you for allowing me to participate with you today in this historic inaugural event. It is especially comforting to know that I am speaking to people of faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Some of the things I will say are sacred to me, and I believe to you also.
No Political Motives
I know that all elected officials like myself, of necessity being politicians, are looked upon with a healthy measure of distrust. That is understandable because career politicians often do and say things just to get votes. I want all of you to know that I never ran for political office but once, and that was very late in life. I am not currently a candidate for any political office, and I will not be a candidate for any political office in the future. I am 71 years of age.
I mention that personal circumstance for one reason only—to let you know that whatever I say today is sincere and genuine. My words will not be motivated or influenced by an attempt to secure your votes or any other favor.
Pioneers
Today we honor pioneers. Pioneers are in the forefront—the very beginning. They lead the way. They prepare the way for others to follow by making the pathway easier. They possess the fortitude to persevere.
One man described perseverance like this: “Perseverance means to continue in a given course until we have reached a goal or objective, regardless of obstacles, opposition, and other counterinfluences.... Perseverance is a positive, active characteristic.... It gives us hope by helping us realize that the righteous suffer no failure except in giving up and no longer trying.” (Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, Member of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
Recognition of Some Special Local Pioneers
Before I recognize the Bracy family, I wish to recognize some other integration pioneers who are in the audience today:
Will Winford Cain please stand? Almost 40 years ago, Winford was the first young man to integrate a boy scout troop in Elmore County.
Will Greg and Rosa Robinson please stand? More than twenty years ago, Greg and Rosa were the first complete family unit of husband, wife, and children to integrate a church here in Elmore County. They both now serve in important leadership positions in that church. Greg and Rosa did not join the church with integration in mind. They joined the church because they found in it the values and ideals they believed to be true.
Will Judge Bill Lewis please stand? Thirteen years ago, Judge Lewis became the first attorney to integrate a law firm in Elmore County. He is also the first African-American to hold a judgeship in Elmore County. Judge Lewis’ younger sister Desirae this past week became president of the Elmore County Bar Association.
With regard to the current status of workplace integration, will Tateeyana Edwards, Alma Walker Sims, and Kim Frost please stand? These three outstanding and highly competent women constitute the entire workforce of the Millbrook Satellite Probate Office in Elmore County.
And last, will Latisha Elmore please stand? Tish, as she is known, is the first African-American to serve as chief clerk of the probate court. She will complete 21 years of service this coming October.
Recognition of Bracy Family
I turn now to the outstanding Bracy family. It takes a high degree of spiritual maturity for a person to feel appreciation toward God for adversity. The Bracy family, so far as I can determine, developed just such an attitude of gratitude for all of the positive blessings that have come to them through adversity. They have exemplified a statement made by one of my heroes, Arthur Ashe: “If I were to say, ‘God, why me?’ about the bad things [in life], then I should have said, ‘God, why me?’ about [all of] the good things that have happened in my life.
My wife Robin and I live in a small 1,000 square feet house in Redland that sits on the same exact concrete foundation as did the Bracy home that was firebombed on the night of January 1, 1966. John Bracy, his wife Juanita, and his brother Edwin, joined my wife and me for dinner at our home last December so that we could talk about that tumultuous time period in our history. The words that came to my mind as I looked into their faces and listened to their stories were poise, class, dignity, grace, character.
The Bracys were kind-hearted, warm, and gentile. There was a total absence of animosity, guile, revenge, resentment, or retribution. What a powerful example to me were they. I am confident that Martin Luther King would be most proud of “the content of their character.” But their goodness goes further than that: Those who extend mercy and forgiveness live in peace and exhibit a greatness of soul and mind consistent with the teachings and example of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The passing of 50 years has a way of changing heroes into villains and villains into heroes. We have all been deprived by the mistakes and erroneous traditions of prior generations. But we have also all been blessed by the courage and right choices of prior generations. How will history judge us? Hopefully our choices will help to give our posterity a world that is better than the world into which we were born.
We will each have our special opportunities to help others, in some small way, learn, hopefully through reasoning together, this one important lesson—a lesson that deals with human R-E-S-P-E-C-T: This is the lesson: There will be mutual respect and opportunities for happiness for NONE of us, unless there is mutual respect and opportunities for happiness for ALL of us.
No race has a monopoly on the Christian virtues of faith, hope, charity, love, honesty, forgiveness, humility, knowledge, intelligence, diligence, obedience, patience, kindness, integrity, personal revelation, and walking with the Holy Ghost as your companion, or any other desirable quality or character trait. We are all truly of only one and the same race—the race of God our Heavenly Father, whose children we are universally (see New Testament, Acts 17:28 KJV) and in whose image we are each created (see Old Testament, Genesis 1:27 KJV). He is “no respecter of persons” (see New Testament, Acts 10:34 KJV) and we are “all alike” unto Him (• see Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 26:33).
So now, with that being said, after more than half a century of incremental and painfully slow progress, it is my esteem honor to recognize my dear brother and sister, Roosevelt and Marie Bracy, posthumously, and their nine living children, Debra, Georgia, John, Sophie, Edwin, Charles, Katherine, Aretha, and Harvey, as integration pioneers and perseverers extraordinaire. We honor at this late date their dedicated personal sacrifices that have immeasurably contributed to a better and improved Elmore County, Alabama. They made a difference for good by quietly, yet fearlessly, striking the early blows in tearing down an evil wall of separation in education.
This plaque, with the photo of a newspaper article describing the firebombing and depicting the charred remains of their home, and a simple “thank you” to go with it, seem so inadequate, but on behalf of all the good citizens of Elmore County, I do say “thank you.” Thank you for enduring in a Christ-like manner every insult, every degradation, every emotional scar, and every injustice that has been visited upon you by unthinking, or unkind, or ignorant, or bigoted people.
May God bless your noble souls for your undaunted righteous resolve.