By Reginald Liner – Clinical Psychologist Dr. Umar Johnson covered a wide range of topics ranging from the need of more African-Americans teachers in the inner city schools to the need for parents to know when their child is being inappropriately labeled by racist or uncaring staff. Jacksonville was the last stop on Dr. Johnson’s book tour that included Shreveport, Louisiana, Jackson, Mississippi and Savannah, Georgia. Johnson held a captive audience of individuals enthralled for approximately two hours recently inside the Scottish Rite Temple in the Springfield area.
It was his first visit in Duval since 2017, when the local masjid commissioned him for their annual speaker’s event. Dr. Umar is founder and lead tour guide for the “Unapologetically Afrikan” Black College & Consciousness Tour for ages 11 thru 17-year-old boys and girls which exposes them to the great historical Black College tradition, that helped shaped the global Afrikan struggle for freedom and independence.
The highlight of the event was the book signing for his recent book entitled, “Black Parent Advocate” that discusses navigating conflict with your child’s school. Dr. Johnson’s claim to fame is his initiative to build his new school, ‘The Frederick Douglass and Marcus Garvey RBG International Leadership Academy for Boys,’ in Philadelphia, PA. The school is listed as the first residential academy for Black boys founded upon the principles of Pan-Afrikanism and International Economics.
“Wow, I’ve been waiting on Brother Umar’s visit back to jax for years; this was exciting and a wealth of information. I have black boys in school and looking for a way to educate them on America’s distrust of the black man. The one that toiled this land built this country on the backs of his ancestors,” said attendee Ken Hampton.
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