Churches rally for City Manager - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Churches rally for City Manager

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April 25, 2004

Albany -- Monday the city manager will have a chance to defend herself against some city commissioners who say she's done a bad job running the city.Tuesday, commissioners drilled Janice Allen Jackson with questions about her job performance and demanded a response by Monday. Sunday in anticipation of the decision, churches from across the city rallied in support of Jackson at the Government Center in downtown Albany.

It was a show of faith for city manager Janice Allen Jackson. Hundreds of people, organized by more than 25 church pastors, lined the stone walkways of the government center to support and pray for Jackson. She's locked in battle with the city commission on whether she will keep her job.

"We are coming together as a body of faith, men and pastors to say that we believe that she has done a very good job and to remove her at this time would be a destabilization of our government," says, Pastor Lorenzo Heard.

"It's not really a church issue it's a voter issue, and the voters just happen to be members of the church," says Leon Gardner of New Birth Church.

Supporters say Jackson is being unfairly targeted by the commission and being bully out of her job. And, they believe she deserves a second chance to make what ever is wrong, right again.

"When the flood was here she was here to help us," says one older onlooker at the rally.

"I have seen the good works she has done in this city and her good works speak for themselves," a young supporter of Jacksons.

And if those works don't speak these voters say they're prepared to do the speaking and the recalling of city commissioners if the will of the people is not honored.

Many of these supporters spoke out against Commissioner Henry Mathis who's said in the past Jackson should be fired.

"If brother Mathis has done something wrong and they know what he has done he needs to say I was wrong," says Jimmy Hall a youth minister.

More than 1,000 people have already signed a petition supporting Jackson and they're ready to hand it over the city commissioners Monday morning.

Monday, supporters plan to hold another rally for the city manager during the commission meeting at 8:30am in front of the Government Center.

posted at 6:21PM by scott.hunter@walb.com