"Maybe if we wasn't black then we wouldn't have struggled.."

We hear the stories of the child who gets left behind in class or saw Penny being burned by an iron on Good Times but did you ever think that you would come face to face with a child who has experienced that? Not just one child, a school filled with children who were zoned off and grouped because of the place they call home. What happened to obtaining an equal education within your own community? Rather than having to worry about the acts of racism because of your skin color it now boils down to whether you live in an apartment or house. But who's to blame? Can we blame the officials we have elected to the Board of Education or teachers for not taking a stand on the treatment of these students? Maybe we should blame the parents for the conditions they force the children to grow up in NOPE I got it!!!! Let's all blame the kids, yeah you know they're stupid, don't pay attention in class and it appears to be no hope for the future.

On a recent visit to an area elementary school on the westside of town, the discovery of Absent Parent Syndrome, poor academic outreach and children who only want to be given a chance was thrown at my face. But what could I do and how is it that this blatant lack of community assistance, poor family values and disheartening reading levels allowed to take place for so long.  We have to take into account the historical placement of why this may be happening. Low budget/overcrowded housing, lack of government funding to ensure the academic success of children in public schools and yes the 80's era of Reaganomics (which can still be felt today). Dramatic rise in unemployment, inflation and homelessness signal the failure of Reagans economic program. Yet we can't blame that for the way children have continued to suffer in the public school system. Yes, African Americans have been dealt possibly the worst hand of humans to date, but yet still manage to rise above and defeat odds. So what happened? African American males are steady declining when it comes to literacy levels and graduation rates. WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT

Is it the lack of reinforcement in the homes that have caused children to read at two grade levels behind where they should be? Yes. Several children were asked "what do you do once you get home?" Their reply: "nothing, play video games or sit in the room." We have failed our future generations tremendously, the ball has been dropped and no one is picking it up. Instead we blame the school systems (which are half of the blame...explaining later) and label the child as having ADD or ADHD, rather than sitting with our children, taking time to read to them and figure out what they might be going through. As a child, mother read to me every night and made sure that when she didn't I had a book in my hand and could read it front to back. As a matter of fact when I was in trouble, my punishment was to read books until it was bedtime.  There is a huge generational gap community wise and mentally. Remember it takes a VILLAGE to raise a child. Not one. Not just mom, dad and siblings. But a VILLAGE. I'm talking church members, neighbors, aunts, uncles, friends of the family...etc.

Now onto the school system faults.
Number 1.) Why is it legally acceptable to label children because of their parents income? Meaning certain kids suffer while living in subsidized housing, and those who can afford decent houses attend the schools that are 10x better and more hands on with the students.
Number 2.) The CRCT test is a joke. The preparation for the CRCT is a joke. Now if I were preparing for a test, I would make sure to read everything carefully, understanding what I am reading and how to apply it when needed. How can that be the case, when the students are encouraged to read fast, so that way they get the test done quickly, regardless of how many mistakes they make and whether or not they comprehend. 5 out of the 8 students who read to me told me they could not take their time and read slowly because they would fail the test. How is that teaching children to succeed and where is the learning capability in all of that.

The longer we wait to help and save the youth the more time is wasted. Before we know it, it will be too late. Then who to blame? No one but ourselves. The truth hurts and the truth is we haven't been doing anything to secure the future of those who will come after us. The last few generations (myself included) have reaped the benefits of our ancestors what will we leave for future generations?

Feeling REAL poetic today!

I have been looking for some positive poetry dedicated to African American males. Not just poems written by African American men, but ones that paint pictures of AA males in a positive light. Not the same dead beat father, women being scorn by men blah blah blah. Yes that happens and all of those topics are truth but who tells the story of the STRONG, INDEPENDENT, WORKING male who sacrifices night and day to provide for his family, or the college graduate that started his own business...maybe even the man who educates his community through social programs and volunteering with youth so that they know the great culture they are apart of.
I did however come across In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall and one poem entitled My Father written by Briley Gabriel

My Father

I never knew my father.

My case is not unique.

My life is better for that fact

to hear my mother speak.

I never knew his anger,

or felt his heavy hand.

I never was subjected

to her image of the man.

But I do not feel lucky

for all that I was spared.

There is a void within me.

I feel his absence there.

I am not ungrateful.

I know her sacrifice.

She left him to ensure us both

a happier, healthier life.

But now my seed is planted,

my twenty second year.

His void is gaping larger.

My heart is filled with fear.

For I must be the father now,

the one I never had,

to teach the things I never learned

and be the perfect dad.

A life entrusted to me;

drawn from my very soul.

Depending on my wisdom

to shape and mold his own.

What memories will I draw from?

What blueprint or what plan

can I retrieve to raise

this son of mine into a man?

Perhaps I will remember

the things that I had missed:

the games of catch,

the great bear hugs,

or bedtimes gentle kiss.

Perhaps the father of my mind,

the one I dreamed about,

will be a better model

than the one I did without.

Well ain't that some...

For You My Sister

During my reading of Family Affair. I came across a poem that I would like to share...

THIS IS A SALUTE TO ME

TO YOU, MY MOTHER, MY SISTER, AUNTIE, COUSIN,

FRIEND

THIS IS A SALUTE TO THE BEAUTY THAT EXUDES FROM WITHIN

FROM THE SOULS OF GOLDEN WOMEN,

WOMEN OF FAITH

SINGING OUR STORY, SINGING OUR SONG

GIVING ME THE GRACE AND CONFIDENCE TO STAND

TO THINK OF MYSELF NO LESS THAN ANY MAN

SISTER, YOU CAUSE ME TO SHINE,

IN THE MIDST OF DARKNESS

YOU ARE....

A PEARL, A QUEEN

RARE ESSENCE, BEAUTIFUL LIKE ME

A GOLDEN GIRL, BLACK GOLD DIVA

GOLDEN SISTA, GOLDEN SHE...IS

BEAUTY, LOVE

SOUL, POWERFUL

PROUD

P O E T R Y...IN MOTION

STAND UP, AND GIVE PRAISE TO GOD FOR

THE STRENGTH OF THE GOLDEN WOMAN

THE ELEGANCE OF THE GOLDEN WOMAN

THE GRACE AND INTELLIGENCE OF THE

GOLDEN WOMAN

THE SINCERE FAITH OF THE GOLDEN WOMAN,

AND WOMEN, IF NO ONE EVER TAKES THE TIME

TO GIVE YOU YOUR PRAISE, DO NOT HESITATE TO

STOP

AND SALUTE YOURSELF ...

FOR YOU WERE FEARLESSLY AND WONDERFULLY

MADE!!!

                                                                                           - Stacy Evans Morgan