9th Annual Women's Symposium

April 10, 2010

Women on South discuss violence, changes in society
Tuesday, 13 April 2010; The Collegian
Brittany Dickey, reporter

Students browse the 37 vendors set up in the Student Center on South Campus for the ninth annual Women’s Symposium sponsored by Women in New Roles April 9. The symposium included two speakers, Judge Bobbie Edmonds of Forest Hill Municipal Court and Dr. Sherry Dean of Richland College, along with a continental breakfast and live entertainment. (Photos by Mackenzie Ashton/The Collegian)

Women in New Roles’ yearly symposium draws in 151 registered guests, 37 vendors The South Campus Student Center was bustling with activity Saturday morning for the ninth annual Women’s Symposium sponsored by Women in New Roles. “It was an awesome symposium with 151 registered and 37 vendors,” said Triesha Light, South WINR director and event chair. With the theme, Redefining Ourselves: Regain, Reclaim, Renew, participants heard a presentation by Forest Hill Municipal Court Judge Bobbie Edmonds, visited exhibits, networked and ended the day with a presentation by Dr. Sherry Dean, executive dean at Dallas’ Richland College. Vendors offered a variety of information and products representing non-profit organizations such as Meals on Wheels. Several individuals sold arts and crafts and homemade items. One of the vendors, Natasha Boggan, had a table with baby clothes and handmade bags, including one she made from Maruchan noodles packaging. Another vendor, Safe Haven of Tarrant County, gave out candy and pamphlets about its services for abused women and their children.

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Fear is a major reason people do not report domestic abuse, Edmonds, a municipal judge and private lawyer, said during the symposium’s opening session. Graduating from Southern University A&M with an interior design degree, Edmonds received a jurist doctorate at Southern University of Law in Baton Rouge before moving to Texas to start her own law practice. “Women and men are often fearful of telling others about the abuse,” she said. Edmonds said many women believe that if they tell, they will be killed or harmed by the abuser. “Men too,” she said. “Some women beat up on men.” Although some victims fear reporting domestic violence because they want to be protected from the abuser, Edmonds said the protection of the abused is ever-evolving. “Laws in general are much stricter,” she said. If 9-1-1 is called and the police are sent out to a residence, more than likely someone is going to jail, Edmonds said. If the police see any indicators that violence has occurred, such as a punched wall or a bruised spouse, the person inflicting the abuse will go to jail. “The consequences of domestic violence are costly,” she said A person charged with abuse can get a $10,000 bond when allowed to post bail, Edmonds said. If convicted, one must consider the probation and/or jail time one might get. “Think before you slap, kick or punch your spouse,” she said. Edmonds said that instead of hitting a spouse, abusers need to learn other ways to deal with stress. She said some stress factors can be released with counseling or a friend. “In the black community, mental illness is taboo,” she said. “An individual could go their whole life untreated.” This fear or misjudgment of mental health doctors only perpetuates the problem of abuse, Edmonds said. To help stop this problem, she said people should start open discussions with parents and grandparents on any concern or problem. She said domestic violence is made worse by untreated mental illness. “This feeds the problem,” she said. Student Jasmine Livings said she was really encouraged by the speech and learned to accept herself. “Look at yourself through a microscope and realize that you are trapped,” Edmonds advised abuse victims. They might need to go to attend counseling sessions not necessarily because of mental illness. They just need help, Edmonds said.

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Women’s roles have changed and are evolving, but they still have several challenges to overcome, a college administrator told Women’s Symposium participants in the closing session. “We have a responsibility to ask ourselves why things are happening the way they are with women in our worlds,” said Dean, executive dean of humanities and performing arts at Richland College in Dallas. “I don’t know if things will ever be equal.” Although women now are the majority of the working class at 57 percent and have more successful businesses than male business owners, Dean said things like feticide and infanticide are happening in China and other nations. “Are women’s rights improving?” she said. “It depends on what you choose to focus on.” Because of culture pressure in China to have a boy, many of the girl babies are killed or neglected, Dean said. “Men carry the family name,” she said. Therefore, Dean said, girls are viewed as less valuable than men. In places like Senegal and China, many girls are denied education. Senegal has a 35 percent literacy rate. “If you don’t see that as a problem, then something’s wrong,” she said. Also, girls reaching adolescence in other countries and America are susceptible to sex slavery and trafficking. Dean said women are often lured by a decent job offer, then kidnapped or threatened and kept against their will. Some of these women do not know English or the American culture, and some do not have anyone because their families live in other countries. “This is happening right under our noses,” she said. “If you’re not mad about this, you should be.” Dean said 27 million people are enslaved across the country, and criminals run their slave shops like Fortune 500 companies. Even though statistics show that women are more successful and closer to equality than ever before, Dean said their overall happiness has decreased. “There is a lot of media pressure for males and females,” she said. Dean said only 5 percent of women in the world are born looking like the pictures seen in magazines. “Most of us will never look like that,” she said. Yet by age 14, Dean said more than 50 percent of girls say they don’t like their bodies. She said all women should ask themselves what they can do to make a difference. “I feel responsible as a citizen because what if it were me in the situation?” she said.

click on photo to see full sized version
Photos by Cheyenne Jones

Dr. Sherry Dean currently serves as the Executive Dean of the School of Humanities, Fine and Performing Arts at Richland College in Dallas. She is responsible for 170 faculty in 10 disciplines. Dean also teaches French language and culture; speech communication and cultural studies.

Sherry holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from The University of Texas at Austin. Her research focused on globalization and global education innovation. She also holds two Master’s degrees from the University of Texas system. She has done extensive professional development in Mexico, the Middle East and China.

Sherry has led numerous international Service Learning seminars in Senegal, West Africa and France. She directed a Fulbright-Hays program to Senegal, West Africa in 2006. Her work in Senegal centers on empowering women through micro-lending projects and academic scholarships. Sherry also serves as a consultant to industry and the academy, conducting workshops on the topics of cross-cultural communication, global education competencies for business professionals, global education and organizational vitality.

Sherry has received numerous awards for teaching excellence. Among these, the French government awarded her a Knighthood in The Order of the Academic Palm (Chevalier, Ordre des Palmes académiques) in 2003.

Sherry is currently a trustee of Girl’s Inc. of Metropolitan Dallas. Sherry was a member of the Leadership Dallas 2009 class. Her passions are the community college movement, supporting girls’ education, international travel and biking.

As an inspired interior decorator, Bobbie Edmonds earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interior Design from Southern University A&M in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and received a jurist doctorate degree from Southern University School of Law in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Her first assignment as a lawyer was with the Reginald Heber Smith Fellowship in Washington, D.C. Then she became a staff attorney with North Louisiana Legal Services Corporation and expanded her career by becoming the Executive Director and General Counsel for Southwest Louisiana Legal Services Corporation in Lake Charles, Louisiana. With a crusading desire to expand her horizon, Bobbie relocated to Texas, passed the Texas Bar Examination and opened her law practice in 1987. She engages in private practice with a concentration on school, civil rights, personal injury, and criminal and probate law.

Attorney Edmonds gained notoriety through representing Carolyn Jean Thomas, the widow of Donald Thomas. In the highly publicized trial, the jury ruled that Mr. Thomas was brutally murdered during a hate crime on June 6, 1991 in Arlington, Texas, by three (3) teenage skinheads. In recognition of diligence in combating racism in America, Texas Governor Ann Richards invited Mrs. Thomas and Attorney Edmonds to the Texas State Capital in Austin for a historical signing ceremony on the Hate-Crime Bill on June 19, 1993. The law became effective September 1, 1993.

She has also served as lead attorney in a national class action lawsuit against World Rio Corporation, the manufacturer of a defective consumer product, Rio Hair Naturalizer. This high profile lawsuit was recognized throughout the world. She was interviewed by the British Broadcasting Network and other national news programs regarding Rio Hair.

In 2001, she fought for the rights of fired FWISD school bus driver, Cynthia Fowler, who was terminated from Fort Worth ISD due to rowdy students on her bus. The case gained national attention and they appeared on Dateline, Inside Edition and The Leeza Show.

In 2003, she successfully fought in the federal district court and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals for Terry Carter, who was an honor student and graduating senior at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School in Fort Worth ISD. Carter was permanently suspended from his home school as a result of him reciting an original rap poem during Open Mic, in his Creative Arts Class, which allegedly offended a female classmate. The Court ordered his immediate return to his home school and he participated in all of his senior activities. Terry and Attorney Edmonds appeared on The John Walsh Show in New York, and numerous radio shows on the controversy.

Her impressive resume’ of present and past clients includes, Jesse Armstead of the New York Giants, actor/comedian Steve Harvey, actress Bo Derek, singer Erykah Badu and basketball player Patrick Durham.

One of Attorney Edmonds’ brainchild projects is the “Rally for Education”, a summer youth motivational event promoting education by including judges, lawyers, politicians, professionals, business representatives, artists, athletes and others who speak and interact directly with youth participants and motivate youths to stay in school, strive for educational excellence, work hard and avoid criminal behavior.

Another brainchild project of Bobbie is her annual youth legal drama, “Santa Claus Goes to Jail” which was written and produced by Attorney Edmonds and teaches 5th graders the dynamics of a real courtroom jury trial. The casts members are area 5th graders, real lawyers and a real judge.

Bobbie has also sponsored activities for the Caville Boys and Girls Club of Fort Worth, local elementary schools and several youth basketball teams. She also participates in speaking engagements and Career Day in area schools.

She writes a weekly legal column in The Black Voice- LaVida Newspaper, “Legal Peek”, which provides highlights on the law. Bobbie has appeared on television, judged and participated in pageants. She hosts a free monthly educational seminar, “Legal Peek Live” within the community. The purpose is to educate the citizens in areas of the law that may impact their daily lives.

She is licensed to practice law in Louisiana and Texas. She is also admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, United States District Court of Northern District of Texas, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and United States District Court of Southern District of Michigan. She has also been an adjunct professor in Administrative Law and Business Law at the universities of McNeese State in Louisiana, and Texas Wesleyan in Fort Worth, Texas.

She has won numerous awards, serves as a Board Member with the non-profit organizations Liberation Community, Inc., Rally for Education, Inc. and Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation. She was also a member of the prestigious legal organization Eldon Mahon Inns of Courts.

Bobbie serves as the Alternate Judge for the City of Forest Hill, holds professional memberships with the National Bar Association, Lifetime NAACP, Tarrant County Black Bar Association, and Tarrant County Bar Association. She had also been a board member of Tarrant County Bar Association and Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.

She has written a book, “The Legal Navigator” which is an essential tool for parents and children to use in the school disciplinary process.

Bobbie also engages in motivational speaking at local and state events. Recently, she presented a seminar on Education Law and Student’s Rights and received raved reviews. She has also presented other continuing legal education seminars in the legal profession.

She is a member of St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Attorney Edmonds’ motto is “Making a difference is life’s most rewarding challenge. Thank God for the gift of life.”

Contact her at: Law Office of Bobbie Edmonds 209 South Jennings Avenue, Fort Worth, Texas 76104 (817) 332-6501 telephone (817) 332.6599 fax website: www.goodverdict.com e-mail: goodverdict@msn.com, office@goodverdict.com.

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