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CNN Live Today

Interview with Alonzo Washington

Aired August 06, 2002 - 10:41   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Earlier this hour, we told you about a comic book creator who has embarked on a mission worthy of any crusading superhero. Alonzo Washington is using his palette and plot lines to aid a missing children campaign that is often tainted a color. We get that story now from reporter Rena Sarigianopoulos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALONZO WASHINGTON, COMIC BOOK CREATOR: But these kids are not getting the same type of attention.

RENA SARIGIANOPOULOS, WITI CORRESPONDENT: You may not recognize Alonzo Washington, but he he is hoping his notoriety will grab some attention.

WASHINGTON: I have a vehicle to reach children, so now in the comic books, we feature missing children.

SARIGIANOPOULOS: Washington is the creator of the "Omega Man" comic book, and now the "Omega" trading cards which also feature missing children. Washington is from Kansas, but has taken an interest in a Milwaukee case.

WASHINGTON: I think Alexis Patterson and all the other kids that I name are worthy and deserve national press. They deserve to be known, and to be found.

SARIGIANOPOULOS: Because, he says, no one else is paying attention.

WASHINGTON: When it comes to missing children, race should not matter. I'm not saying that it does. However, the black kids are not getting the same type of press coverage.

SARIGIANOPOULOS: Alonzo Washington is fighting to get more national attention for missing African-American children, a problem he says has never been worse. Alexis will appear in next issue of "Omega Man," which Washington hopes will focus the eyes of the nation on the 7-year-old Milwaukee girl.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And we want to thank Rena Sarigianopoulos of CNN Milwaukee affiliate WITI for that story.

Well, joining us now is Alonzo Washington, the man who created the African-American superhero "Omega Man," a decade ago. He has won numerous awards, not just for this creation, but also for his causes as a political activist. He joins us now to talk about how the two compliment each other -- good morning, good to see you again. How are you?

WASHINGTON: It is a pleasure to be here.

HARRIS: I just want folks to know that I met you last week at the convention in Milwaukee of the National Association of Black Journalists and you told me this story, and I was surprised because I had never really heard of an approach like this. How did you come up with this idea, and how long have you been doing this?

WASHINGTON: Well, I've been a community activist since the age of 16. My comic born out of my activism, and I always addressed social issues with the comic book. I already had an ongoing trading card program with the police department that dealt with safety messages, and when I looked at the media and didn't see a lot of these African-American children, I said this is way to use my medium to help those children get publicity.

HARRIS: Now, in the piece that we just saw here a second ago, you tiptoed a bit around the issue of race, but you didn't tiptoe around it when I talked with you in Milwaukee. What do you think is at play here when it comes down to how these childrens' cases are covered?

WASHINGTON: Well, you know, I think there's a big problem. I feel that a child missing should not fit a particular stereotype. They should not be a prototype. You know, blond hair, blue eyes, white skin. There's a number of children missing. Black, white, Asian, Hispanic, and there is an epidemic in our whole country, and all those children should be featured. So I don't like to just play the race card. However, there has been differences in the way these cases have been handled.

HARRIS: Now, the picture we are looking at right now is that of Rilya Wilson, the young little girl who was talked about quite a bit in that case from Florida, a child who was missing from the child and family services department for so long, and still have not been able to find this child. You have actually got a -- not a business card, but a trading card of her out right now. As a matter of fact, I have one in my hand here, and you are also featuring yet another young lady in this magazine -- there we go. Is it -- there she is.

WASHINGTON: It is Precious Doe.

HARRIS: We have got the Precious Doe case as well, this case of the young lady who was beheaded, as I understand it, was it not far from where you are in Milwaukee, correct?

WASHINGTON: Yes, it was -- she was found decapitated in Kansas City, Missouri, and for a minute, people thought Rilya Wilson was Precious Doe, and the thing that made that case interesting, that's something that I really brought out in Kansas City in the way -- the way it was dealt with. You know, the police department here in Kansas City, left her body in the field -- not her body, but they didn't close the crime scene. They searched the field. A citizen found the head after they searched it, and it took 48 hours to really deal with the case. And that runs parallel with the way Alexis Patterson's case was dealt with. They didn't begin to look for her until after 48 hours, and the thing that makes the Rilya Wilson case connect to it is that the DCF system is affiliated with Governor Bush, George Bush -- President Bush, he has actually sent out federal powers to search for Samantha Runnion, but he didn't do that for Rilya Wilson. I think the way that race -- kind of -- kind of, I guess, affects the way authorities, politicians, and the media deals with the cases. And I think that should not be the case.

HARRIS: Well, let me ask you this, because media include magazines, and that includes yours as well. What does your magazine been able to do in cases like this? Have you come up with any tips that have actually helped out any of these investigations?

WASHINGTON: Well, the thing is that I just began to start this program. But what it has done, effectively, is raise the issue, and the thing is, is like with Precious Doe cases, that's the first case I worked on, and I was just using my activist skills to deal with that, but I thought the comic book would be a perfect way to go out nationally and to help other children. So I've been going to other cities, and I plan to go to Chicago to deal with the Bradley sisters case. You have Jahid Turner in San Diego, and the sad fact is, none of these kids are famous. If I run off Samantha Runnion, Elizabeth Smart, and all these other children, you know them. And I think that's a problem.

HARRIS: Well, let me ask you finally, if I can ask you this. I know you have spent some time with some of the parents involved in some of these cases. What do they say about all this?

WASHINGTON: Well, they feel left out. They feel hurt. I mean, I stood with Alexis Patterson's parents, and they are just as hurt as the Smarts. And let me make this clear. The other children that are getting the press, they deserve it. They should have the press. But these kids I'm speaking for, they deserve the same amount of press attention.

HARRIS: Well, we'll see about what we can do to make sure that they get the proper amount of attention, all of the cases. As you said, Alonzo, they all deserve it.

WASHINGTON: All right. I thank you for having me on.

HARRIS: Thank you for making time to come talk with us. Alonzo Washington, thank you very much. Good luck to you.

WASHINGTON: Thank you.

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