WWRL -- Sharpton rally -- 10/28/95

Morris Powell:

"Thank you Reverend Mason. Good morning family. The 125th Street Business Association. We're in the process now of starting a job action against corporates that had a hand in driving the black vendors off 125th Street. Bargain World is a visible target. The owner is a officer in the 125th Street Business Improvement District.

That is one of the main spearheaders of the removal of the vendors. They received almost a quarter of a million dollars for our removal. An owner by the name of Arthur Rosen, is the secretary of BID. Barbara Askin presides over it and Joseph Fields is the chairman. This is about the only BID in the city of New York that is not a all black program. If you find a BID in an Irish neighborhood all the people on it as officers is Irish people. If you find them in the Jewish community all the people that's a part of that BID in the Jewish community are Jewish people. But here, the overseer had to be a part of the officership in the BID here to watch over his field hands. And this is the type of situation we're in here. And, on the top of that, owns a store right here that sell inferior merchandise. Bargain World sell inferior furniture, and the rest, and charging a mint for their stuff. And we are going to drive them out of business, even though they have been in business for years.

This is how we're going to earn our respect. The Buy Black Steering Committee ... mandate is to troubleshoot for black businesses in trouble. Any black businesses that, if they are having problems, we have a number for you to call: The number is 212-996-1418. I repeat 212-996-1418. Tell us your problems and we will get there and start a job action and see what we can do to alleviate any problems the black stores may have. We have a track record so far, starting with Freddy's -- with the brother of Record Shack -- we had a job action against him, look like they want to cross him out. But we'll show them how we react to people that crosses us. Remember, we're going to be going to the field signing up all the black stores in Harlem. We'll be starting that in the next couple of Saturdays."

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