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A Thrill On Capitol Hill For Longtime Activist

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By KATHY STEELE

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 24, 2008

TAMPA - Essie Mae Reed, 78, is a Tampa treasure.

That's how U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, described her recently when Castor stood on the floor of the House of Representatives to honor the community activist as a champion of the poor.

Reed's legacy now is part of the Congressional Record.

She was a resident of Central Park Village for nearly 45 years, but after a series of strokes lives in Brandon with her daughter, Sheila Palmore.

Reed is a former tomato picker and maid who could not read or write until after age 40. She never let that hold her back. She points with pride to her 28-year-old granddaughter, Sheikina Palmore, who recently graduated with honors from Florida A&M University with a doctorate in pharmacy.

In 1967, Reed organized a tenants' association at Central Park Village and became spokeswoman for thousands of public housing tenants across Tampa. She pushed for a Boys & Girls Club at Central Park, took children to Hillsborough Community College for enrichment activities and sought medical care and medicine for the poor.

She got water heaters installed in Central Park and lobbied for repairs to dangerous electrical wiring at Ponce de Leon housing project. She had a rule overturned banning single mothers from living in public housing.

In 1971, she was the first black woman to run for Tampa City Council. She lost the race but filed a lawsuit that struck down the filing fees required of candidates. A federal judge ruled that candidates can qualify by petition.

Q. Where were you born?

A. Alachua County. I moved to Savannah around age 5 and then lived in Sulphur Springs. I was living in Ybor City when Hurricane Donna tore the roof off my house. That's when I moved to Central Park Village.

Q. How long did you live there?

A. Almost 45 years. Everybody was like a relative. We were mostly our neighbors' keepers. We looked out for one another. I could see about your child and you could see about my child.

Q. Is it true you sometimes cooked and sold food to help raise rent for your neighbors?

A. When I knew neighbors couldn't pay rent, I'd cook food to raise money for them. I guess you would call it a rent party because jobs were hard to find.

Q. Describe your work with the poor.

A. I didn't have a car so I rode a bicycle way out in Belmont Heights. You could see me pedaling. I dropped in wherever anybody was sick. I had people write down their problems, and I'd take them to the higher-ups. I would take people to the county hospital. Nobody seemed to care whether we got there or not.

Q. You were 40 when you learned to read and write. How did that come about?

A. There was a young man in the projects, Dennis Collins. He would take time, any time with your child. He was just like a teacher. He inspired me to want to read.

Q. What did that mean to you?

A. It gave me hope and made me proud. The most important thing I learned to read was the 23rd Psalm. It brought me closer to God.

Q. Why did you run for city council?

A. City council wasn't doing nothing for us, I felt like. That opened up a door for me. I was recognized as the first African-American female in Florida to run. That made me feel good, good, good. My mother felt good about it. All in my family thought that it was great.

And I think we have a couple of elected officials now who ran on petition.

Q. What are your thoughts on rebuilding Central Park Village?

A. What I feel is they're going to make it a nice community, and none of us are going to be able to stay there because we can't afford the rent. Some people believe they will be given opportunities to get back. I don't think so.

Q. What does it mean to see Barack Obama running for president?

A. I think it's Martin Luther King's dream. He had a dream, and I saw all that, and I believe in Obama. I registered to vote at age 19. It was proud for us to be able to vote. African-Americans, if they knew what price we paid for the privilege, we would do better.

People had to protect us to vote, and we'd vote anyway. It was such an honor.

Reporter Kathy Steele can be reached at (813) 835-2103 or ksteele@tampatrib.com.

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