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Mary Shackleford Harvey: I Want an Apology

Date: Monday, January 31, 2011, 9:25 am
By: Tonya Pendleton, BlackAmericaWeb.com
Mary Harvey drops by the Tom Joyner Morning Show. (Rance Elgin)

Mary Shackleford Harvey surprised many when she recently uploaded three videos to YouTube alleging bad treatment from her former husband, comedian and TV personality Steve Harvey. No one was more surprised than Harvey, who had legal restrictions in place that should have precluded either of them from talking about their marriage or divorce.

The former Mrs. Harvey alleges that Harvey used his celebrity and the money that she helped him earn during their 16 years together to take advantage of her in court, leaving her broke, homeless and without custody of their son, Wynton, now 12.

Shackleford Harvey also alleges that the author of two popular New York Times bestselling relationship books - “Act Like a Lady, Think Like A Man” and “Straight Talk, No Chaser: How To Find, Keep and Understand a Man” - has misled the public that believes in his advice. She alleges that Harvey’s third wife, Marjorie, was his longtime mistress and that the two of them have willfully ignored the pain they put her through. And although the Harveys were divorced in 2005, Shackleford Harvey is coming out now, she says, because of Harvey’s references to her in the media.

Here are some excerpts from an hour-long conversation Harvey had Sunday with BlackAmericaWeb.com.

BlackAmericaWeb.com: After being divorced from Steve Harvey for six years, what made you decide to speak out now?

MARY SHACKLEFORD HARVEY: In time to get back on my feet mentally and emotionally from this whole situation, I have been working on myself, going to therapy and working out and eating healthly. In that process, I was hoping that Steve would face me, and I would have rather that he had apologized and worked with me to help me have a good relationship with Wynton. I was hoping that we could reconcile about our property and our wealth, things that never got dealt with. He just kind of left that door open and went and re-started his life with someone else and left me holding the emotional bag of it and the mental bag of it and the financial bag of it.

You have talked about how you were unfairly treated in the divorce. Did you have a pre-nuptial agreement at all?

There was nothing to pre-nup. He didn’t have anything. I didn’t have anything. Steve and I married in 1996, but had lived together five and a half years previous to 1996.

So, when you married, he was just starting the career he has now.

Yes, he was getting $25 to $400 a week, depending on the venue.

Is it true that you and Steve used the same divorce attorney?

He was our family attorney. I filed in the state of Texas, and Steve and I decided to use our family attorney, as the whole thing was not to create what’s actually happening right now. I decided I no longer wanted to be his wife. The whole thing was making me sick, physically. I burned my thyroid out and I was literally getting sick. My thing was not to destroy Steve publicly or financially. So I agreed, let’s go to court and work this out with our lawyer. But that was not what happened.

Charlotte celebrated it's first night of 2011 uptown South Tryon st. (Video by JW)

Michael Baisden, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, 100 Black Men of Charlotte Call for Action:
Michael Baisden brings his "Save Our Kids" Mentoring Tour to the Queen City!

Today, the self-proclaimed “Bad Boy of Radio” made good on a promise, here in Charlotte…to challenge the QC to answer the call to action in saving our youth. Baisden brought his mobile “One Million Mentors Tour” campaign to the campus of Johnson C. Smith Saturday afternoon. Within the rally were such Charlotte dignitaries as Charlotte Mayor, Anthony Foxx, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief, Rodney Monroe and a host of others. In his address to the crowd, Baisden challenged adults to become mentors to children and to find time to spend time with youth in efforts to help them become more productive citizens within communities. Baisden also addressed the children, pre-teens and teens in the audience with encouragement, support as well as humor. Baisden also donated $5,000 to the Emerging Leaders Mentoring Program… a program that fosters guidance and leadership skills within young boys and teens. Baisden also took time for photographs with various groups, who were present. Today’s visit was apart of Baisden’s seven month, 72-city national bus tour with the objective of encouraging community involvement through mentoring, and outreach programs for children.

(Story source: C.C. Mitchell) v1019.radio.com/2010/04/10/michael-baisdens-call-to-action-comes-to-charlotte/#photo-14