July 12th, 2016, Nola.com story on SWS Chaplin Brother Al Mims!
AL MIMS JR. IS FIGHTING NEW ORLEANS CRIME, BARE-KNUCKLE.
by: Diana Samuels, Times-Picayune
Al Mims Jr.'s message is clear from the protest sign he's known for carrying at New Orleans funerals: "No child should be next. Stop the killing."
After serving as a consistent presence at funerals over the last three decades, Mims has put his sign down. The 62-year-old former champion boxer and kickboxer says after attending more than 2,000 funerals, he can't bear to go to more. But Brother Mims, as he's known, is still working to fight crime, a calling he came to after his father was gunned down in 1987.
Among other efforts, the Central City resident is a vice president at The Fatherhood Roundtable, a mentorship program that promotes better family relationships. He volunteers with Victims & Citizens Against Crime, helping counsel crime victims. He served on the Louisiana Parole Board. And he speaks out against crime at every chance he gets, at schools, churches, and more.
Among other efforts, the Central City resident is a vice president at The Fatherhood Roundtable, a mentorship program that promotes better family relationships. He volunteers with Victims & Citizens Against Crime, helping counsel crime victims. He served on the Louisiana Parole Board. And he speaks out against crime at every chance he gets, at schools, churches, and more.
ROOTS: "My daddy had a 6th grade education but he taught us values. He stressed education. He knew the word of God. He had a handshake and he said 'I gave my word.' Now, people sign contracts and they're not worth the paper they're made on. I learned being a man from him. I saw my daddy cry, I saw him pray. I saw him treat my mother with respect."
CAREER: "I fought in nightclubs, barrooms, wherever they wanted a fight I'd give a fight. Most of the opponents I fought were white. I was the token. Wherever I could make money, I went. We had to run after we'd get our check, but it was fun."
FIGHTS: "It wasn't no shooting, it wasn't no knives, it was like Walker, Texas Ranger. We had good fights. I went to the dentist the other day. I got 29 of my regular teeth. I'm 62 years old and I've had over 70 fights not counting the barrooms and the nightclubs. Do you know how many people coldcocked me, hit me with barstools? You had to fight your way out of the place."
MURDER: "My dad was my coach, he was my trainer, he was my friend. I was at the top of my game at the time when he got killed on Bienville and North Galvez. There were 20 people who saw my father get killed. It was an argument and he was walking away and the guy shot him in the back four times."
WHY: "People die for foolishness. Most of the shootings are nothing worth killing nobody. In over 2,000 funerals, 99.5 percent of the killings were about nothing."
AFTER: "I lost the desire to fight anymore. The killer instinct. Part of me was missing. It was God's message to me that I'm going to let you fight for people that can't fight for themselves. Murder victims, children that have been abused, people who are being killed."
LESSON: "Life doesn't put pads on you. We got to be ready to fight and get down knuckles to fight for our children and for what you want."
HERO: "I met Muhammad Ali in '83, at the Landmark Hotel in Metairie. I was in awe. He was cocky, he was confident, but he stood for something. He knew my name. When we went into the room he said 'Mims, come here.' He would say the fight in the ring is nothing compared to the fight in life. It's amazing how something that somebody said to you stays in your mind. He changed my life."
FUNERALS: "It became a calling to me. 'We're doing this funeral, but this should never happen again. We've got to learn something from this.' A lot of times I stood by myself. I was telling the truth and a sometimes the truth hurts. How many times are we doing this over and over. I was a reminder, a conscience of what's going on."
NEED: "My heart hurts. I see things and I say 'Lord, you gave me a heart and it's breaking. I'm not a prophet but I don't know how some of these kids are going to wind up if they keep doing like they're doing"
PRISON: "I've got a grandson in the federal penitentiary. He robbed a bank. He was the getaway car. He was an honors student but didn't listen. I could have gotten him on probation, but he wouldn't have learned anything. Three more years he'll get out, now he'll know something."
PAROLE BOARD: "I was there with geniuses. They have ABC degrees and I have a high school education and a couple of years of college in construction. But I was in my element because I knew about crime. Most of the people that came before us looked like me. There were a lot of things I didn't like because the system didn't play the way it ought to have. There were people in jail who wouldn't kill a roach. They let some bad guys out that shouldn't get out."
US-ISM: "Everything ain't racism. We've got some problems with us. We don't want to see anybody get ahead. We don't want to see anybody get any credit. We can do better."
FAMILY: "When I talk to churches and schools I say my son is not going to call me Al. He better call me 'daddy' or 'father.' I love him to death but he's got to have respect for me. That's what my father taught me. You've got homes where the child's running the house."
SUCCESS: "There was a young man that is in college now. He got in a little trouble and I spoke up for him and he got on probation. He's advocating now, telling people about 'friends' or 'so-called friends.' I've had a lot of good stories over the last 30 years. I've had some hard things happen, I've had some disappointments. But I'd do it again."
MOTTO: "Do something. When you've done all you can do, do some more."
SHOUT-OUT: From Nadra Enzi, who works with Mims through the crime prevention group Security Within SELF. "Since the unsolved murder of his father decades ago, Brother Mims has relentlessly championed personal responsibility, mentorship and support of law enforcement in places where the lack of such advocacy is a literal matter of life or death. He has shouldered this burden gracefully and energetically with the help of faith and family."
WHAT WILL YOU DO?
- Look for opportunities to mentor others in the community
- Find out more about Security Within Self
- Contact Victims & Citizens Against Crime
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