As reported last month byThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution two top SCLC officials, Rev. Raleigh Trammell and Spiver Gordon, were released last month by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), due to allegations that the two may have made off with $569,000 of the civil rights group’s money via questionable expenditures in Dayton, Ohio and Eutaw, Ala.
In an interesting twist, a judge ordered the group to return the pair to their posts, because they were not released through “due process.” They’ve been reinstated now for a few weeks, but new developments just surfaced in the case.
Federal agents were seen Thursday, Feb. 11, removing a computer and several bins and boxes from the home of Trammell.
Here’s the AJC’s account:
Thursday morning, federal agents carrying search warrants entered Trammell’s home at 1505 Olmsted Place, local SCLC headquarters on at 2132 W. Third St. and the home of Trammell’s daughter, Angela Goodwine, at 1482 Vernon Drive.
“I certainly want to know what’s going on. Everybody is being very courteous. I am providing the information that is required,” Trammell said as he was leaving SCLC headquarters today around 11 a.m.
When asked what authorities were searching for, Trammell said “they want what you’ve been writing in the newspaper… that I’ve got $560,000.”
Trammell then left in a car with other officials and did not respond to questions about local SCLC expenditures.
Acting chairwoman at the time of Trammel’s and Gordon’s dismissal, Sylvia Tucker, was instrumental in the ouster that was later deemed illegal. The judges order to re-seat them was to her dismay.
“It’s been very difficult and it’s been very sad,” said the then-acting
chairwoman. “It’s just sort of unbelievable that the greatest
organization in the world … would ever have to be dealing with such
matters as this. We are trying to do everything correct and in the
Christian way.”
The AJC reports that Tucker said some SCLC leaders first had questions about the organization’s money when a former board member alleged last summer that as much as $1.4 million of the SCLC’s money had disappeared. She said $569,000 of that had been identified at that time.
The forced re-hire didn’t make sense if it was sure to lead to further investigation. Well enough should have been left alone.
It seems that these remaining civil rights organizations are becoming mere cash cows for self-important and greedy opportunists. The NAACP is also experiencing its fair share of financial improprieties by it’s trusted employees. –gerald radford
