The head of the Dallas chapter of the NAACP, who resigned Aug. 9 after being suspended by the national office, says he now will dedicate his time to his newly started organization which is �unencumbered� by the dictates of others who may provide financial backing.

Lee Alcorn, head of the Coalition for the Advancement of Civil Rights, was roundly denounced for remarks made on a Ft. Worth radio talk show about Senator Joseph Lieberman, picked by Vice President Al Gore as a running mate in the upcoming presidential election. Mr. Lieberman is the first Jewish candidate for the office.

Mr. Alcorn reportedly raised concerns about Mr. Lieberman�s candidacy that were deemed anti-Semitic during the show. �I�m concerned about, you know, any kind of Jewish candidate, you know, and I�m concerned about the Democratic Party. I�m sick of the Democratic Party taking the African American vote for granted,� he said.

�I think we need to be very suspicious of any kind of partnerships between Jews at that kind of level because we know that their interest primarily has to do with, you know, money and these kinds of things.�

Mr. Alcorn later apologized for the comments, saying, �I misspoke by making reference to Jews and Jewish people. I should have made my comments specifically to Lieberman.�

In an interview with The Final Call, Mr. Alcorn said his remarks were an off-the-cuff response �fueled by a total lack of accountability� to the Black community by the Democratic Party.

The selection of Sen. Lieberman �blew me away,� he said, �because he opposes positions we support.� He said the senator is against affirmative action and school vouchers, which the NAACP supports; and he supports capital punishment.

�So how can they come out so strong for him?� he asked. �The whole thrust of my comment was that we�ve been too long content with being Democrats and nobody is addressing our concerns.�

Mr. Alcorn was immediately suspended by NAACP President Kweisi Mfume, saying, �I find your comments in this matter to be repulsive. They are, in my opinion, anti-Semitic and anti-NAACP.�

Both Mr. Mfume and NAACP Chairman Julian Bond said that Sen. Lieberman has a strong civil rights record. On the NAACP Legislative Report Card on the 106th Congress, Sen. Lieberman received 100 percent, the equivalent of an �A� for his voting record on civil rights issues.

Rev. Jesse Jackson, who twice sought the Democratic Party�s presidential nomination, voiced his strong support for Sen. Lieberman and cast Mr. Alcorn�s remark as �expressions of darkness.�

Anti-Defamation League National Director Abraham H. Foxman commended the national NAACP for its �swift and unconditional� condemnation of Mr. Alcorn.

Mr. Alcorn told The Final Call that he hopes Mr. Lieberman�s faith will not absolve the candidate from political scrutiny. Mr. Alcorn said it is legitimate to raise the questions from a Black perspective�will Mr. Lieberman have concerns of Blacks in America or the concerns of Jewish people or even the state of Israel at heart?

He added that the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan�s Million Family March National Agenda on policy issues is a tool to insure that Blacks get what they want in return for their votes.

�I don�t think the NAACP overreacted� to the remarks, he told The Final Call. �I think they did what they were told to do, to get rid of me. Are we going to have to tip around (Lieberman) just because he�s of the Jewish faith?� he asked.

He said the national NAACP organization is ineffective because it is more interested in fund raising from big corporations than pursuing civil rights. Mr. Alcorn has been suspended from his post on several other occasions.

�James Muhammad