Fathers To The Front
County Council Member At-Large Mel Franklin Hosts Fathers Rally For Peace
By Raoul Dennis and Kristina Townsend // PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAOUL DENNIS
On June 11, County Council Member At-Large, Mel Franklin, hosted the 1000 Father’s Rally For Peace event in Prince George’s County. It featured a jobs fair, a fatherhood resource fair, and a small business exhibition. The event was scheduled for 3 pm-6 pm at Showplace Arena at 14900 Pennsylvania Avenue, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772.
Franklin says the goal has been to get men in the county to pledge for peace and commitment to family and community as fathers. The event is the first of a series of similar events that he will host around the county in coming years.
“Over the next 12 months, we are going to reach 1,000 fathers through road trips,” Franklin said as the June 11 rally drew to a close. “We’re going to take it on the road. We met our goals for today but this is just one step to a larger goal.”
The senior county statesman says the larger goal is to build momentum and grow participation in order change the culture.
“It’s something that is really difficult to do,” Franklin says. “We want to change the culture..It’s going to take persistence. Changing the culture to create renewed fatherhood, and to strengthen fatherhood in our communities is nothing that you can legislate. You have to win over people’s hearts & minds. We don’t know how many events we will do but we are going to start with the communities that are most distressed.”
Franklin is no stranger to movement building. He has developed a consistent voice in the county with regard to creating wealth among families and economic opportunity for small, minority and women owned businesses.
“Issues around fatherhood are issues that I have worked on for a long time,” he says. “I haven’t had the opportunity to bring a renewed focus to it over the last couple of years. So this is going to be a long term effort - even beyond my term in elected office. We have to address this issues - particularly in the black and brown communities.”
In a statement released on June 8, Franklin said the purpose of the event was to highlight “persistent issues like youth crime,” which “are directly connected to fatherhood absence.” Franklin also encouraged people to sign up to be 1000 Father’s Rally mentors for Prince George’s County’s youth, saying that anyone who volunteers “will multiply their efforts and make a difference in the lives of our young people and families.”
The event was headlined by national radio host, Russ Parr and featured other performers such as Praise 104.1 radio host Cheryl Jackson, and Radio One's DJ A&G, DJ Face, and musical performers Charles Butler & Trinity. Maryland Governor Wes Moore and Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks also headlined the speakers at the rally.
”There is so much more we can do,” said Parr. “It’s OK to take advantage of whatever opportunity you get, whatever opportunity you are given. Use it. Invest it. Make it happen and then help someone else.”
The rally was able to garner 60 small businesses and nonprofits that set up exhibition tables so that potential customers could learn about their services. Employ Prince George's (EPG), the County's workforce development provider, was also onsite with 12 employers ready to consider new employees. Some of the employers included Omnisource Consulting, Inc. (information technology (IT) firm), RATPDev USA (transportation/bus services), and Chiquita Jackson Enterprises (business management & event planning).
The governor was clear about what he thought was the most important message of the day regarding fathers.
“We all have a responsibility to serve,” Gov. Moore said. “We are going to unearth all the greatness of our communities and everyone has a responsibility to help make that happen.”
The services provided by the fatherhood resource fair included child support guidance, parole and probation support, landlord/tenant services, expungement and re-entry services, housing assistance programs, mental and physical health screening, domestic violence services, workforce development programs, family and social services, crime victim support, and youth programs.
