| It hit me today that another Black History Month (BHM) | | | | think, maybe its time to stop pushing the celebration of |
| is here and is quickly speeding away. That seems | | | | civil rights leaders. If you take a poll of today's youth, |
| quite easily said because BHM is the shortest month | | | | you will find that they know more about Mary J. Blige |
| of the year. That however is a discussion for another | | | | than Mary McLeod Bethune. How can one truly |
| time. It is this time of year that many of us choose to | | | | appreciate Dr. King's dream if you have no attainable |
| remember out Black heroes; and rightfully so, because | | | | dreams of your own to reference. Perhaps the heroes |
| for the rest of the year, many of us will do our | | | | we should celebrate should be a bit closer to home. |
| absolute best to both lift up the most negative aspects | | | | I think back to The Great Debaters. On the surface, |
| of our culture (i.e., pimps, ho's, thugs, and drug dealers) | | | | the film is about the outstanding achievement of a |
| and simultaneously tear down the work of those | | | | Depression era Wiley College Debate Team (though |
| setting a better example. | | | | the real Arch-nemesis was actually Stanford not |
| Case in point, I sat down in McDonald's a few days | | | | Harvard). However if one looks at the deeper |
| ago not far from a group of young urban youth. The | | | | achievements and messages, the story is a |
| conversation was so loud that it seriously hampered | | | | celebration of people doing their jobs to the best of |
| my enjoyment of my terrible meal (just killed one | | | | their ability. The coach whose job it was to instruct and |
| potential sponsor). The topic of the conversation | | | | the students whose job it was to learn, both did so |
| waxed and waned between a glorious exaltation of Lil' | | | | with pride that is rarely seen today.Pride is something |
| Wayne's dynamic lyricism (I have to fight back the | | | | modern youth rarely experience, however, it is pride |
| laughter just writing that) and the degradation of black | | | | that has shaped black people through years of |
| women. I was made physically ill by the conversation | | | | oppression. Lets bring back our children's pride by |
| (no it wasn't the food, how dare u think that about | | | | celebrating the things that they can see. |
| McDonalds. That double cheeseburger is the s$@t). | | | | This black history month lets commemorate the |
| I listened further and the topic shifted to the glorification | | | | grandmother that did all she could to give her family |
| of imprisoned local gangsters. I sincerely wanted to | | | | more than she'd had. This black history month lets |
| jump in and try to set this crowd straight. As I rose | | | | honor the father that works hard to pay his child |
| from my seat prepared for the barrage of verbal | | | | support on time and spends time raising his children |
| assaults my micro lecture would bring, they all walked | | | | even though he and their mother are no longer |
| past me as if triggered by internal alarm warning of an | | | | together. This black history month lets look to our |
| oncoming authority figure. | | | | communities for heroes so that we can show our |
| As they moved past, refusing to make eye contact, I | | | | children that they have something. Then maybe, just |
| sat back down. I was saddened at the fact these | | | | maybe, they will stop feeling and acting like they are |
| young men had no idols. They had no one of any | | | | nothing. |
| positive nature to guide them. I sat back and began to | | | | |