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    You are at:Home » Funeral Services Planned for Wilmington Ten Member, James ‘Bun’ McKoy
    Religion

    Funeral Services Planned for Wilmington Ten Member, James ‘Bun’ McKoy

    November 22, 20235 Mins Read9 Views
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    McKoy died on November 10th, at the age of 69.

    By Stacy M. Brown

    For The Washington Informer@StacyBrownMedia

    Funeral services for James “Bun” McKoy, a member of the civil rights and political prisoner group The Wilmington Ten, were held on Friday, Nov. 17. McKoy died on November 10th, at the age of 69.

    The cause of death was not immediately disclosed. McKoy’s life was forever changed on Feb. 1, 1971, when Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. arrived in Wilmington. Chavis made the journey at the invitation of a local preacher who wanted the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. disciple to lead a boycott of the desegregated high schools that refused to acknowledge King, who had been slain just three years earlier.

    By 1969, the city had only three high schools: all-white New Hanover and Hoggard, and all-Black Williston Senior High School. Officials eventually relocated Black students and teachers to New Hanover and Hoggard and closed Williston, and African Americans faced increased racially motivated name-calling, physical attacks, and threats in the schools, while riots occurred virtually daily.

    Chavis, McKoy, Connie Tindall, Marvin “Chilly” Patrick, Wayne Moore, Reginald Epps, Jerry Jacobs, Willie Earl Vereen, William “Joe” Wright, Jr., and Ann Shepard comprised the Wilmington Ten, and the group advocated for Black history classes, respect for Martin Luther King Jr. and all Black people, and equality.

    However, tensions reached a boil in Wilmington, with the Ku Klux Klan and other white nationalists firebombing buildings and shooting at Black pupils, and then on a cold February night, the popular Mike’s Grocery Store was firebombed, leading to more chaos.

    As police and firefighters approached, a sniper fired at members of the Wilmington Ten, striking one of the officers. “Chilly” Patrick, one of the Wilmington Ten, stood in front of a sniper’s bullets to save Chavis. Police ultimately arrested the group and falsely charged them with firebombing the grocery store.

    Racist prosecutors forced witnesses to go against their court-appointed lawyers during the trial and give false testimony accusing McKoy and others of arson and violence towards law enforcement.

    When it became clear that 10 African Americans would be seated for jury duty, Prosecutor Jay Stroud pretended to be ill during jury selection. A second trial included only two African Americans, and the Wilmington Ten were convicted.

    McKoy and the other defendants received a total of 282 years in prison. At the age of 19, McKoy’s 29-year sentence was the third-longest handed down to any of the members. Chavis, the then-24-year-old commander, was sentenced to 34 years in prison, while Tindall got 31 years. The Wilmington 10, consisting of nine Black males and one white woman, spent nearly a decade in jail before their convictions were overturned by federal appellate courts because of prosecutorial misconduct.

    In 1976, Amnesty International took over the group’s defense. The London-based human rights organization declared the Wilmington Ten to be “prisoners of conscience.” They were arrested not for the crimes they were charged with, but because of their political activities. Amnesty International’s proclamation about the Wilmington Ten upset some and embarrassed others, especially when they were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize that year, as reported by The New York Times.

    “Soon the charge was repeated and amplified by the American Ambassador to the United Nations, Andrew Young, who contended in an interview with a French newspaper that the United States harbored ‘hundreds, perhaps thousands of political prisoners,’” according to the newspaper.

    “The Wilmington Ten, for example, are innocent,” Young stated. He later reiterated that the charges against the group were “trumped up,” according to the Times.

    In December 1980, the convictions of the Wilmington Ten were finally overturned. Timothy Tyson, a North Carolina history, and Duke University visiting professor, told CNN that he was handed the Wilmington Ten prosecutor’s handwritten notes before 2012, when the NNPA and NAACP called for pardons of innocence for the Wilmington 10. “It was pretty shocking stuff,” Tyson said of the incident.

    He mentioned at least six potential jurors who had “KKK Good!!” scribbled next to their names. It said next to a woman’s name, “NO, she associates with Negroes.”

    The prosecutor, Jay Stroud, had written the benefits and drawbacks of a mistrial on the back of the legal pad, according to Tyson. One of the benefits was a new jury and a fresh start.

    In 2012, 40 years after they were wrongfully convicted, the Wilmington 10 were pardoned by North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue.

    “These convictions were tainted by naked racism and represent an ugly stain on North Carolina’s criminal justice system that cannot be allowed to stand any longer,” the state’s governor stated at the time. “Justice demands that this stain finally be removed.”

    Responding to McKoy’s death, Chavis reflected on the group and his fallen comrades. “Once again, I am saddened at the passing of another freedom fighting member of the Wilmington Ten,” Chavis remarked. He said McKoy was dedicated to the freedom movement in Wilmington and globally. “He was also a master base guitarist who would always play the right beat with the inspiring music of freedom,” Chavis recalled. “May James ‘Bun’ McKoy rest in power and in peace and may his memory and uplifting spirit live on for generations to come.”

    a member of the civil rights and political prisoner group The Wilmington Ten and Ann Shepard comprised the Wilmington Ten and equality. and the group advocated for Black history classes Funeral services for James “Bun” McKoy Jerry Jacobs Jr. Nov. 17.arvin “Chilly” Patrick Reginald Epps respect for Martin Luther King Jr. and all Black people Wayne Moore were held on Friday William “Joe” Wright Willie Earl Vereen
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    Carma Henry

    Carma Lynn Henry Westside Gazette Newspaper 545 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Office: (954) 525-1489 Fax: (954) 525-1861

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    This College Chaplain Fills The Pews By Teaching, Not Preaching Lawrence Lockett Jr., Morgan State University chaplain. Credit: Lawrence Lockett Jr. via LinkedIn By REV. DOROTHY S. BOULWARE (Source: Amsterdam News) It’s understandable for parents of strong faith to worry about the spiritual lives of their children who’ve gone away to college. After all, it’s easy for a young person, perhaps on their own for the first time, to suc-cumb to the temptations of partying late on Saturday night and sleeping in on Sunday morning. But Minister Lawrence Lockett Jr., chaplain at Morgan State University in Baltimore, is packing them into the pews most Sundays. He is engaging them in lively ways during the week. And students are joining the choir, accompanying worship on various instruments, and serving as readers and leaders throughout the service. It is by the grace of God for sure, but also by the loving service of Lockett, who’s beginning his second year as the school’s director of chapel. He has grown his flock from the 25 or so students who showed up at his first services to more than 200 each Sunday. Sometimes, it’s standing room only. “We’ve been trying to figure out what to do next because on Easter Sunday we had 342 people, and some were standing in the back,” he said. Word In Black talked to Lockett about the secrets of his success: how his adjustment of Sunday ser-vices got people into the pews, why his philosophy for guiding students on their spiritual journey centers on independent thought, and how his “Spin the Block” initiative is shaking things up on campus. The in-terview has been edited for length and clarity. Word in Black: The first thing we want to know is, how do you get so many young people to chapel every Sunday?. Lawrence Lockett: Well, first of all, I changed the time of service from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. I realized a lot of the students like to sleep in late. It gives them time to do whatever they need to do. I’m sure many of them still like to party hearty over the weekend. So they have a good chance just to kind of refocus, recali-brate, get themselves lunch, and then come over to the chapel for service. When I started in November, maybe 20-25 students came, but now it’s over 200 that come every Sun-day, and it’s pretty cool. So now we’re repositioning ourselves to go after the freshman class this year. If we have the same success as last year, there’s definitely not going to be any room. Word in Black: Tell me about pastoring on a college campus. Lawrence Lockett: Morgan actually started as a biblical institute, so the Christian traditions have al-ways been here. As a pastor or shepherd, I’m walking students through their questions, not always just trying to preach answers to them. It’s about being vulnerable. I tell them I was in their same position, just trying to figure it out. And it’s not me just trying to give them answers. Having been there helps me really walk with them and anchor them in the storm of life that’s going to come. I want them to understand that their soul really matters. A lot of students focus on mental health, but they really need to focus on spiritual health as well. It should be one and the same. So I’ve been trying to preach that, if anything, spiritual health is just as important as your mental health. But we do encour-age the use of the counseling center, for sure, if there is a mental health crisis. WIB: What does Monday through Friday look like for you? LL: Mondays, we are usually off because of Sundays. On Tuesdays, we have Bible studies, so I’ll host a Bible study at noon along with my colleagues that work in the chapel. And then, I’m teaching a class called Hip-hop and the Gospel on Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m., dealing with mixing culture and religion. 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You’ll see students giving testimonies. And then I’ll come in and give a sermon, or I’ll have a guest friend or a guest preacher come in to do the sermon. But you’re gonna see a lot of student involvement, and I think that also assisted with a lot of the growth be-cause when they see fellow students, they understand they’re just like me, and if they can do it, I can do it. WIB: What about musicians and choir? LL: The musicians are also students. They say, “Hey, I love to play. I wanna use my gifts in some way, shape, or form.” And they’ll ask whether or not there’s a spot for them. And we say absolutely. And there is a chapel choir. Some of the members are also members of the university choir. WIB: What is the “next” you see for the chapel? LL: I want the students to know God, find freedom, discover purpose, and make a difference. The chapel really is the heartbeat of the campus, and I want students to know more about where faith, hope, and belonging really stem from. 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    September 24, 2025
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