Brenda Cherry
Cherry is the President and co-founder of Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality, a non-profit civil rights organization located in Paris, Texas.
Founded in 2003, CCFRE co-sponsored events with the U.S. Department of Justice, Lone Star Legal Aid, and the American Civil Liberties Union.
On October 23, 2003, an 11-year-old black student was reportedly attacked by a principal at Crockett Middle School in Paris, Texas.
Cherry, together with a small group of people, including the child's mother and grandfather, staged a protest in front of the school.
During the same time frame, the judge in the case, Chuck Superville, sentenced a Caucasian 14-year-old girl who had a prior criminal history to probation after committing the confirmed crime of arson.
[5] Writer Darwin Campbell with African-American News and Issues broke the story, which garnered attention to Cotton's sentencing.
[6] After serving a year and one month in prison, the Chicago Tribune story written by Howard Witt led the case to national exposure.
[7] A large protest led by comedian Rickey Smiley was held at the Lamar County Courthouse in Paris, Texas.
[11] Due to the activism of Cherry and the Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality, the case gained national attention.
[12][13] After dispute about whether McClelland was dragged under the truck or behind it, and while awaiting autopsy reports, USA Today interviewed Cherry.
"[14] Further investigation revealed that McClelland was last seen alive with two Caucasian men, Shannon Finley and Charles Ryan Crostley, both of whom had extensive criminal history.
"[15] Special prosecutor Toby Shook cited lack of evidence to the case, and the murder charges were dropped in June 2009.
In June 2008, police handcuffed and arrested Thomas at his home for allegedly "touching a female student's butt and crotch" in class.
Cherry views the Cotton and Thomas prosecutions as extreme examples of a larger pattern of racial discrimination in Paris public schools.
On November 11, 2009, Gill was picking up pecans when he was approached by a Paris police officer who questioned him about a stolen car that had been found a few blocks away.
Cherry witnessed a portion of the incident and she, along with Gill's mother, filed a complaint with the Paris Police Department.
The dash cam video was released after Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality filed an open records request.
[23] Bobby Yates was a 51-year-old African-American man in Paris, Texas, who was paralyzed from the waist down as the result of a gunshot wound during a hunting accident approximately 20 years earlier.
On a late night in 2008, Yates made a 911 call to the local police stating that he had been beaten by a 16-year-old white female and two adult males who were at his home that refused to leave.
Numerous protest marches were held, led by CCFRE and Jim Blackwell of the Tarrant County Local Organizing Committee.
[28] "This is just horrible," stated Cherry in a Los Angeles Times article after Judge Clifford made his ruling.
In February 2009, Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality received complaints and photos regarding a noose, racist graffiti, Confederate flags, and salary and advancement discrimination against black workers in the Turner Industries Paris plant.
Cherry stated: "One of my biggest concerns regarding the racist graffiti, noose, and other things found at the plant is the mentality of those who put it there.
After the school refused to discipline the 18-year-old and his girlfriend, or the teacher who erased the evidence, Cherry and CCFRE advocated on behalf of the mother, Tina Washington, and her son.
[34] Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality co-sponsored a community reconciliation meeting with the U.S. Department of Justice which was featured in the Chicago Tribune.
"[38] Cherry has been an advocate for civil and human rights, and continues her work to address race and humanitarian issues.
