Memphis most populated U S City of Blacks lacks Self-Dignity & is Unashamed to have a Cotton Museum & No Black Memphis History Museum, a Plantation Mentality whereas Black Orange Mound Community follows narrative of White Supremacist Barron Deaderick
MEMPHIS, TN, September 01, 2025 /24-7PressRelease/ — In Memphis, Tennessee—the largest majority city of Blacks in U S lacks Self-Dignity & is Unashamed to have a Cotton Museum & No Black Memphis History Museum. MEMPHIS, TN, September 01, 2025 /24-7PressRelease/ — Memphis most populated U S City of Blacks, a Plantation Mentality whereas Black Orange Mound Community follows the narrative of White Supremacist Barron Deaderick.
For those who read this news story please be mindful that this story is more that just a news release whereas this story is a “News Release Dissertation” whereas it is a long read that includes video documentaries. This story address the issues of “Memphis Black on Black Racism.” This story is a long read whereas the Memphis story is historical and must be told.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore a Memphis born 5-Time world Kickboxing Champion was the 1st person to bring E.S.P.N. to Memphis in 1981 whereas Elmore had to work with the late ultra Conservative Memphis Mayor Wyeth Chandler. In 1983 then Newly elected Memphis Mayor Richard Hackett was thrilled that Anthony “Amp” Elmore a then World Kickboxing Champion was bringing E.S.P.N. to Memphis. Mayor Hackett was aware that no Memphis Business would support Anthony “Amp” Elmore because he was a “Black World Kickboxing Champion.” Had Elmore been White they would have rolled out the red carpet.
Mayor Hackett arranged with Elmore for the city of Memphis to paint a Memphis promotion on the fight canvass for Memphis to benefit from the national exposure. The canvass read; “Memphis America’s Distribution Center.” Via E.S.P.N. Anthony “Amp” Elmore was a Memphis cultural ambassador whose Kickboxing promoted Memphis into the national spotlight.
Despite promoting Memphis via E.S.P.N. no Memphis company would support a Black World Kickboxing Champion. Prior to the E.S.P.N. telecast Memphis Mayor Richard Hackett formally introduced Anthony “Amp” Elmore to the Memphis City Council and the Memphis media. In 1983 the Memphis Magazine named Anthony “Amp” Elmore 100 most Influential Memphians.
In regards to Kickboxing, while no Memphis company would support Elmore The Adolph Coors Company “Coors Beer” signed Anthony “Amp” Elmore to a personal service Contract whereas Anthony “Amp” Elmore became not only the first African/American to be signed with “Coors Beer” Anthony “Amp” Elmore became the 1st Kickboxer in American history to be signed with a “major American Corporation.”
Anthony “Amp” Elmore via “Coors Beer” was featured in national adds in almost every major Black publications in in America. Anthony “Amp” Elmore was a model and national spokesperson promoting Black Culture and Pride via introducing Black America to Kickboxing.
In Memphis the issues are no longer White on Black Racism whereas the White powers to be support Blacks leaders who attenuate Black history and culture. Such a practice is Black on Black Racism. If anyone does not believe that Black on Black Racism is a culture and practice it Memphis Just view the story, It was just two years ago whereas 5 Black police offers were charged for brutally beating 29 year of Black man Tyree Nichols.
Click here to see the 1983 Bout whereas Anthony “Amp” Elmore promotes Memphis via a bout with Tracy Thomas. In the video you will see the E.S.P.N. whereas on the fight canvass is “Memphis America’s Distribution Center.
The point here to note that almost before the two Black Memphis Mayors Lee Harris and Paul Young were born. Anthony “Amp” Elmore was a “Black Memphis Hero” and a national spokes person for Black America via “Coors Beer.”
Fast forward to 2025. Memphis has two Black Mayors, Majority both Black Memphis City Council and Majority Black Shelby County Commission whereas Anthony “Amp” Elmore is still fighting Memphis White Supremacy, Racism and in 2025 Anthony “Amp” Elmore faces Black on Black Racism. Anthony “Amp” Elmore calls names and show videos via this dissertation and more.
In Memphis, Tennessee—the largest majority-Black city in America—a historic betrayal is unfolding. The sacred legacy of Orange Mound, the first neighborhood in the United States built by and for African Americans, has been hijacked. Its true origins have been buried beneath a plantation myth authored by the white supremacist historian Barron Deaderick. The most egregious part of this distortion is being upheld, repeated, and protected not just by Memphis white institutions—but by Black Memphis leaders who have chosen silence, complicity, and cowardice over truth regarding Orange Mound.
Memphis has long celebrated its cotton legacy with a dedicated Cotton Museum housed in the old Cotton Exchange building—a symbol of an economy built on the backs of enslaved Africans. Yet there is no “Black History Museum solely” dedicated to the full, unfiltered history of Black Memphis, especially one that centers Black agency, entrepreneurship, land ownership, and cultural innovation from emancipation through the 20th century.
The founding of Orange Mound in 1879 by two Black Churches in Memphis Mt Moriah Baptist Church located at 2634 Carnes Avenue at Boston and MT Pisgah CME Church located at 2490 Park Avenue at Marechalneil is a pivotal moment in Black American history, not just Black Memphis. In the aftermath of Emancipation, Black communities across the South were struggling to establish stability, dignity, and self-determination in the face of systemic exclusion.
In Memphis, these two Black churches—Mt. Moriah Baptist Church and Mt. Pisgah CME Church—began organizing in 1879, marking the spiritual and communal birth of what would become “Orange Mound”. These churches were not simply places of worship; they were centers of leadership, education, and land acquisition. Mt. Moriah Baptist Church formalized its presence by purchasing the land where the Church sits today at 2634 Carnes Avenue and Boston in 1883, four years after its founding, further solidifying the community’s physical and institutional footprint.
This timeline is critical because it predates the 1890 platting of Orange Mound by the White Real Estate Salesman E.E. Meacham. The fact that two Black churches were already active and acquiring land before E.E. Meacham’s involvement proves that Orange Mound was not created by the white developer E.E. Meacham—it was already a living, breathing Black community.
When Shelby County government built the District 18 School directly behind MT Moriah Baptist Church on Spottswood that would later be known as “Melrose” in 1890 specifically for Black children, it confirmed that a population was already present and thriving. Schools are built where stable families live, not in speculative or undeveloped areas. The existence of churches, homes, and a Shelby County Government-funded school prior to Meacham’s platting is irrefutable evidence of Black agency.
In Memphis, Tennessee the facts that Churches and the 1st School for Blacks was built in then Shelby County proves that the Orange Mound Community existed before the White Real Estate Salesman E.E. Meacham registered plans to only sell “Plots of Land to Blacks.” E.E. Meacham did not build homes he only sold “Plots of Land.”
This true history as noted by Black Memphis Historian Anthony “Amp” Elmore matters deeply to Black America because it offers a rare and powerful example of post-Emancipation success. Elmore stress the point “Orange Mound was not a product of migration or displacement—it was built from the ground up by Black Memphians who purchased land, built institutions, and created the self-sustaining urban neighborhood of Orange Mound.
The survival of Mt. Moriah and Mt. Pisgah into 2025 is a living testament to that legacy. These churches are not relics—they are archives of Black excellence, continuity, and resilience. Anthony “Amp” Elmore explains: “when I think of these Black Churches my chest budge with pride.” Elmore notes we must teach our youth to be proud of our “Black Memphis History” and our Orange Mound Community.
The challenge that Anthony “Amp” Elmore and Black Memphians face is the silence of Black Memphis leaders. The fact that Black Memphis leaders fail to recognize the 1879 origin story of Orange Mound is more than disappointing—it is a betrayal. By failing to acknowledge and amplify the true founding of Orange Mound Black Memphis Leaders allows the distorted White Supremacist narrative to persist, one that centers on white intervention and erases Black achievement. In a time when Black America needs stories of triumph and ownership in the “Trump Black Erasure Era”, Orange Mound stands as a beacon.
For the record this video makes “Orange Mound the First Community in America to Challenge President Donald Trumps’ erasure of D.E.I.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore shouts!! Memphis should be proud of this legacy and take bold steps to correct the record, honor the truth, and dispel the theft of Black Memphis history. The founding of Orange Mound in 1879 is not just a local milestone—it is a national declaration of Black self-determination.
In 1949 Barron Deaderick the White Supremacist historian for “The Sons of Confederate Veterans” published an article titled “How Orange Mound Got its Name” Barron Deaderick was not a neutral historian. He was the Assistant Historian-in-Chief of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, an organization committed to glorifying the Confederacy and sanitizing its legacy of slavery. He authored *Wizard of the Saddle*, a book that lionized Nathan Bedford Forrest—the Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. In 1949, Deaderick published an article titled *”How Orange Mound Got Its Name,”* in which he falsely claimed that Orange Mound was named after Osage Orange trees on his grandfather’s slave plantation.
Barron Deaderick concluded by stating that the streets of Orange Mound ran through what was “formerly the John George Deaderick plantation,” and that they were named by his grandfather, Mike Deaderick. This was not history. This was propaganda. And not only Memphis institutions adopted it wholesale, Black Memphis leader adopted this concept and use it today in 2025. Anthony “Amp” Elmore is calling for Black Memphis History to be taught and acknowledged in Memphis.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes that the racist Orange Mound historical marker erected 2572 Park Avenue in front of the “Orange Mound Community Center” that reads: Orange Mound, developed as a Negro subdivision at the turn of the century, was formerly a 5000 acre plantation owned by John George Deaderick. Bounded by the Southern Railway on the north, Airways on the west, Park on the south, and Goodwyn on the east. Memphis’ oldest and best known African-American community received its name from the rows of mock orange shrubs in the side yard of the Deaderick home.”
Anthony “Amp” Elmore explains; the historical marker is the result of the strategy of White Supremacist Barron Deaderick whereas Black Memphis Leaders betray Black America via hosting a historian marker that Betrays Black America.
“This betrayal only deepens when Black Memphis leaders—elected officials, historians, and community organizers—chose to endorse A racist White Supremacist narrative. They repeated it. They published it. They erected the Orange Mound historical marker based on it. Black Memphis Leaders ignore the truth. And they betray the Black Orange Mound community they claimed to serve.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore a Memphis born 5-time world Kickboxing Champion, community activist and Memphis 1st 35mm Theatrical Filmmaker filed a lawsuit against the City of Memphis regarding Memphis White Supremacy, Racism and Black on Black Racism whereas Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes that the challenges in Memphis are no longer White on Black Racism, the Challenges in Memphis is “Black on Black Racism.”
Click here to read the Anthony “Amp” Elmore lawsuit against the City of Memphis.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was brutally assassinated in Memphis April 4, 1968 is quoted as not only saying; “Silence is Betrayal:” Dr. King further said: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”. Anthony “Amp” Elmore calls out friends and Black elected officials to do something. Elmore list just a few names of Black leaders who have no shame about what is happening in the African American Orange Mound Community in Memphis. Anthony “Amp” Elmore admonish friends and Black Memphis leaders to speak up.
**Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young** Memphis Mayor Paul Young upon first being elected as Memphis Mayor came to Orange Mound via his “One Memphis tour on April 30, 2024. Anthony “Amp” Elmore asked Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young to stop the Memphis Shelby County Film Commission White Supremacy and Racism.
In Memphis, Tennessee there is “Black on Black Racism whereas we Blacks have to ask Black Memphis leaders to give Black Memphis history and culture a chance. Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young would not dare use his office to correct the historical records or the inequality and Black injustices in Memphis. Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s silence is evidence that he supports the racist plantation-based marker in Orange Mound.
In fact Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young awarded Mary E. Mitchell a New Home. Mary E. Mitchell is the major proponent of the White Supremacist narrative of Orange Mound. Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young supported the 200 million dollar investment for Whites at liberty Pocket Park whereas he would not mention A Black Memphis History Museum. The Black Memphis Mayor will not honor Mt. Moriah or Mt. Pisgah as the founders of Orange Mound because such challenges White Supremacy. Black Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s silence is betrayal.
In regards to a Black Memphis history Museum, we live in a “Digital Age of Information Technology” whereas it does not take a building to teach “Black Memphis History.” What is unavailable in Memphis is a “Written Chronology of Black Memphis History.” Anthony “Amp” Elmore a filmmaker used “Digital Technology” to create Memphis 1st Black Memphis history Museum via cinema, whereas Black Memphis history can be shared worldwide.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore created Memphis 1st Black Memphis History Museum via digital technology and filmmaking. The issue in Memphis is that Black Memphis Leaders have an aversion to “Black Memphis History” whereas in Memphis Anthony “Amp” Elmore’s created Memphis 1st Black Memphis History museum whereas this is unacknowledged in Memphis.
Click here to visit the website created by Anthony “Amp” Elmore titled: blackmenphishistory.com
In regards to Memphis White Supremacy racism and Black of Black Racism whereas Memphis has to look no further than 391 miles to Atlanta whereas Black Filmmaker Tyler Perry has created a multi-billion dollar Black Film industry in Atlanta whereas at the time of this posting Tyler Perry’s psychological thrilled Straw starring Taraji P. Henson is the top movie on Netflix. Clearly there is market for good Black Movies.
In contrast Memphis has a an old Racist White Woman Linn Sitler who promotes only White films and White Filmmakers whereas the City of Memphis and County of Shelby spent 6 million dollars to support the failed NBC Film “Buff City Law.”
There is a clear-cut culture and history of White Supremacy, Racism and Black on Black Racism regarding “Black Filmmaking in Memphis.” One would think if a Black Woman Tammy Williams opened up a 135million dollars film studio in Atlanta whereas the new Black Captain America was filmed in Atlanta Memphis would take advantage of its history and culture to create “Black Movies” and stop the Racism from the Memphis Shelby County Film Commission against African Americans.
Black Movie Director Rhyan Coogler who directed the Black Panther and Creed came to Memphis to research the Blues for his hit 2025 movie “Sinners” In regards to Memphis and Black movies Memphis Mayor Paul Young turned his head and ignored the fact that Anthony “Amp” Elmore not only put it in writing Elmore produced a video and released national News stories asking Black Memphis Mayor to stop Memphis Racism, White Supremacy and Black on Black Racism.
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, a Yale-educated law professor and former State Senator, has failed to act. He has not challenged the plantation narrative. In 2019 Black Shelby County Mayor turned his back on Anthony “Amp” Elmore and “Black Memphis History.” Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris ducked out on Anthony “Amp” Elmore
Via the 200th Bicentennial celebration of Memphis and Shelby County Anthony “Amp” Elmore created the 1st chronology of “Black Memphis History” via a video titled; “200 Years of Black Memphis History.” Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris did not want to be associated with Black Memphis History which is horrific and a history of racism and discrimination. Memphis does not want to correct its injustices to Blacks in Memphis.
In 2019 the Memphis Shelby County Film Commission, Indie Memphis and Memphis in May celebrated Memphis Cinema. The issue is that “Anthony “Amp” Elmore is the father of Independent 35mm Theatrical Filmmaking in Memphis. The White Memphis Shelby County Film Commissioner Linn Sitler used her function and authority to erase Anthony “Amp” Elmore’s film history whereas they would not allow Anthony “Amp” Elmore to be an official Part of the Memphis/Shelby County Bicentennial Celebration.
In regards to Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris Black on Black Racism regard the Memphis Shelby County Bicentennial Celebration whereas Lee Harris wanted no association to Black Memphis history. Anthony “Amp” Elmore not only rented the Malco Majestic Theatre in Memphis to premier the 2019 movie “200 years of Black Memphis History;” Anthony “Amp” Elmore in a way to fight the racist and discrimination by Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris Anthony “Amp” Elmore posted the movie Simultaneously on You Tube to Create a Historical Record.”
The City of Memphis and the County of Shelby used their function and authority to erase the fact that Anthony “Amp” Elmore produced Memphis 1st Independent 35mm film whereas this makes “Orange Mound the Birthplace of Independent 35mm Theatrical Filmmaking in Memphis.
Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris betrayed Black Memphis and tax payers. He gave a tax payer building to Mary E. Mitchell based on a fraud. Mary E. Mitchell does not have a “Track Record” nor was she in good health at 81 years old at the time to run “The Orange Mound arts Council.” How can Shelby County Mayor justify giving a building to the “orange Mound Arts Council that does not promote “Art.” Ms. Mary E. Mitchell does not have an functional email address whereas she hate digital technology. He backwardness sets Memphis behind if she had a real “Orange Mound Arts Council. She is associated to a 501 3 and benefits off of Blackness.
The Orange Mound Arts council is a “Fraud operated by the White Religious leader Don Gilbert.” Black Shelby County Mayor created a fraud and sham whereas it was a political move and front to give a Tax Payer building to the 81 year old Mary E. Mitchell for the Orange Mound Arts Council. The building was given to the White man Don Gilbert. This tax payer Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris giveaway should be investigated.
Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, He has not stood with Orange Mound. He has not acknowledged the role of Black churches. He has not removed the racist marker. His silence is betrayal. Just watch the video regarding Mary Mitchell and you will find corruption and Black on Black Racism. This video tells how Blacks in Memphis are being bamboozled.
Black Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is “So Crooked” so much we can use this entire news story just exposing his unethical practices. We are not going to mention how he “Disrespected African Dignitaries.”
**Commissioner Britney Thornton** She is a friend of Anthony “Amp” Elmore who has been to cultural events at Elmore’s home many times. Britney is a native of Orange Mound and founder of JUICE Orange Mound, built her brand on community empowerment. Yet she has never publicly challenged the Deaderick narrative. Britney has never demanded the removal of the plantation-based historical marker. Britney has not called for a Historical Marker at the corner of Spotswood and Boston acknowledging the 1st Black School in Shelby County that would become Melrose. Elmore notes we must honor and tell “Black Memphis History.”
Britney Thornton has never acknowledged the role of Mt. Moriah Baptist Church and Mt. Pisgah CME Church in founding Orange Mound in 1879—ten years before E.E. Meacham’s land purchase. Her silence is not neutrality. Anthony “Amp” Elmore added Britney to his lawsuit asking the court to force her to properly represent Orange Mound. It is betrayal to Black America that Britney Thornton allows the racist historical Marker to remain in Orange Mound, whereas she is silent and will not demand a Historical Marker to be placed on the corner of Spotswood and Boston where the Shelby County Government built the 1st School for Blacks in Shelby County in 1890 that became Melrose.
**Commissioner Henri Brooks**, is also a friend of Anthony “Amp” Elmore whereas she came to a Black History event at Elmore’s home with the mother of Shelby County Commissioner Erika Sugarmon. Henry Brooks was once a civil rights firebrand, whereas she has gone quiet. She has not challenged the plantation myth. She has not called out the Tennessee Historical Commission for erecting a marker that celebrates slavery.
She has not defended the legacy of Black churches. Elmore notes that he and Commissioner Brooks attended “Greater Imani Church” and whereas we advocated for Black causes back in the day. Her silence today is betrayal. Henri Brooks was once a strong advocate of civil rights and Justice however today she remains quiet about the betrayal of “Black Orange Mound.” Anthony “Amp” Elmore calls of Henri Brooks to take a stand and teach our youth “Black Memphis History.” Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes Orange Mound is not just Black Memphis History, Orange Mound Represents world Black History. Anthony “Amp” Elmore asks how can we in Memphis allow our Community of Orange Mound to be falsely connected to the John George Deaderick Plantation.
**Commissioner Erika Sugarmon**, daughter of the civil rights icon Judge Russell Sugarmon, teaches government and civics. Years ago when Erika was running for office she held a fund raiser at Anthony “Amp” Elmore’s then “African Cultural Museum. As a youth Anthony “Amp” Elmore would attend meetings with her late father Judge Russell Sugarmon. Anthony “Amp” Elmore was a friend to her Mother the late Dr. Miriam DeCosta-Willis who was the 1st Black professor hired at the University of Memphis. Professor Willis wrote the history book titled: “Notable Black Memphians.”
This biographical and historical study by Miriam DeCosta-Willis (PhD, Johns Hopkins University and the first African American faculty member of Memphis State University) traces the evolution of a major Southern city through the lives of men and women who overcame social and economic barriers to create artistic works, found institutions, and obtain leadership positions that enabled them to shape their community.
Dr. Willis was fund of Orange Mound and one of her joys was being a part of the “Orange Mound Energizers” a group of seniors 55-92 get together and dance.
Yet Ericka Sugarmon is not following her father or Mother traditions. Erika Sugarmon has not used her platform to correct the historical records or supported Anthony “Amp” Elmore at correcting Black Memphis history. She has not called out the Memphis Museums of Science and History for publishing plantation-based narratives. She has not defended the legacy of Mt. Moriah or Mt. Pisgah. Her silence is betrayal.
**Councilwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington** represents District 4 on the Memphis City Council, which includes Orange Mound. Jana Swearengen is the daughter of the late Judge James E. Swearengen, who served as a Circuit Court Judge from 1982 to 1999. His final case was notably the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. conspiracy case. Anthony “Amp” Elmore personally knew her father whom Amp Elmore calls “Cool.”
Jana Swearengen-Washington is Vice Chairwoman of the Memphis City Council. She is a lifelong educator. Elmore is asking her to be an “Orange Mound Community Advocate.” Jana Swearengen-Washington will not challenged the false historical marker or advocated for a “Black History Museum in Memphis.” She has not demanded that Memphis honor the true founders of Orange Mound MT Moriah and MT Pisgah Churches.
She has not stood up to the Memphis institutions that perpetuate white supremacy. Her silence is not just betrayal—it is abandonment. She represents Orange Mound and does nothing to uplift and tell the true history of Orange Mound. She will not called for a Black Memphis History Museum or support a called to learn Black Memphis history. She remains silent about the “Racist Historical Marker in Orange Mound.
**State Representative G.A. Hardaway**, a veteran legislator representing District 93, has been a friend and associate of Anthony “Amp” Elmore for years, whereas they both worked to support their mutual friend Randy Wade who ran for Sherriff in 2010. Elmore describes G. A. Hardaway as the “Smoothest Criminal” whereas he moves in stealth. G.A. Hardaway is quite and slick. Please watch the video regarding Black Tennessee State Representative G.A. Hardaway.
Tennessee State Representative G. A. Hardaway is best in betrayal he is the best smoot criminal as noted by Anthony “Amp” Elmore. When they see each other they are cordial. Anthony “Amp” Elmore asked G.A. Hardaway as Tennessee State Senator to recognize Orange Mound rightfully as the Birth Place of Independent Filmmaking in Memphis. G.A. Hardaway sided with the White Supremacist Memphis Shelby County Film Commissioner Linn Sitler.
Just to share evidence regarding Black Tennessee State Representative G.A. Hardaway; Just Click here to read a story published by “African Press International in 2013.” We provide documented evidence of G.A. Hardaway arranging a crooked deal in Memphis with African leaders or Kenyan Governors who came to Memphis. The Governors coming to Memphis embarrassed President Obama Unknown and Untold President Obama could not visit his family home in Kenya because of a crooked deal that happen in Memphis with Kenyan Governors.
**State Senator London Lamar**, the youngest Black woman in Tennessee Senate history. She scheduled a tall hall meeting at the Orange Mound Community Center on June 26, 2025. Anthony “Amp” Elmore asked her about the “Racist historical Marker” outside of the Orange Mound Community Center..” She ran a game on Elmore whereas she directed Elmore to contact the “Tennessee Historical Commission.” Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes that her advice was an insult whereas we elected a State Representative to address Orange Mound Issues.
Elmore has tried for months to communicate with Tennessee State Representative whereas she is a “Master of public profiling” whereas she has no substance whereas she is gaming Black America.
It was notes via social Media that London Lamar supports the building of the Jail in the New Chicago community. It this is true would certainly proves that she is a “sell Out.” We regarding this new story cannot authenticate that Senator London Law had betrayed Black Memphis via supporting a jail in an African American Community.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore added Senator London Lamar to his lawsuit whereas Elmore notes that she runs a front that claims to fight for strong schools and safe communities. Yet she has not fought to remove the racist historical marker in Orange Mound. She has not challenged the Orange Mound Racist Plantation Myth. She has not defended the legacy of Black churches. She has not supported a Black Memphis history Museum. Her silence is betrayal.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore is taking her to court to force her to do her job. This is a clear-cut point of Tennessee State Senator London Lamar; you cannot reach her. We published a National News Release to get her attention and she ignores us. We added her to our law suit whereas you cannot reach her and she does not response to phone calls. We challenge anyone to t try reaching her at her office at (615 741-2509) Anthony “Amp” Elmore cannot reach her hopefully she will response to a court action to get her attention.
**Dr. Charles Williams**, Was once director of African and African American Studies at the University of Memphis, published *African American Life and Culture in Orange Mound* in 2013. In it, he not only repeated the White Supremacist Barron Deaderick narrative, stating that Orange Mound was “built on land that was once part of the John George Deaderick Plantation.”
Dr. Charles Williams advocates the false White Supremacist narratives. Dr. Charles Williams framing fraud and White Supremacist Myth legitimized the plantation myth and embedded it into academic literature. Dr. Charles Williams continues to mislead Black America whereas he has never retracted this claim. His complicity is betrayal. Just view the video. Dr. Charles Williams is a partner with the new Orange Mound Library whereas he advocates the false racist White Supremacist E.E. Meacham and the racist Osage Orange tree Narratives.
The ten minute video notes how Dr. Charles Williams not only got his information for the White Supremacist Barron Deaderick, Dr. Charles William falsely names E.E. Meacham the founder of Orange Mound. Anthony “Amp” Elmore filed a lawsuit against Dr. Charles Williams to ask the court to force him to cease and desist teaching White Supremacist narratives in Orange Mound. Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes that our children should learn the truth about Orange Mound not accept the false White Supremacist Narratives taught by Dr. Charles Williams.
**Mary E. Mitchell 89 years old**, honored as the “Orange Mound Historian,” who has never published a sentence of Orange Mound history continues to falsely publicly state that the name Orange Mound comes from the Deaderick plantation. She repeats the White Supremacist Barron Deaderick Osage orange tree myth.
She has ignored the documented history of Melrose Station and the role of Black churches. Mary E. Mitchell used her influence to connect Orange Mound to the John George Deaderick Plantation. In 1871 Williams and Michael Deaderick platted 150 acres of the plantation hoping to create a “White Suburb called Melrose Station. The Yellow Fever epidemic of 1878 caused 25,000 Whites to leave Memphis in 3 days. There was no more Melrose Station or Whites to move into the area. In 1879 Memphis lost its charter and Blacks in this area we call Orange Mound founded the two Black Churches Mt Moriah and Mt Pisgah. In 1879 there was no John George Deaderick Plantation. There was “Melrose Station” whereas in 1883 MT Moriah Baptist Church purchased the land where the Church sits today.
Clearly if people purchased land for a Church they had land and houses for themselves. Mary E. Mitchell who calls herself an Orange Mound Historian ignores the fact that a church, school and the Black Community of Orange Mound existed before the White Man E.E. Meacham sold plots of land. Mary E. Mitchell ignorance or her ignoring the facts of Orange Mound history and her complicity is betrayal.
Mary E. Mitchell is running a fraud on Black Memphis whereas she is not in the health to run the Orange Mound Arts Council whereas she is only a face for the White Religions leader Don Gilbert. At 89 years old she is not of the health to run an organization in 21st century. She does not have a “Functional Email Address” and she hates modern technology. We in America are in a digital age of A I whereas you have a Black Woman purporting to run an Orange Mound Arts Council who lives in the 20th Century.
Don Gilbert a White runs the Orange Mound Arts Council under guise of Mary Mitchell who used her Blackness and advance age to bamboozle Black Memphis. She is was named Honorary Historian in 2017 by former White Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell.
**The Tennessee Historical Commission** erected a historical marker in 2014 stating that Orange Mound was “formerly a 5,000-acre plantation owned by John George Deaderick.” This marker is based entirely on Barron Deaderick’s 1949 article. It ignores the role of Mt. Moriah and Mt. Pisgah. It erases Black agency. It celebrates slavery. It is a monument to white supremacy that Black Memphis leaders allow to remain in Orange Mound. While slavery ended in 1865 the Tennessee Historical Commission racially connects Orange Mound to the John George Deaderick plantation.
**The Memphis Museums of Science and History** published a narrative linking Orange Mound to the Deaderick plantation and Osage orange trees. It repeated the plantation myth. It ignores the fact that two Orange Mound churches began in 1879. clearly the Memphis Museum of science and History does not have a historical marker on Spottswood at Boston naming the location where the 1st School was built for Blacks in Orange Mound in Shelby County.
The Shelby County Government School for Blacks proves there was the Black Community of Orange Mound before the White Real Estate Salesman E.E. Meacham registered plans to sell lots. The Memphis Museums of Science and History betrays the truth. E.E. Meacham never built one single home and there is not record of evidence that the “Shotgun House Community he wrote only on paper was ever built.
In fact there does not exist any evidence in the history of America that a “Shot Gun House planned Community” was built anywhere or at any time in American history. The challenge is for anyone to find 10 planned Shotgun houses anywhere or at any time in American history.
Mathematically you cannot put 981 houses on 64 acres as E.E. Meacham planned. Imagine Dr. Charles Williams an anthropologist having the E.E. Meacham plans selling the idea of 981 houses on 64 acres such a plan is flawed however it is written in Memphis that the White man E.E. Meacham Founded Orange Mound a Community with no evidence of ever being built.
Black Memphis leaders and Memphis institutions purposefully failed Black America. They have failed Orange Mound. They have failed Memphis. They have failed Black history. Most important they fail “common sense” you cannot put 981 houses 25 x100 on 64 acres of land.
This is the Orange Mound Kicker: It is written that the White Real Estate Salesman E.E. Meacham started Orange Mound in 1890. There is not a person living or dead can produce a single piece of evidence that the E.E. Meacham alleged 981 ploys of land sold ever produced a a community or a “Single Home.” There are no tax records, picture, written evidence showing that a community or the Shotgun house community E.E. Meacham outlined on paper was ever built.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore, refuse to remain silent. Anthony “Amp” Elmore is fighting to reclaim the legacy of Orange Mound. Elmore’s work includes not 100’s of YouTube videos exposing historical distortions. Anthony “Amp” Elmore has published more content regarding Orange Mound than in one in the Communities history.
Anthony “Amp” Elmore in delivering history, culture and truth to the Orange Mound Community, Anthony “Amp” Elmore turned home into the “Safari House Museum Culture and educational center whereas Elmore for decades have hosted Culture events at his Orange Mound Home.
The story of Orange Mound is not just local—it is national, spiritual, and deeply symbolic of Black America’s enduring fight for self-definition and dignity. AAnthony “Amp” Elmore reminds us that in 1879, only fourteen years after emancipation from over four centuries of bondage, formerly enslaved African Americans in Memphis did something extraordinary: they built a community and named it themselves—Orange Mound.
They anchored it with two Black churches Mt Moriah and MT Pisgah, not just as places of worship, but as institutions of hope, education, and resistance. This act of self-determination stands among the most significant chapters in American history, because it defies the narrative of passivity and victimhood.
In regards to Memphis White Supremacy, Racism and Black on Black Racism Anthony “Amp” Elmore is reaching out to UNESCO. UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to building peace through international cooperation in education, the sciences, culture, and communication. It works to foster dialogue, advance global goals, and set international standards in these fields, with a major focus on protecting cultural and natural heritage, ensuring access to information, and promoting sustainable development.
In the City of Memphis via its White Supremacy, Racism and Black on Black Racism Black Children in Memphis and around the world do not have access to the honored and significant Black History of the Memphis African American History of Orange Mound. Whereas Black Memphis leaders obscures Black Memphis History.
On January 1, 2025 the UNECO launched the 2nd Decade honoring people of African descent. The overarching theme for the decade is “Recognition, Justice, and Development.” This theme encapsulates the program’s goals of acknowledging the rights and contributions of people of African descent, addressing systemic injustices, and promoting their full and equal participation in society.
The decade is a global call to action to combat the persistent issues of racism, racial discrimination, and social inequalities that people of African descent face. It seeks to build on the progress of the first decade while recognizing that much more needs to be done.
While in Memphis there is White Supremacy, Racism and Black on Black Racism whereas Blacks and White are united to obscure Black Memphis History. Anthony “Amp” Elmore will ask UNECO for help.
Orange Mound is like Whoopi Goldberg who played Sealy in 1985 Steve Spielberg movie: “The Color Purple.” Mister told Sealy you are poor, you are Black and you are ugly, Sealy fired back, “I am Black, I am poor, and I may be ugly, but I’m still here,” Orange Mound stands as a living embodiment of that truth. Orange Mound is Black, it has faced poverty, and to some it may appear forgotten—but it is still here.
Orange Mound is not a relic—Orange Mound has a rich legacy to proud of. It has produced Olympic gold medalists, professional athletes, world champions in boxing and kickboxing, the first kickboxing film in world history, and even a nuclear physicist. Orange Mound birth many Gold records.
Via Anthony “Amp” Elmore Orange Mound birthed the Black Memphis History website, a digital monument to truth and empowerment. Yet when its history was stolen, distorted, or erased, it wasn’t just facts that were lost—it was power. History is not just memory; it is fuel to empower a people and a community.
It empowers a people to know where they’ve been, to understand what they’ve overcome, and to envision what they can build. Black history is essential because it restores agency, corrects injustice, and affirms the brilliance and resilience of a Black people who have always been more than what America was willing to see.
Orange Mound is proof. It is a beacon. It is still here. Anthony “Amp” Elmore notes; Just do an online search titled “Orange Mound the Birthplace of African Cultural Diplomacy.” Anthony “Amp” Elmore connected Orange Mound to Africa…. There is more.
About Us
“If Lions were historians, hunters would no longer be heroes.” This powerful African proverb encapsulates the mission of the Orange Mound News Network (OMNN). Founded by Anthony Amp Elmore, OMNN aims to reclaim and reshape the narrative of Orange Mound through the power of filmmaking, education, and content creation. Our goal is to challenge the negative stereotypes and biased portrayals that have long plagued our community, creating a positive space for family, Black culture, history, and education.
Our Journey and Mission
Orange Mound, established as the first community in America built for Blacks by Blacks, has a rich history often overshadowed by negative stereotypes. Mainstream media and societal biases have painted Orange Mound as a “ghetto,” contributing to a 30% decline in property values while surrounding communities have prospered. The Orange Mound News Network was created to
counter this narrative and highlight the true spirit and resilience of our community.
Anthony Amp Elmore, a five-time world karate kickboxing champion, filmmaker, and community activist, has been a beacon of change in Orange Mound. With over five decades of community service, Elmore has dedicated his life to uplifting Orange Mound. From becoming a homeowner at 19, establishing businesses, to founding the Proud Black Buddhist World Association, Elmore’s contributions have been immense.
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