Emmanuel Brinklow

2010 Living Legends Award Honorees

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2006 2007 2008 2009


Leon Bates Concert Pianist	Charles D. Brooks Spiritual Leader	Leymah Gbowee Peace Activist

ABOUT THE HONOREES . . . .

LEON BATES - This is the song for the genius child. Sing it softly, for the song is wild. Sing it softly as ever you can lest the song get out of hand……Nobody loves a genius child. Can you love an eagle, tame or wild? Wild or tame, Can you love a monster of frightening name?... Nobody loves a genius child. Kill Him and let his soul run wild! This is the song for the genius child.

Because of its discipline and intellectual demand, the world of classical music is often viewed as an elitist art. Historically speaking, the paying audience was usually wealthy and well educated. Performers of color, often, are not viewed capable. The presence of Leon Bates on the disciplined concert stage speaks truth to power without him ever uttering a word. For over 35 years he has garnered critical acclaim appearing with the worlds leading conductors, and orchestras, in the great concert halls. With every walk on stage, with every note, with every concerto, with every bow…..He spoke.

Leon describes his childhood as typically middle class. Growing up in Philadelphia in a Methodist home, he was the only child of two supportive parents. His father was a forklift operator and his mother was a homemaker. There was school, church on Sunday, sports and music lessons on both piano and violin. His parents were just as wrapped up in his music as he was. They were at every recital and concert. It was the habit of his mother to play music in the morning prior to him leaving for school. Her choice to play spirituals, gospel quartets and classical music would later prove to be an invaluable ingredient to his musicianship.

Leon first came to know the problem of race at the age of three. On a trip to Georgia to visit his grandparents, Leon, joined by his father and grandfather were out in the market when he noticed signs that read “white only” and “colored only”. Growing up in the 50’s and 60’s, one would think the cultural climate would have an adverse affect on his development as an artist… It did not... Leon became a student of noted Polish pianist Irene Beck. For five years he was the recipient of her tutelage. It was during this time she proclaimed to him “you will be great….but you must practice”.

At the age of thirteen it became very clear to Leon what he wanted to become. He had an advanced understanding of music technically. However, he began to experience it on a deeper level. It was an art form that possessed aesthetic, spiritual, emotional, intellectual and psychological beauty. It was altogether a humanly transforming power. This was his desire.

After high school Leon entered Temple University’s Esther Boyer College of Music where he studied with acclaimed pianist Natalie Hinderas, herself a child prodigy, who also broke many racial barriers. At the age of 20 he made his debut with the Philadelphia orchestra. At 21 he received management and began his concert career. He has emerged as one of Americas leading pianist and a presence on the international stage. He has appeared on some of the worlds leading concert stages with major symphonies including The Vienna Symphony, Czech National Symphony, The New York Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. His talents did not go unnoticed by the world’s finest conductors. He has performed under the baton of Lorin Mazel, Tamas Vasary, Skitch Henderson, Keith Lockhart, and James DePriest. Whether in recital or as an orchestral soloist he is celebrated throughout the world, in many languages, as a major artist.

Beyond the concert hall, Leon is a complete human being with varied interest. In addition to his enjoyment of all the arts, he is a disciplined body builder. At the age of 18, he learned that being physically fit contributed to his overall musical fitness. It is still a part of his daily regimen. He is particular favorite among young people as he lectures on a wide variety of topics such as “How to Listen to Music” and “Brown vs. the Board of Education.” He accompanies his lectures with performance demonstrations.

He lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is married to his wife Jocelyn. Together they are the parents of three boys.

We celebrate you Leon Bates for exemplifying Truth to Power! You are the embodiment of what one can become when allowed, nurtured, and encouraged to be a Genius Child.

CHARLES D. BROOKS - This is the song for the genius child. Sing it softly, for the song is wild. Sing it softly as ever you can lest the song get out of hand... This is the song for the genius child.

Although born one year after the depression, Charles D. Brooks was born a rich man. He was born into a healthy family with an abundance of every thing one would need in order to grow up and change the world. Charles describes his father as a man with a third grade education who was well known and respected by all around. He was a hard working man. Good to his wife and children. Charles describes his mother as a saint. She was the spiritual beacon of the family. He never heard her say an unkind word or try to get back at someone. The family was Methodist; the mother came from a history of Methodist preachers. It was their habit to be in church on Sunday mornings, both parents, seven girls and four boys.

At the age of six Charles witnessed his first miracle. His mother was taken to the hospital. She was very ill. They were told that she would not survive. While still in the hospital she had a vision. A voice called her by name “Mattie…..Keep my commandments, I want a living sacrifice.” A few days later her health was restored and she was at home contemplating this vision she experienced. Through further revelation it was revealed to her that she was not keeping the fourth commandment. After prayer and further study she along with the 11 children began keeping the seventh day Sabbath. They had never heard of Sabbath keepers and did not know of a church that did so, they kept the Sabbath all by themselves. Years later, a door to door book salesman would come to their home and introduce them to the Seventh Day Adventist Church. A denomination he would later serve as a spiritual compass. His mothers’ example, dancing through her son.

This news was not received well by their local church and it certainly did not work with their father. Saturday was a working day and he needed the children to work. In conflict, Charles says, his mothers wisdom lyrically rose above the human confusion. She said to the children “Yes the bible does state do not work on the Sabbath….but it also says honor thy mother and thy father”

Growing up in Greensboro, North Carolina, He was always conscious of race relations. Charles had a white friend by the name of Frank Loving. They were both 15 years old and 16 was approaching rapidly. A black man came to Charles and explained to him that because he was getting older he needed to begin referring to his white friend as “Mr.” Charles did not speak the new title and he and Frank began to drift apart. Years later he would meet Frank as an adult. Warmth was not to be found in that meeting.

Describing himself as a worldly teenager, Charles was adamant that he would not become a pastor; he was to become a dentist. In 1947 this worldly teenager, now adamant against being a dentist, enrolled in Oakwood College as a Theology major.

For the next 20 years he pastured in various churches eventually becoming the General Field Secretary for the General Conference of Seventh Day Adventist in 1971. However it was in 1974 that he would be placed in a position that would propel his voice around the globe. Pastor Walter Arties founded the television program Breath of Life. Charles Brooks would be the first speaker and director. Until his retirement in 1996, Charles would enter into peoples homes through their television sets, and he would travel across the United States and various countries speaking truth to power. During the long hot summer of urban race rioting in 1964, Charles would defy a request from the mayor of Philadelphia to shut down his meetings. He believed good could overcome evil. “Inhumanity is a perpetual problem. The solution starts with a change of heart.”

For over 60 years Charles has changed the world with his presence. He embodies a grace that is immediately infectious and transforming to all those around. He has received an honorary doctoral degree from Andrews University. In 1994 he was inducted in the Martin Luther King Jr Board of Preachers and Collegium of Scholars at Morehouse College. He currently is a part of and namesake patron for the Bradford-Cleveland-Brooks Leadership Center on the campus of his beloved Oakwood University in Huntsville Alabama. He lives in Laurel, Maryland and is married to Walterene Brooks. They are the parents of two.

We celebrate you Charles Brooks for speaking Truth to Power! In a world in search of peace, love, and light you have shown us that it is in our very breath that we find life.

LEYMAN GBOWEE - This is the song for the genius child. Sing it softly, for the song is wild. Sing it softly as ever you can lest the song get out of hand... Nobody loves a genius child. This is the song for the genius child.

We are called to be a light to the world. Leymah Gbowee has allowed her light to shine, although at times it was a smoldering wick. It yet was strong enough to stop a war.

Leymah grew up in Liberia. She was one of five girls born to her mother and father. Her father spoiled each of them rotten. Her mother was disciplined and saw to it that Leymah and her sisters were also disciplined. “She taught us feminism 101” Leymah asserts,. We had to learn to fight and do everything that boys could do. Leymah had a very happy childhood. She was a child of the community. Kids could eat at any and every home. When they played late into the evening, whatever house they found themselves the mother would feed and bath any child around. Growing up in a Lutheran home she served as an alter girl for many years in her local community. She learned about Jesus Christ the “Prince of Peace.” Years later, she herself would be an agent of peace in her beloved country of Liberia.

It is an unfortunate truth that the consequences of inhumanity live on far beyond the act itself. We need to look no further than Liberia as an example. In 1847 a group of freed and escaped slaves returned to the west coast of Africa and founded the country of Liberia. For over a century the descendants of these former slaves formed an elite class that dominated the indigenous ethnic groups. Those who were once oppressed were now the oppressors. On Christmas Eve in 1989, tensions between the two groups erupted into an all out civil war. Boys as young as nine were kidnapped and made to fight and commit acts of inhumanity to their own families. Rape was a weapon of war. Arms and legs were hacked off. Shooting was an all too common occurrence. It was hell on earth. Death, at one point, was better than life.

Leymah accepted her status as a victim. She went around feeling sorry for herself. She refused to go to college or invest in her life. She did not see the point of doing so. As a young 20 something, Leymah started working with disabled women from Sierra Leone and Liberia. These women all had tragic war stories that defied human understanding. Oddly, they also had hope. They actively made plans for when the war was over. “Why are you people so optimistic about life?” Leymah asked. “Because we believe, as mothers we are the ones who can change everything” the women responded. One night,

Leymah had a dream. The voice in the dream told her to get the women of Liberia together and pray for peace. This was an odd request Leymah thought. She saw herself as the wrong person for God to be asking to do this. She was not a 100 percent Holy Ghost filled Christian. She had several kids and no husband. In church she couldn’t even old an office because of her lifestyle. “I just wasn’t living right!!” As Leymah continued to express her reluctance to lead. The women reminded her that if God could use a prostitute he could use anyone. They started the “Christians Women’s Peace initiative.” This included women from all the Christian Churches and Muslims coming together to pray for peace. Everyday they put on their white t-shirts and took to the streets.

By 2002 over 200.000 people had died. 1 out of every 3 people had been displaced. The women decided to up their game. They used one of the oldest tactics in the book: No peace, no sex. With Leymahs leadership, the women continued to make their presence known. They grew in confidence, strength and in numbers. President Charles Taylor finally met with the women. Leymah made an impassioned plea for peace. Feeling pressured, president Taylor agreed to start peace talks. The peace talks were going nowhere so the women decided to go to Ghana, where the talks were being held, and continue the pressure. Their presence was not received well. They staged a sit-in, preventing delegates from leaving the conference hall until an agreement of peace had been achieved. They kept the men in the room without food or water so they too could see how the people of Liberia were feeling. In an act of anger one of the delegates came out and attempted to attack Leymah. Disgraced and enraged, Leymah stood up, greeting his anger with her own. She began to strip naked, the highest act of indignation. “I decided to give him something that he thought he was taking away.” Although her actions caused mayhem. The men shamefully retreated and continued the peace talks. In a country where fifty percent of the women had been raped it was hard to understand how one striping naked could cause such discomfort. The United Nations was sent to restore order to the country. When they experienced resistance they called upon the women of Liberia, and they did not disappoint.

Eventually President Charles Taylor was toppled from power and banished from Liberia. The country than elected Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first women president in Africa. Led by Leymah, these ordinary women had an extraordinary impact on history. Their story is captured in the documentary “Pray the Devil Back to Hell,” seen on PBS and the winner of several awards including best documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Leymah was asked how do you see the world today. “I think the world is upside down, I think the maker of the world must be sad seeing how much harm His most intelligent of creations have done. Wrong is acceptable and righteousness is frowned upon.” She hopes that their actions in Liberia will inspire others to have faith that good can overcome evil. She lives in Accra, Ghana and is the mother six children.

We celebrate you, Leymah Gbowee, for speaking Truth to Power! By disrobing inhumanity you have dressed the world with peace!