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The Editorial Staff and the
Management of Congoboston is
saddened to announce to our
viewers, the death of Dr.
Ezekiel Carlton Mobley, Jr.
(1952-2006), formerly of Los
Angeles CA, who died suddenly on
Saturday, June 10, 2006 from
post-surgery complications, in
Pittsburgh PA, where
he had made his home in recent
years.
Dr. Ezekiel Mobley played a
great role, mentoring and
empowering our staff, through his appreciated encouragements he
had bestowed in our chief-editor
during the first appearance of
Congoboston.com (2001). He
tirelessly lifted our
countenance as young people when
we launched Congoboston, working
to unite efforts of
immigrants from the Democratic
Republic of Congo; to educate
and to help them network, using
grassroots means of
communication. Although he had
not a chance to physically meet
web-editor Franklin Katunda, he
spent hours on the phone from LA
to Boston and
though emails to communicate
with him, suggesting ideas and
guiding, when Franklin wasn’t
sure to start a such a novice
initiative in the area of
journalism and community
organizing in US.
Who he
was…
Dr. Mobley was magna cum laude
graduate of Howard University,
where he was the editor of The
Hilltop newspaper; a graduate of
the Georgetown University Law
Center, where he played a role
of editor for the Georgetown Law
Journal; a
graduate of the Kennedy School
of Government at Harvard
University; and a graduate of
the London School of Economics
and Politics in the UK. He was
one of the first Administrative
Fellows at Harvard University.
At various times he had served
as a Board Member of the Harvard
University Alumni Association of
Southern California, the Board
of the Pacific Chapter of the
United Nations Association, the
Latin American Cultural Union,
and the non-profit organization,
Educational Innovations, Inc.
1989-90
Harvard University's
Administrative Fellows with
president Derek Bok. (Dr. Mobley
is standing on 2nd row from
left)
Dr. Mobley was proud to have
been a lifelong member of the
Democratic Party. As a younger
man, he had served as a Captain
in the US Army, and he looked
back to his time in the military
with great pride, calling
himself a patriot. Intimately
involved in politics, he had
served as chief of staff to
former Councilman Frank Smith of
the District of Columbia City
Council, and himself held
elected office in the District.
Dr. Mobley was a loving, giving
and warm man— a “people person”—
who took an active interest in
the well-being of all those he
encountered. People seemed
naturally to gravitate to his
strength, confidence and
openness. As a result, he took
on the role of mentor to many
people during his extraordinary
career, offering them advice,
guidance, and encouragement, as
well as assisting them to pursue
their aspirations. In this, he
drew often upon advice given him
as a young man by Howard
University President, James
Cheeks: aim for the stars and
you will at least end up on the
treetops! He gained great joy
from watching and helping his
young nieces grow and develop
their aspirations, and he looked
forward to attending their
college graduations in the
future. He chuckled quietly when
they phoned him, asking “Uncle
Butch” for help with their
homework, and then he gently
guided their minds to the
answers they sought.
In recent years Dr. Mobley
returned to journalism and
public speaking. He was a
contributing correspondent for
The African Times newspaper. In
1998 and 2003 he created and
executive produced two
progressive and innovative
public affairs cable television
shows, Africa at the Millennium
TV and HOLA! El Show de
televisión. Both were produced
in Los Angeles and Pittsburgh,
but broadcast widely in cities
throughout the United States,
including Philadelphia, Boston,
New York, Washington, D.C., and
Atlanta. Shortly before his
untimely death, his bilingual
(Spanish-English) public affairs
program, HOLA!, had begun to be
web cast live on a worldwide
basis. He had recently returned
from England, where he delivered
a special lecture on
African-American and Latino
relations in the US for the
American Studies Resource
Centre. While in Liverpool, he
had set up a mutual relationship
between the Toxteth TV
television production facility
there and Pittsburgh Community
Television.
Ezekiel had a notable gift for
putting people at ease in his
presence. Guests on his
television show, often nervous
about being on television,
always commented how comfortable
he made them feel and how
quickly the time seemed to pass.
Many friendships also were
formed with the passenger
sitting next to him on the
airplane. One such person, a
woman from Arizona whom he met
on a flight from the West Coast,
upon hearing of his passing,
wrote “many times the Lord
brings people into our lives for
a season, for a reason, and
friendships. I admired Ezekiel's
spirit and drive; yes, he was
taken too soon.”
His
legacy in Journalism stays alive
in England, Boston, Los Angeles,
and Pittsburgh…
Through the Pittsburgh
Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN),
he was actively involved in
promoting ideas to unite efforts
of African Americans and Latinos
to define their common agenda
within the American urban space
and to create a formidable
political and economic force
within American politics. He
also worked on issues of
comprehensive immigration reform
and had begun advocacy efforts
surrounding the reauthorization
of the Voting Rights Act. In Los Angeles, he was Executive
Director of the United
Neighborhood Council, and a
friend and advisor to many in
both the African American and
Latino communities. An adopted
son of Nana Osei Bonsu of the
Ashanti people of Ghana, Ezekiel
was looking forward to
accompanying a group of African
Americans to Mexico this summer,
guiding them to a greater
understanding of the African
presence in Mexican history and
culture.
Condolences and tributes
continue to pour in.
Representatives of the Latino
community of Pittsburgh,
expressing profound shock and
sadness at Dr. Mobley’s passing,
have commented, “His affable
presence and bridge-building
efforts will be sorely missed in
Pittsburgh and beyond.” Dr. N.
Catherine Bazan-Arias, a former
member for Allegheny County (PA)
of the Pennsylvania Governor’s
Advisory Commission on Latino
Affairs, commented, “His loss
will flood our community with
sorrow…. his leadership example
will remain with us as will his
enthusiasm and charisma in all
he endeavored.”
Ezekiel met Kathryn Gabrowski in
1992, sharing a passion for
travel, politics, history and
languages. They had recently
adopted a new dog, Buddy, whom
he sarcastically nicknamed “Son
of Buck,” after the canine
character in Jack London’s Call
of the Wild, a book Ezekiel
returned to often. Ezekiel could
be found during evenings at
home, sitting on an overstuffed
chair with Buddy in his lap,
stroking his head and singing to
him!
Ezekiel Mobley leaves behind, in
grief and desolation, his
beloved companion, partner and
wife, Dr. Kathryn Grabowski of
Pittsburgh; his devoted mother,
Dr. Ora Williams Mobley Sweeting
of Los Angeles, his life-long
friend and sister, Candida
Mobley Wright of Los Angeles;
his sister, Sandra Mobley-Terry
of Buffalo, NY; his adored
nieces, Tomora and Danielle
Wright of Los Angeles; his
godmother, Miss Dorothy Candee
of Philadelphia; many relatives
from the Lovell, Williams and
Mobley families; and a multitude
of friends, colleagues and
associates around the world.
Speaking on behalf of the
Governor's Advisory Commission
on Latino Affairs (Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania) and of more
than 475,000 Latinos living in
Pennsylvania, Executive Director
Norman Bristol Colón commented
on Dr. Mobley’s tireless efforts
to unite African Americans and
Latinos, saying:
“We will keep the torch alive as
we try to emulate his dreams and
strong convictions. He will
really be missed. Pennsylvania
has lost an ambassador of
goodwill, social justice and
human decency.”
Sources:
Dr. Kathryn Gabrowski
Testimonies from Congoboston’s
Chief-editor, Franklin Katunda
When informed about the passing
of Dr. Mobley, editor Franklin Katunda of Congoboston
wrote to Dr. Grabowski, Dr.
Mobley's companion and wife in
Pittsburgh PA:
“Dr Mobley positively impacted
my life, giving me advices and
encouragements when he was told
by Mr. Said K. Dibinga, I had
started, with a group of friends,
an idea to launch Congoboston, a
news-community organization to
unite the efforts, to
empower and to network Congolese
immigrants in Boston, and
further recent African
immigrants in the US”
“Dr. Mobley used to spend hours
with me on the phone, asking
questions and trying to help. He
always answered to my
curiosities, when trying to
understand the
dynamics and the impact of Media-based organizations,
such as Congoboston, in the
area of community
organizing/planning and
grassroots advocacy. I decided to go back
to college (in 2003), after a 2
years drop out period. I
attended the University of
Massachusetts in Boston,
majoring in Public Affairs, Planning
and Media. On June 2nd, after the
commencement, I thought, once, I
was going to call him and let
him know that I had partially
accomplished one of the things
he had commended me to pursue.
Unfortunately, with a little
delay in the process after the
graduation festivities, I just
found out that I missed to
rejoice with him...He died 8
days later”
Dr. Ezekiel gave me an
opportunity to speak through his
extended audience, by giving me
a web and TV Interview named CONGOBOSTON FINDS
SUCCESS IN NEW ENGLAND.
Congoboston co-produced for the
first time with Dr. Mobley's Africa
at the Millennium TV,
a video-interview,
featuring the Congoboston's
editor after the first June 30th
Congoboston's
"Independence Day"
gathering in Boston MA; which
interview was aired out on the Pittsburgh
cable TV, in California and his other network’s
channels around the US. Dr. Mobley was the
right person, at the right time,
for the right people; --He came
in place when we all needed him to find that exposure
to the
American public audience, and we
won't get weary doing what we
started today, thinking about
his legacy. I learned to
know his passion to serve the
people and I was
empowered by the same passion
and determination,
serving communities of minorities,
helping those who work in
building grassroots initiatives through
independent and public media.
Dr. Mobley was such a role model
in
my life. Amazingly, we never even met
physically, although he touched
my life, empowering me from a
distance (from West coast to the
East
cost) through the means of
technology (phone conferences, emails, TV
broadcasts).
Likewise
his mother, Ms Ora Sweeting, he
served in advocating for the
Congolese people, Africans in
the continental Africa and in
the US. Ms Ora Sweeting is among
American pioneers of the civil
rights movement; She is known
for holding a 1960’s “mock
funeral” in front of the
United Nations Manhattan's
Headquarters, few days after the
assassination, in an undisclosed
place back in time, of Congolese
prime minister Patrice Emery
Lumumba (Congo-Leopoldville) Dr.
Mobley later published her book:
“Nobody
gave me permission: Memoirs of a
Harlem Activist”,
still available at Amazon.com.
We join her as well as his wife
in deeply sharing this moment of
great loss and sorrow, paying a
tribute to our friend. Forty-one
years later, Dr. Mobley, in the
same spirit of service, found himself
empowering us during the 2001
Congoboston Network's debut,
accomplishing one among many
initiatives that shaped and
crowned his life's great purpose;
his memories and accomplishments
remain a legacy
to the African people, to the
Congolese Nation, forever”
Comments from Web-editor, Franklin Katunda
June 14th 2006
Funerals
Memorial services in tribute to
Dr. Mobley are being planned for
Los Angeles, Pittsburgh and
Washington, D.C. A special
memorial fund is being
established to help further the
many important causes, which Dr.
Mobley worked to further during
his lifetime. (Details to follow
soon)  Dr.
Ezekiel C. Mobley (1952-2006)
A special tribute to a humble
public servant, our friend...
May He Rest in Peace!
© CongoBoston Staff, June 2006 |