 He argued that Black leaders in Illinois should oppose Israeli war industries because of their military support for the Apartheid system in South Africa.Cokely gained the national spotlight again in 1996 after he was scheduled to speak at "Our Roots Run Deep", a Black History Month lecture series in New York City hosted by the Warner Music Group.Also scheduled were Al Sharpton, Conrad Muhammad, Jimmy Castor, Hannibal Lokumbe and Dick Gregory.