By Melissa Nalani Ross

The African American front group, Choose Black America (CBA), is the creation of the controversial anti-immigrant group, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) . Choose Black America claims to represent "the vast majority of American blacks who believe that amnesty for illegal aliens would be devastating to their communities." Yet Choose Black America is not a coalition or an organization in any sense. Despite their grandiose claims, members don't represent organizations or constituencies. There is no shared agenda, no policy goals, no meetings, and hardly any communication between the members (many of which only met only once at the D.C. press conference).

Here is a look at the cobbled together leadership of Choose Black America.

Dr. Frank Morris, Sr.

Dr. Frank Morris is the chairman of Choose Black America and a long-time anti-immigrant movement activist. After his retirement from a long career in higher education, Morris moved to Texas and began working on immigration issues. Morris was part of the SUSPS attempted takeover of the Sierra Club in 2004 (see Hostile Takeover: Race, Immigration and the Sierra Club). Out of all the candidates, he received the fewest votes.

Morris sits on the board of directors of the Center for Immigration Studies, one of FAIR's spin-off groups made to look like a respectable research organization, and on the advisory board of the Carrying Capacity Network, an organization chaired by Virginia Abernethy, a member of the white nationalist Council of Conservative Citizens and a self-declared white "separatist."

Ted Hayes

Ted Hayes originally gained recognition as an outspoken homeless advocate in Los Angeles. He created and ran Dome Village, an encampment for homeless families, until its closure in the fall of 2006. All of his energy has now been redirected to the anti-immigrant movement.

Hayes worked with anti-immigrant stalwarts like Jim Gilchrist, founder of the Minuteman Project, and Barbara Coe, head of the California Coalition for Immigration Reform (CCIR) and admitted member of the Council of Conservative Citizens. Hayes runs the anti-immigrant group, the Crispus Attucks Brigade, which focuses primarily on black participation in the anti-immigrant movement.

Kevin Fobbs

Kevin Fobbs is founder and president of a conservative policy outfit called the National Urban Policy Action Council (NuPac) and serves as director of government and civil affairs for Soul Source, a Christian news magazine.

Fobbs is predominantly known for his conservative views and values, including his anti-immigrant stance, which he discusses on his radio program, The Kevin Fobbs Show, and in his columns for various conservative groups or websites, including Renew America (Alan Keyes' website), FreeRepublic, and Liberty Post.

Terry Anderson

Terry Anderson is an outspoken auto mechanic from Los Angeles. He is the host of a radio talk show, broadcast in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix. His radio program has received at least $10,000 in financial support from John Tanton's US Inc.

Anderson is well known in the anti-immigrant movement and has become one of the movement's darlings, as Anderson, a black man, can get away with saying things most white nativists cannot. Calling himself a "prisoner of South Central," one of his popular and often-repeated catchphrases is "If you ain't mad, then you ain't paying attention." He calls Latinos the "Klan with a tan."

Rev. Jesse Peterson

Reverend Jesse Peterson is the founder and president of Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny (BOND). He has gained notoriety by pushing anti-immigrant politics and by criticizing mainstream Black leaders like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton,

Peterson has a history of being very controversial, making disparaging comments about Muslims, calling blacks "amoral," and defending men physically abusing their spouse because, in his view, it helps reestablish men's position at the head of the family. He is a frequent guest on Fox News' Hannity & Colmes (Sean Hannity is on BOND's board), MSNBC and the Christian Broadcasting Network.

Dr. Claud Anderson

Dr. Claud Anderson is both president and founder of the Harvest Institute, a black think tank in Washington DC that bases all of its activities on two books he has written: Black Labor, White Wealth: A Search for Power and Economic Justice and PowerNomics: The National Plan to Empower Black America.

Anderson appears to be opposed to working with or empowering any other race, but is especially wary and full of contempt for Latinos, voicing concern over Hispanics getting political power. In 2003, Anderson announced in the Harvest Institute newsletter that the National Hispanic Party (an organization which appears not to exist) waged a race war against the African-American community. Even more recently, Anderson announced a plan to organize a class-action workplace lawsuit for people who have lost their jobs because they do not speak Spanish.

James E. Clingman

James E. Clingman is an adjunct professor at both the University of Cincinnati and CincinnatiChristian University where he teaches Black Entrepreneurship. He is the founder of the Greater Cincinnati African American Chamber of Commerce and is on the board of directors of the Harvest Institute.

Clingman has written five books, including Black-O-Knowledge and Blackonomic$, both published by Milligan Books, writes the opinion column Blackonomics, in which he discusses economic issues that he believes affect the black community, and advocates for blacks to distance themselves from the struggles of other minority groups until their economic and political power is strengthened.

Dr. Rosie Milligan

Dr. Rosie Milligan is Director of the West Coast Supporters of the Harvest Institute and a friend of Cluad Anderson's (he even had a race horse named after her). In 1990, she founded her own publishing company, Milligan Books, which claims to be the fastest growing African-American female-owned publishing company in the U.S. She has published books for many of the Choose Black America board members, including Bishop Frank Stewart, James E. Clingman and Claud Anderson.

Bishop Frank Stewart

Bishop Frank Stewart is a member of the Zoe Christian Center in aLos Angeles and currently has over twenty churches under his guidance. He is also a published author of a book entitled Together, We Stand Stronger, which was published by Rosie Milligan's publishing company.

Stewart is the president of the Black American Family Christian Agenda International (BAFCA), a group which came out of seminar held by Claud Anderson's Harvest Institute in May of 2001. Anderson and Stewart have been working closely ever since.

Dr. Nathaniel Chism

Dr. Nathaniel Chism is the founder and president of the Institute of Economic Empowerment, a company which instructs people on economic empowerment. One of the two empowerment seminars the Institute conducts is called "PowerNomic Today Seminar" and is based upon Claud Anderson's teachings. Chism also started a bottled water business, as was advised in Anderson's book. The Harvest Institute describes Chism as "[a]n avid reader of Dr. Anderson's work," who has started a group that meets weekly to study PowerNomics.

Angelita Herron

Angelita Herron is a child advocate from Los Angeles who has been trying to organize counter rallies of African-Americans since the May 1st marches across the country.

Melissa Ross is a Building Democracy Initiative research analyst.