Sharonne Salaam – Candidate Statement and Questionnaire

sharonne@justiceunity.org

I’m a WBAI Local Station Board member running again with the Justice and Unity Campaign (www.justiceunity.org), because now more than ever the mission and the very survival of WBAI are at stake. You may know of me because my son Yusef was one of the five innocent boys wrongly arrested and convicted of raping a white woman in Central Park. During the struggle to defend this group of falsely accused African American and Latino boys – and ultimately to clear them of all wrongdoing – WBAI was a powerful and indispensable ally. WBAI helped get the truth out when other media were joining the voices of accusation and refusing to air the truth. (Later, when those media focused on other people’s books and films about the case, WBAI covered the need for elimination of the false, life-scarring sexual offender label and for compensation for police and prosecutorial misconduct.)

As a result of my son’s wrongful arrest, I embarked on a career of community activism serving children and families in and out of prison, with special attention to the foster-care system in New York City. I founded and directed People United for Children; over a period of nearly two decades, our work led to thousands of children being reunited with their biological parents, as well as policy changes in the child-welfare system. As a self-trained social worker, I’ve developed skills in negotiating, mediating, and helping others understand their rights. I believe these skills will serve the board well. I also understand the difference between a governing board and management, and will not overstep the bounds of the LSB’s purview.

I am very concerned about the reduction of locally produced public-affairs programming for communities of color over the past three years, with programs cancelled, shortened, or moved to inconvenient hours. These communities have always strongly supported WBAI, and failing to serve them adequately hurts the station.

Managers backed by the current board majority have repeatedly suppressed dissent –
retaliating against producers who speak out, not honoring the unpaid staff contract, even banning several staff and listeners from the station. As a board member, I will insist that management stop violating people’s rights.

Finally, despite the station’s severe financial crisis, the board majority recently blocked a proposal by Justice & Unity members to slash exorbitant rent expenses by moving to less expensive quarters as soon as possible. If management works collaboratively with staff, board, and listeners, I’m sure the additional funds can be raised and the right place found.

I am dedicated to returning WBAI to its vital mission – promoting understanding between peoples by airing the many unheard community voices.

Please vote for me and the other candidates of the WBAI Justice & Unity Campaign (endorsed by Bernard White, Bob Law, and Esperanza Martel), in the following order:

1. Father Luis Barrios
2. Cerene Roberts
3. William Heerwagen
4. Sharonne Salaam
5. Russell Dale
6. Carlos Canales
7. Diana Crowder
8. Shahid Comrade
9. Ebon Charles
10. Eugene Hamond

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Answers to Candidate Questionnaire

1.    In what ways is your station moving in a positive direction, that you would want to continue or perhaps improve?

Continuing to have a listener voice through open phones on some programs has been very positive, because it makes the listeners feel connected to the station. We need much more of that, and we need to take listener involvement further by making it possible for the listeners to have more of an impact on what is being put before them in the programming; for example, we could use a questionnaire to learn what kinds of programs they think WBAI should be airing. Also, in the past, there were training programs for young people that taught them radio and helped get them involved in the station, and the loss of the people who led those programs has hurt the station. We should reinstitute those programs. In addition, we should reinstate locally produced programs addressing local issues that have been shunted aside or off the airwaves.

2.    In what ways is your station moving in a negative direction, that you would want to stop or change? What changes would you work for?

I am most eager to expand outreach to local communities and increase the level of training that is offered to younger people who might be interested in broadcasting, to get them ready to move the station forward. I would be very interested in working with board colleagues who have connections in communities other than the ones in which I already work, as I have a willingness both to collaborate and share information that I have acquired in my work as a community organizer that might be helpful to others, and to learn from their experiences. We need much more locally produced programming that speaks directly to the issues impacting on our constituent communities. One very important thing that needs to happen is that WBAI must move, even if it has to move to a temporary space while it works its way toward ownership. I am willing to do everything in my power to help identify and move us into space we can afford, so that we can keep our powerful signal right where it is on the radio dial.

3.    What key experience, connections, skills or traits would you bring to the Local Station Board to advance the station’s mission?

I’ve worked on many issues related to the surrounding communities in the WBAI listening area and am familiar with the needs of these communities. I am a founder of People United for Children (PUC), and have been its Executive Director. I received my B.A. from Empire State College and an A.A.S. from the Fashion Institute of Technology, and worked in the fashion industry for fifteen years before the wrongful arrest of my son Yusef led to a new career in activism, which I have been pursuing for almost 20 years. I have been the recipient of numerous awards for my work and my commitment to community service. I have served on Community Board 10 in Central Harlem and have been a Revson Fellow at Columbia University, where I focused on marketing, management, and media in order to further develop PUC’s outreach programs and expand its capacity to serve the community and New York City. One thing that keeps me grounded is being the proud mother of Aisha, Yusef, and Shaf.

4.    What ideas do you have for helping the station and the Pacifica Foundation meet the financial challenges currently being faced?

One of the main things I intend to do is to help identify the resources necessary that would make it possible to move into a new space as soon as possible, which would cut the excessive spending on rent and leave more funds available for programming and general support. In addition, I think that taking WBAI on the road, out into the many communities in the tri-state area and to events and festivals, would bring in more listeners, and I could help with that, too; in fact, I have experience in organizing fundraising events, and would be happy to work on any events that get WBAI out into the community. I also have experience in grant writing, and would be happy to collaborate in any such efforts. It’s my belief that the better WBAI serves disenfranchised communities, the wider our scope will be and the more listeners and support we will attract. We could even involve the community in the search for new space!