Q & A

* 100 Black Men of Orange County President Ron Coley

Ron Coley, a 46-year-old Lake Forest resident and county administrative manager, recently was sworn in as the new president of 100 Black Men of Orange County. The organization, founded two years ago this month, is one of 37 chapters in 24 states. The Orange County group drew public attention in January, 1993, when it demanded an independent investigation of the shooting death of Darryn Leroy Robins, a black Orange County sheriff’s deputy killed in a training exercise. The organization is now looking to broaden its mission, Coley said in an interview with Times correspondent Russ Loar. Q: What are your goals for the organization?

A: People have seen us as unidimensional, but we are a multidimensional organization. We are not exclusively focused on social action or reaction. We have a lot of enthusiasm about a program called Passport to the Future. We will be selecting a group of children and will take them over the next four years and help them develop a sense of self-esteem and pride and self-awareness. After they graduate from high school, we hope to assist them with their further education or their entry into the job market. We’re very concerned about the children, and not just those children who are college-bound.

Q: What does your group offer adult members?

A: We are trying to provide a new sense of awareness and recognition. We have a lot of professional black men in Orange County who are looking for a way to contribute to the community, and we intend to provide a mechanism for that. . . . We’re trying to interface with the business community and the chambers of commerce so we can provide opportunities for our members to be involved. We are also available for business to seek out a perspective from the black community.

Q: You say your group is broadening its focus. Does that signal a change from being outspoken on racial issues?

A: We will not shrink from those responsibilities. We have organized ourselves so that we do have a government and public affairs committee to be in touch with those sorts of things when they happen in the county, to decide whether or not the incident warrants our personal response.

Q: Is racism a significant issue for blacks in Orange County?

A: I feel there are significant problems. . . . I do stay in touch with hate crimes, and I know those numbers have increased. . . . Orange County is a challenging place for anybody to live. But for the black businessman, I’m sure that he has extraordinary challenges. The thing that we truly want to be able to do is to make positive contributions to the Orange County community.