Jackie Surratt, the founder of the Alexandria Fatherless Coalition nonprofit, has been banned from recreation centers in the city for a year.
It’s not the first time Surratt has been banned. In 2022, he admitted to stepping out of bounds when he yelled at a staffer at William Ramsay Recreation Center (5650 Sanger Ave.) for not observing pandemic-related rules while trying to play ping-pong, resulting in a two-year banishment. This time, he says that the most recent ban, which went into effect last month, is unjust. Surratt says he’s peaceful, and wants the ban lifted in order to administer his mentorship program to Alexandria boys. He’s taken his case to city leaders, City Manager Jim Parajon and City Attorney Cheran Ivery.
The 70-year-old Surratt signed a one-year memorandum of understanding with the city’s Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities in 2019, to administer his mentorship program. The program was sidelined by the pandemic, was reinstated, but then Surratt was banned from Feb. 2022 to Feb. 2024. After that, he and a group of speakers would meet weekly at Charles Houston Recreation Center (901 Wythe St.) to feed boys and provide them with counseling.
“I grew up and didn’t know my father in the formative years of my life,” Surratt told ALXnow. “That’s why I started this, to reach young men beyond mentoring, to provide love, connect, engage and empower youth to exemplify success through teaching youth that all things are possible through God.”
But in early 2022, Surratt admitted he crossed a line with the manager of the William Ramsay Recreation Center.
“I responded inappropriately,” Surratt said. “I’m in his face yelling and telling him, basically, ‘What do you mean we can’t play ping-pong?'”
Surratt continued, “It wasn’t good. But when you’re a man and you make a mistake, you make an act of contrition. I apologized the next day. Anyway, I got suspended for two years. So, for two years I suspended everything.”
Then in Feb. 2024, Surratt received a letter from former RPCA Director James Spengler.
“I appreciate your observation of the suspension requirements,” Spengler wrote. “We look forward to working with you in the future where interests align to serve youth and community stakeholders.”
Surratt, who is a lifelong Alexandria resident, then had more than a year of programming. Guest speakers included former Police Chief Don Hayes, as well as local ministers and retired professional athletes. He also says that he scheduled meetings with his nonprofit at Charles Houston multiple times, but that he would be told upon arriving that the events weren’t scheduled.
“It’s very personal and ridiculous,” Surratt said. “Not once did they think about what we’re doing for kids. It’s all about a personal dislike of me.”
On June 13 — two days before Father’s Day — Surratt said he organized a program at Charles Houston Recreation Center. He said that he arrived with food, reserved space in a game room for more than a dozen boys, but was told by staff that no event was scheduled.
Surratt said he was forced to leave the food for the kids, and walked away empty handed. He also said that he had an argument with staff at the recreation center about not being listed on the facility’s schedule to rent space. Surratt then sent emails trying to make a meeting with RPCA staff to talk about numerous similar scheduling issues over the past two years, but said that his emails went unanswered.
“We tried to be proactive so this wouldn’t happen again,” Surratt said. “We tried to make sure that scheduling issues didn’t reoccur.”
In August, Surratt saw RPCA Director Hashim Taylor in his car driving to the Nannie J. Lee Center (1108 Lee St.). Surratt is a limo driver for his day job, and said he tried to flag Taylor down to say hello, but that Taylor didn’t see him. He said he followed Taylor a quarter mile to the Lee Center and pulled up behind Taylor’s parked car.
“I love humor, so first thing I say to him is, ‘Man, I ain’t followed nobody like this since I was 20,'” Surratt said. “I shook his hand and spoke to him for a minute and the next thing I know I get a note from him banning me from recreation centers for a year. He says I followed him and blocked him in.”
On Aug. 6, Taylor sent Surratt a notification banning him from recreation centers for one year.
“This action has been taken in accordance with City policies to ensure the safety and well-being of all participants, staff, and community members,” Taylor wrote. “No further discussion will be entertained regarding this matter.”
Surratt and one of his board members then met with City Manager Jim Parajon and City Attorney Cheran Ivery.
“I want to acknowledge your email and thank you and your fellow board member for meeting with me and Mr. Parajon last week,” Ivery said in an Aug. 28 email Surratt shared with ALXnow. “As was stated at the end of our meeting, Mr. Parajon will follow up with you after he has had an opportunity to consider all of the circumstances and conduct his own due diligence having now heard your perspective.”
ALXnow asked for comments from Taylor and Parajon for this story.
Ebony Fleming, the city’s director of communications and public information, confirmed the meeting with the city manager and city attorney and said that Parajon has yet to make a decision.
“Recently, the City Manager and City Attorney met with Mr. Surratt to listen to his perspective of the interactions and experiences that he had at one of our recreation centers and with members of RPCA staff,” Fleming said. “As a result of the meeting, senior city staff is reviewing the information he provided and is reconciling that with reports received from staff about the incidents. Upon completion of the review, the City Manager will issue a written communication to Mr. Surratt with his decision.”
