I have been in my information overload stage this past week trying to expand my mind a little more. I have seen in this 1 week the premiere of CNNs Black in America 2, which incorporated two parts the 1st part consisted of the leaders of the future and the 2nd part consisted of the pioneers of the future. I watched both of them and analyzed it as I normally do, and I found myself consumed in the actual importance of this documentary. Meanwhile, I turned the channel to the History Channel (which is my favorite by the way) and a show called Gangland was on and the episode was discussing the bloods gang that has plagued our black communities since the seventies in most of our major cities. This was a crazy thing to me, to actually watch CNN and see the poverty stricken side of the black communities and to them still striving to change our future was such a positive situation and then I turn the channel to witness the nonsense of the young black males and females who join gangs and kill other young black males and females without even putting into perspective of the families they are affecting.
Black in America 2 showcased Chris Rocks wife initiate a Journey of Change program where she took 31 (13=15year old) kids from an inner city New York community to South Africa and help with the poverty and AIDS affected nation. I watched this with a sincere heart because she didn't just choose kids who were academically superior, but she took kids who needed a major experience in their lives in order to help them grow in other forms other than in school. I can relate to this because I have associated myself with all kinds of people and usually the ones I meet that is the scholar are usually the most lost when it comes to the world and survival. My friends range from drug dealers to doctors and the mind process of both are not too far from each other. Both still face the perplex decisions of "What is Next," in their lives and what will be the route they choose. Black in America highlighted the aspects of what is needed to help our youth grow as individuals in this world where generations before ours have built casualties to the lack of education. The second part of the documentary included pioneers of the change in social descriptions that 20 years ago we didn't have as people. They talked about Tyler Perry and his rise and impact to the world of entertainment. I agree that he has the ability to transform the industry for the black actors and writers but I am honestly not a fan of his work. But that is off subject the fact is that we have pioneers like him and Barak Obama will definitely make us better as a people no doubt in my mind but we are still being plagued by outside influences.
Gangland was a show that showed the black gang called the bloods, and how they affect black communities. I have friends in gangs although I never was approached by one but I have always known about them and been around them. I have never really understood the need to be a part of one until I had a conversation with one of my closest friends who was a gang member and he told me that he lacked a father in his life and he needed some type of brother something to belong to since his family was so broken up. I could now understand where his mind was at, but watching the show just reassured that as black men we have a responsibility to help our youth through the temptations that pull them into situations where they only have small percentage of making it out of. I believe it takes a serious look at the people who are helping those young men and a look at the people who have programs that work and take the guns and gang signs out of their hands and put a book or a pen to put their thoughts down and express the actual world they see.
"The thin line," is the fact we have people looking thoroughly into our neighborhoods on one side of the social chain, but we also have a serious gang problem on the other side of it. We are so close to changing a lot of things and going in a direction that will help our future, but we just have shadows on our heels that still hold us back. It is a unity thing that we have to focus on; bringing a more positive lifestyle to our communities is the most important thing to surviving the negative aspects of being black in America. We have a duty as a people to become front runners towards change, no matter what you think about other races, blacks are the fuel of change in the entire world. We embody acceptance and freedom, our culture affects this entire world just look at Hip Hop music. Still, we face racial profiling but we are still the only race that gets national attention for our protest, example this week I seen a protest over Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates being falsely accused and arrested on his own property. When a man of his status is screaming foul play, what do you think they will do to us who are still trying to create a status in this world? Unity is a must. But there is only a thin line between growth and falling, think about it….
