South Central Region Chapter Programs

AKAs Partner to Register Voters in Dallas

Dozen of Alpha Kappa Alpha members responded to the call from International President Barbara A. McKinzie to Engage in the Significant voting Process by conducting a voter registration blitz at a most unusual place-a football game! Over 500 people were registered Saturday, October 4, 2008 at the State Farm Football Classic during the Texas State Fair in Dallas, TX.

Members of the Alpha Xi Omega and Omicron Mu Omega Chapters partnered with the Trinity and the Plano (TX) Chapters of the Links, Inc., St. Luke "Community" United Methodist Church, the J.L. Turner Legal Association, MASS, Inc. and members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. to register people to vote.

Demetris Sampson, AKA Connection Committee Chairman (R), and member Rozalind Dickerson (L) register two football fans to vote at the State Farm Classic, October 4, 2008.

The group registered fair attendees, as well as people attending the football game between Grambling State University and Prairie View University. "This is an historic election. So we had to think outside of the box for innovative ways to reach unregistered voters," said DeMetris Sampson, AKA Connection Committee Chairman, Omicron Mu Omega, who spearheaded the event. "We were quite pleased with the numbers of people that we registered." October 6th was the last day to register to vote in the state of Texas.

As part of its mission to ensure that citizens register to vote, Alpha Kappa Alpha mounted a national two-pronged blitz. The "voter registration blitz," the first prong, lasted from September 6 through October 4, spearheaded by the Sorority's Connection Committee. The second prong, "Take Five," is to take five people to the voting polls on Election Day, November 4.

Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapters Present Domestic Violence Town Hall Meeting

"If you won't let a stranger treat you this way, why would you let someone you are intimate with treat you that way?"

That was the million-dollar-question discussed at the Mental Health Town Hall meeting, "A Closer Look at Domestic Violence," held in Grand Prairie, TX. The meeting was presented by the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex Chapters of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., in collaboration with the Ft. Worth Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

Benje M. Douglas, an Education Services Supervisor from SafeHaven of Tarrant County (Ft. Worth), and Ft. Worth Homicide Detective Michel Carroll, spoke to over 100 people at the Town Hall Meeting, about the signs, symptoms and victims of domestic violence. SafeHeaven offers a free shelter for adults and children victims of domestic violence.

Douglas reminded participants that relationships should be fun. "They may take some maintenance, but for the most part, they [relationships] should be fun." He added that many women explain away the bad behavior of their partners. "Sometimes we assume we don't deserve what's good," said Douglas. "They'll say 'my mother, sister, whoever, all went through this, so I should, too.'"

As Detective Carroll showed the crowd some very graphic photos of domestic abuse victims so they would understand the seriousness of domestic violence, he added, "Get hooked up with the wrong man and abuse or death will happen to you."

Following are some of the statistics Detective Carroll shared with the standing-room-only crowd:

Every 14 seconds a woman is assaulted;
Over 90% of female homicide victims know their attacker;
93% of kids knew their predator;
Most offenders are people you see every day: family friends, school teachers, ministers, etc.;
More rage over NFL player Michael Vick and dogs, but not over NFL players who hurt and kill women!

According to both presenters, a woman's best defense for staying out of abusive relationships is her intuition. If it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. But once in, how can you get out of these situations? Only counseling can help people get out of this cycle—if you can get victims to go. Representatives from several help agencies were on hand to provide one-on-one information.

The Town Hall Meeting was held to raise public awareness and support the "Health Resource Management" platform of the Alpha Kappa Alpha ESP International Program, which encourages forums around physical and mental health topics that face the Black community. This was the second such meeting presented by the DFW Chapters of AKA. A Town Hall was held in 2007 focusing on "Depression in Women."

The Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex Chapters of the Sorority, Inc. consists of those in Dallas (Alpha Xi Omega, Omicron Mu Omega), Ft. Worth (Beta Mu Omega), Arlington (Xi Theta Omega), Carrollton (Tau Rho Omega), DeSoto (Upsilon Lambda Omega) and Plano (Chi Zeta Omega).