Johnson State Rep. Praises Rights Activist’s “Monster” Comic Strip Debut In University Review by Shera Minor

Johnson State Rep. Praises Rights Activist’s “Monster” Comic Strip Debut In University Review by Shera Minor

Lawmaker Kenyatta J. Johnson
(D-Phila.) 186th

“Kids and adults can experience bullying, in school, church, relationships, business associations, politics, and even courts. Where’s a friendly monster to teach us skill how to constructively fight back when you need one?”- a value word poem by Van Stone, rights activist and a pupil of his former school teacher Mr. Herb Roger’s Jr.

After six years as a teacher, a first-grade and fifth-grade teacher at Alain Locke School in West Philadelphia from, 1964 through 1969, Herbert Rogers, Jr., became a principal by age 48. As of 1980, then the principal at Lehigh Elementary School in the Strawberry Mansion section of North Philadelphia, Rogers, Jr. collected and presented information on the problems victims of bullying were confronted with, as well as the challenges such problems pose. He had seen his share of so many boys and girls wander out of elementary school and into trouble due to bullying. They were bullied, it seemed, because they were seen as different. And some would break down after trying to cope with name calling like being called “Monster.” So, Rogers, Jr. thought of combining constructive value words and rhyming to develop his own style of anti-bullying concepts to help the monster.

His constructive value words put to rhyming suddenly featured the poster of a regular non-speaking raccoon animal character in 1985. And transferred as principal of the Dr. Ethel D. Allen Elementary School in Philly, at age 53, Rogers, Jr. taped the animal character to his office door for all to see that the school system could help even the most bullied children. Even the bully would be helped to stop bullying the monster. Roger Robbie the Lovable Hip-hop Raccoon character, illustrated by illustrator and water colorist Robert L. Jefferson, was his name.

Monster TEAM Values Produced by Rep. Kenyatta J. Johnson Creator Van Stone

Flashback to September 1968, Room 109, Rogers, Jr. was teaching his first-grade class, long before Roger Robbie was born. In 1968, he asked for a class of first-grade monsters, -boys that he could teach to promote bullying prevention for two years. His goal was not just to teach them the ABC’s but also, by mixing constructive value words, respect, love, concern, attentiveness, to give them the tools to help them when life became tough. 32 little boys were influenced and 8 years later at least one of the boys began to create a series of such narrative sequences about bully prevention, usually featuring a regular cast of Hip-hop superhero characters. AC Shadow the human monster was one of the main character names. Another star character’s name was the Invincible U7, illustrated by Kevin Lofton. The very involved teacher Rogers, Jr. remembered his teaching positive values student as Samuel Downing. Now flash forward. Today most of Downing’s friends know him as Van Stone, poet, author, and rights activist.

It would be ten years after the birth of Rogers’ Robbie and 20 years after the creation of Stone’s U7, in re-told paper book form as “Heroes of the Last Q” that teacher and pupil would reunite in 1995. Herb was a young 63. And Van was a sort of younger version of Herb, age 33.

For the next ten years Herb Rogers, Jr. and Van Stone kept in touch partnering the raccoon, humans, and hip-hop on the road and on the radio speaking out against bullying.

At age 73 Rogers, Jr. retired and left Roger Robbie with Stone, a Social Sci-fi writer, for future generations to comb through the types of bullying prevention and hip-hop they were likely to have generated together and where they are likely to be stored.

Stone, who has self-syndicated a super hero comic strip before, 1994 to 1995, is doing it again in 2010. Monster TEAM Values strip is to help Philly become Bully Free!

“My Animal characters are animals that have human intelligence-they talk,” says Stone. “And my Human characters are people that have superhuman transformation animal instinct. -they use super-science and energy-they fly.” The strip is called Monster because still in the year 2010 people who are different in size, looks, color, and partnerships too are called hateful names just like we had to deal with being called Monster back in 1968. Straights and gays trying to cope with bullying are on the rise. The situation has not changed much. “We know what happened to Frankenstein,” says Stone. “They got the torches. The question, who is the monster and who is the man is still very real in 2010.”

Most recently, the rights activist hopes to bring his strip format of Anti-Bullying to the attention of State Rep. Kenyatta J. Johnson, D-Phila. 186th District. Rep. Johnson’s tenure in dealing with the identification of world problems and bullying has been remarkable. Also, Rep. Johnson, a long resident of Philadelphia, is well known for his motivational strategies for involving children and parents in the educational process. Rep. Johnson has long seen bullying as problematic. Since Monster has caught his attention lawmaker Johnson supports the practice of positive value words and the possibility of linking individual values through a positive value form. Stone’s strip starring friendly monsters might be seen as opening a whole new approach to work on both problems and values.

Monster TEAM Values in the University City Review newspaper, Weekly Press, etc., as a 1 panel strip will run relating a humorous story or an adventure involving value concepts. Also, Bob Christian, publisher of the University City Review and Host of UC Review News Hr. WPEB 88.1 FM, has signed on as supporter dealing with zoo, school, and community strategies uplifting humanity. And special project drawings of characters will be illustrated by Michelle Young, youth Illustrator, and Deb Young. Other illustrations will be by other youth artists. All will have the opportunity to join Roger Robbie and Friends and the Zoo and Recycling Mentoring Project. We are working to promote fun learning that provides safety and care for Animals.

"It is based on values such as respect, hard work, and caring," says Stone. "We are teaching positive values using rhymes, poetry, hip-hop, and artwork. Preventing bullying and recycling are two of the issues we will deal with in the strip."

Speaking of the effects of bullying and violence Rep. Johnson, struck with the tragedy of violence plaguing Rep. Johnson's neighborhood, he created Peace Not Guns Inc., a violence prevention program that addresses the senseless acts of violence that are taking the lives of many young adults, especially young Black and Latino males.

Rep. Kenyatta Johnson was elected in 2008 to serve the 186th Legislative District, which includes parts of south and southwest Philadelphia. As a legislator, Rep. Johnson’s primary focus is Education, Economic Development and Public Safety. He currently serves on the Commerce, Urban Affairs, Children & Youth, and Aging and Older Adults Committees.

He recently created the Peace Not Guns Legislative Caucus to advocate and educate the public and to work with other legislators to implement responsible gun legislation.

Eliminating bullying is a big problem but legislators, educators, publishers, artist, hip-hop and rights activist like Rep. Johnson, Rogers Jr., Christian, Young, and Stone, know they can’t concede that their student victims are destined to fail. Support your monster-unite against bullying and encouraging reading the TEAM Values strip.