INVISIBLE IN “THE UNDER”

This is ridiculous. It’s 2011, but if you walk or drive the streets of urban America, you’ll see millions of Black Americans existing not much better than they did in 1911 when Jim Crow was in vogue, or 1811 when the “massa’s” voice was the only one that mattered. Shackled back then by racism and slavery; shackled now by illiteracy, poverty, segregation and a peculiar inability to form the bond of trust.





This is ridiculous. Explore the industrial cities of the greatest nation on earth and you’ll find hundreds of thousands of Black girls and boys, Black men and women living in conditions equal in squalor to Haiti or South Africa, or Cuba. Failing parents, failing schools, terrifically flawed political leaders; apathy and ignorance have spawned an attitude of hopelessness, while creating a cauldron of fear, anger, ruthlessness, and victimization in inner city America.

This is ridiculous. Waiting for someone or something to change it. Waiting for the next King, or the next plan, or the next scheme. Waiting for them to drop some money, or create an opportunity or provide a chance. Waiting for the heavens to part or hell to freeze over.

 

We can’t wait anymore its time to act, now. No one is coming to the rescue of our brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, nieces and nephews, trapped in “The Under” of urban America. We’re the only ones that can save their lives (and improve our own in the process) but like the rest of America we choose to ignore them too.

That is truly ridiculous.

M&M&M: THE HOLY TRINITY FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

The triple M’s: money, media and me-ism supply much of the power to “The Under’s” pull. The embrace of money; the chase for profit, and the race for personal advantage are now the predominant cultural values of many of our nation’s people.

Our media trumpets hosannas to the pursuit of happiness through the attainment (no matter how) of significant wealth.

A me first, self-serve, get it before the other guy, have the “life you deserve” mentality, feed on the media’s insipid output, and thrive on dreams of making it big; big as in rich, big as in famous, big as in powerful.

Meantime “The Under”, un-noticed by the majority of us as we respond to the manipulations of the “triple-M” - our holy trinity for the new millennium - grows unchecked. Those mired on “The Under”, sink deeper into the muck of the underworld as many of us hurtle and hustle to the next “make it or break it” opportunity.



 While we question their values, bemoan their actions and debate their cost, they watch us and wait in confused anticipation. To them their values are the same as ours: get the money, follow the media’s lead, and above all do unto others before they do unto you.

Power & Corruption: Same Coin, Different Side



To be corrupt is to be distorted, twisted, amoral, rotten, valueless, depraved. The fact that power over others will corrupt the powerful, and that absolute power will corrupt them for certain has been long verified and well documented.

In “The Under”, a silhouette of our world inhabited by people similar in appearance to us, but with a totally different mind-set, the reverse is true. Absolute corruption has become the route to power and the preferred method to alter or disrupt the lives of those not familiar with this shadow universe.

“The Under”, a seemingly powerless place, has an opposite rotation to our world. Under- educated, under-employed, under-literate, under-valued, undermined, and often under the influence, the residents of “The Under” have managed to propel their world using corruption as their power source; a source which proliferates like maggots in rotten meat.

Scams, scrappers, rip-offs, ID theft, violence, carjacks, drug deals, welfare fraud, robbery, home invasion or homicide, allow the denizens of ”The Under” to “get theirs” or “get over”. The “over” they get to is often over to our world; in most cases the ‘theirs” they get also comes from us.

This underworld, created and nurtured by the actions of those corrupted by absolute power in ours, has now become the power mongers biggest nightmare. Having themselves been misled by power’s seduction, they recognize fully the inevitability of its intoxicating pull.

What is causing their nightmares I think is this: now that “The Under” has significantly reversed the corruption formula, what can stop the occupants of that world from overwhelming the citizens of this?

From Roots to Boys to Men

I spent much of my weekend with Alex Haley and Brother Ramey. You probably know Haley, the author of the mind-searing book, ‘Roots’ who traced his lineage to Kunta Kinte. They made the book into a TV miniseries back in the 1970’s. I came upon it again recently, released as a DVD anthology.

Simply put, ‘Roots’ is a “tour de force”! It is powerful, insightful, riveting, emotional and provocative. If you haven’t seen it in awhile, check it out; it’s guaranteed to move you in all kinds of directions. After viewing the first disc, I wanted to watch it all, non-stop, but I couldn’t cause I had to spend considerable time on Saturday & Sunday with Brother Ramey and the ‘Boys on the Porch’.



"Brothers on the Porch"



You may have never heard of Ed Ramey. He’s not famous; no one ever made his   family tree into a blockbuster entertainment package. Brother Ramey’s work is  obscure but to me he is every bit the hero that Alex Haley is so when he calls I try to be there.  Alex Haley inspired, motivated and influenced generations with his work, tracing roots and opening minds about us, and our past. Brother Ramey’s personal roots may never make it to the movies but what he’s doing with the boys of Detroit should.



Ramey is a mentor who, along with several other Black men of Detroit, formed a group, “Brothers on the Porch” to reach and lift young boys on the verge of failure. He does it without grants or government funds; he does it somehow with miracles, tenacity and the help of people moved by the type of inspirational messages you’ll find in ‘Roots’. Brother Ramey like Alex Haley is about uplift, character development, discipline, self- pride and respect. Unlike Haley, he could use some help from all us brothers.

                 *Rites of Passage Program*

                                                                       

Not sure what to do this weekend? Here’s an idea: watch ‘Roots’ on Saturday then call Ed Ramey on Sunday (313-826-1543).

Tell him you want to help him turn boys into men.

Let him know you’re ready to be a “Brother on the Porch”."

ME & MY SHADOW





   

Been gone for quite awhile but now I’m back. Hard to believe almost eighteen months have passed since our last contact! Time they say flies when you’re having fun, and yes it’s true; a year and a half has flown by at Mach 9 speed, but fun… well that’s another story, unless you consider walking in “the under” fun.

It is about walking the talk you see, putting your actions, money, and time where your mouth is. Our community’s needs are many and varied; our diverse problems discussed non-stop. To meet the multiple needs and solve our complex problems will demand a whole lot of “walkers” and a lot less “talkers”.

So I’ve been gone from here, walking in the under, a place similar to ours but vastly different, like a shadow world rotating the opposite way.

A place of under-dreams, under-hopes and under-expectations. An underworld, if you will, where millions upon millions of people dwell, facing an under-future, and a lifetime of living hell.

So if you can my friends, stick around. I’m back with you here to stay for a time. I’ve got some tales to tell of what I found out walking it in “the under”. Tales that will both blow your mind, and open it. Tall tales but true tales that will have you searching for your own walking shoes when you learn what I found out about the under:

“the under” is a vortex with a strong, relentless downward pull. To reverse the powerful rotation of “the under’s” power, to make sure it doesn’t suck us in too, will take maximum “boots on the ground” in both our world and our shadow’s.

Desi Williamson - Motivational Speaker

Official Kirk Franklin I Smile Lyric Video

Momentum Will Shape Detroit

High school physics was not my strong suit but I do remember a few key theorems and natural laws. One that comes to mind often these days is that force equals mass times acceleration and that momentum, an impelling force, is generated as the mass grows and the speed increases.

In Detroit City there’s a change coming; a revision of the status quo by the status quo. This change is gathering strength as it builds speed and critical mass. Most of the time if momentum is not checked by depleting the mass or reducing the speed it will steamroll all who get in the way.

Usually when momentum is stopped or stalled it’s because it encountered a mass bigger and faster than its own force. The resistance created when momentum hits a brick wall will disperse the mass, slow the speed and diffuse the force of its power to shape the way things are.

The Up From the Under Movement can be the brick wall to destroy the gathering momentum, which threatens to keep Detroit citizens powerless, voiceless, and invisible. Right now we’re building the wall brick by brick. We need more mass though and quickly, to create a counter momentum to the politicians and social engineers whose decision and plans don’t include many of us and will result in continued decline for those trapped in “the under”.

Come join us as to provide the mass. We need your talent and expertise to generate speed. Help us build the momentum to chart our own course because if we don’t we’re going to get flattened by their momentum like a bug on the windshield of a fast moving semi. Stay tuned to this spot to get connected and become a force. 

Self Delusion In Detroit?

I need some input; have I lost my mind? Take a look at this flyer then tell me if I’m crazy for thinking that Detroiters can spark a brand new civil movement and drive it’s momentum throughout the world.

Let me know if you think I’m deluded for believing that Black folks have what it takes to lift ourselves, and each other, from “the under”.

If you don’t think I’ve “lost it”, meet me on Tuesday, 3-30 in the Old Fine Arts Room at the Detroit Public Library at 6PM.

Ps. even if you think I sound a bit like a squirrel’s favorite food, come anyway. The conversation just may open your mind.

From Detroit to D.C.: They Just Don't Get It

In Detroit Mayor Bing wants to radically alter the City by shrinking it, then employ the remaining residents as urban farmers.

In D.C. President Barack has signed the National Healthcare Bill, which will radically alter the Nation, first by shrinking the clout of the medical insurance industry, then reducing the influence of the Doc’s and the committees to dictate, delay or deny treatment.

It all sounds plausible but neither of these politicians gets it. A downsized Detroit or an upsized health system won’t fix what ails us nearly as much as having enough money in our pocket or purse to meet our personal goals.

But since neither Bing nor Barack has the power to manufacture enough jobs to go around, downsizing and revising will have to appease us for now except… they won’t. Bill Clinton got it almost two decades ago. It was the economy then and it’s still the economy. Entrepreneurs not politicians produce jobs. Risk takers with vision make their own opportunity and create economic momentum for others to ride.

Entrepreneurship is the vehicle to take us where we want to go. Vegetables from urban farms, or healthcare for all won’t mean a thing if we can’t afford to buy it.