Being a community activist/organizer doesn’t pay much … if it pays at all.
It certainly doesn’t pay as much as being a tenured professor at a law school. So when Nekima Levy-Pounds announced she was stepping away from her tenured professorship at St. Thomas University School of Law to focus her efforts on community activism it turned more than a few heads. Heads turned again when last week the Minneapolis branch president of the NAACP announced she was going to be hosting a weekly classic hip-hop show on an area radio station. For Levy-Pounds, she said she’s walking in the path that God has laid.
“I didn’t expect to make the decision to leave St. Thomas. I had already signed my contract for the next year,” said Levy-Pounds. “But through the process of prayer I felt God was calling me in other arenas.”
As one of the emerging new leaders in the region – first through her civil rights teachings, then Black Lives Matter and most recently NAACP president – Levy-Pounds has garnered a high profile both locally and nationally; ruffling a few feathers along the way. At first glance her resignation could be viewed as a move by school to distance itself from the outspoken advocate, but Levy-Pounds said it was quite the opposite.
“They (the higher-ups at St. Thomas) protected me … they defended me,” said Levy-Pounds. “I will always treasure that. The dean of the law school told me as an institution, they didn’t want me to leave, but as a friend supported my decision to greater serve my community.”
Levy-Pounds, who has an undergraduate degree in African-American studies from the University of Southern California and a law degree from the University of Illinois, had been at St. Thomas for 13 years, coming on just two years after the law school opened.
For the attorney, activist and soon to be radio host, Levy-Pounds has been doing things her way … and on her own terms since childhood. Born in Jackson, Miss. and raised in Los Angeles, the boisterous leader said she found her activist voice when she attended a prestigious mostly white boarding school in Massachusetts.
“It was an amazing experience. I learned a lot about the elite in America and how they thought about life and the privilege they had and the lack of awareness they had of people of color,” said Levy-Pounds, who attended the school on scholarship.
She said it was during her time at boarding school that she became a vocal advocate for civil change. It was also during that time that she began rapping and beatboxing. It was that love of hip-hop that has led the member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. into her upcoming role as radio host. Levy-Pounds, who turned 40 on Monday (June 27), will begin hosting a Saturday evening show from 10 p.m. – 11 p.m. on 105 The Vibe. The show begins July 2 and along with classic hip-hop tunes features the host rapping and beatboxing.
“I enjoy music and that’s a side most people don’t see of me,” said Levy-Pounds. “I have to stay balanced and music does that. Plus, I see art and music as being very much tied to the movement. When I was away at boarding school I’d go to sleep every night listening to (NWA’s) ‘Straight Outta Compton.’”
One song that may get play during the show is “Body Count,” a soon-to-be released track featuring Levy-Pounds, Malcolm Wells, Farrington Llewellyn and Zachariah Babington-Johnson. “Body Count” is a call from the artists for teens and young adults to stop the violence that is harming the community.
According to the NAACP president the song is just one of her efforts to stem the tide of violence affecting communities such as North Minneapolis.
“I don’t believe in the notion of Black on Black crime,” said Levy-Pounds. “That negates the socioeconomic factors that contribute to crime. If it was Black on Black crime, you’d be seeing upper class and middle class Blacks killing each other. It’s about people living in poverty and feeling hopeless and a loss of value on their own lives, so we have to address the root issues. I ascribe to the thinking of Father Greg Boyle who said nothing stops a bullet like a job.”
A thorn in the side of many elected officials, Levy-Pounds has not ruled out an eventual run for public office herself.
“I enjoy being an outside agitator, but there may be a point in time that I have to go inside the system to help change it,” said Levy-Pounds, who recently made headlines during a meeting of the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board. During that meeting board President Liz Wielinski tried to berate Levy-Pounds for attempting to ask a question. The verbal altercation was captured on video and later Wielinski was forced to issue an apology.
How does the “new school” leader see herself if she were to successfully run for public office?
“I think you can be effective at any level of government if your mission is clear and you are unwilling to compromise your integrity,” said Levy-Pounds.
