Hi Lorine,
My heart aches as well. Why do we as a people further facilitate more divisions in our own community and families!! When will we sit back and realize that these battles we are creating will have bad consequences in the long run. Because of this North-South Battle, a young family member will not get the chance to experience the unity that's generated through family reunions. Because of this battle, a young person won't get a chance to learn who he or she is by knowing where he or she came from. Because of this battle, more disenchantment will be the result because of bad feelings. Because of this battle, oh well, I can go on and on.....

Perhaps you can print out the following article and get your family members to realize that family reunions are part of who we are as a people, and that we shouldn't let these frivolous battles take away something that's ethnically wired in us.

Soon, I am going to share with the forum a paper I am writing for an upcoming symposium at Clark Atlanta. It's entitled "The African-American Family." We definitely need to re-capture those things which our ancestors greatly esteemed, and Family is one of them! But I do realize that there are some mentally-distorted folk who try to sabotage something that is indeed great.

Mel