Commentary: Raise a ruckus, make a difference

• Story Highlights
• Malaak Compton-Rock: Some critical of “Black in America” focus on problems
• She says community has serious challenges to overcome, particularly for children
• Compton-Rock: “Black in America 2″ will show solutions
• She says naysayers must join the fight to improve conditions

By Malaak Compton-Rock
Special to CNN

Editor’s note: Malaak Compton-Rock is founder and director of The Angelrock Project, “an online e-village promoting volunteerism, social responsibility, and sustainable change.” One of her initiatives, “Journey for Change: Empowering Youth Through Global Service,” will be seen as part of CNN’s “Black in America 2.” Her first book is being published by Broadway Books in May, 2010, titled, “If It Takes a Village, Build One: How I Found Meaning Through a Life of Service to Others and 100+ Ways You Can Too.”

(CNN) — In the words of my mentor and America’s foremost child advocate Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of The Children’s Defense Fund, it’s time to “raise a ruckus people, it is time to raise a ruckus!”

CNN’s “Black in America” raised many critical issues facing African-American people in this great country of ours. It was not pretty, it was not flattering, but it was very, very frank. The show delved into the negative issues that have plagued the African-American community for generations, i.e., crime, education, single parent families, drug abuse and the like.

People got mad. People sent many e-mails and letters to Soledad O’Brien and CNN and cried foul. People said “Black in America” was not consistent with the lives of many African-American people and was one-sided. Blogs and Web sites popped up all over the place where people “raised a ruckus” about the content of the show.

I read a lot of these comments. As a matter of fact, I was obsessed with people’s views for many weeks after the documentary aired. And the more I read, the more I got angry. The more I read, the more I wanted to “raise my own ruckus.” But I was frustrated and upset for a very different reason than most.

I was almost apoplectic with the amount of criticism for “Black in America” without critical, thought provoking commentary about how each person can do their part to make a difference to change the very startling and distressing issues facing most African-American children and adults in America.

On a typical day in the lives of black American children:

• Three children or teens are killed by firearms
• 24 babies die before their first birthday
• 102 children are arrested for violent crimes
• 119 children are arrested for drug crimes
• 292 babies are born to teen mothers
• 348 babies are born without health insurance
• 497 children are confirmed abused or neglected
• 794 babies are born into poverty
• 1,202 babies are born to unmarried mothers
• 1,385 children are arrested

And on a typical school day for black children in America:

• 417 high school students drop out
• 442 public school students are corporally punished
• 6,916 public school children are suspended

And consider that in America,

• One in three black children live in poverty
• More than eight of every 10 black fourth graders in our public schools cannot read at grade level
• A black boy born in 2001 has a one in three chance of going to prison in his lifetime

[Statistics are from the Children's Defense Fund's Child Research Data.]

This is serious stuff people. And it is the cold-hearted truth. So, it is okay to comment that the documentary did not represent your life. It is okay to comment that it was upsetting to see images of black men in jail, children dropping out of school, and unwed mothers.

It is okay because the truth hurts, especially when it is seen by 16 million people. In fact, most of the images shown in “Black in America” do not represent my personal life or the lives of my children. But because these issues face my brothers and sisters in my collective African-American family, they concern me, they hurt me, they belong to me, and I will own them.

We know that as African-Americans we have come a long way. We know that we are doctors, lawyers, CEOs, philanthropists, politicians, and even the president of the United States of America. And yes, it would do our children a lot of good if these images were portrayed more frequently in the media. But this does not change the very real issues facing African-American people portrayed in “Black in America.”

And frankly, with so many of our people struggling, we can’t just celebrate our achievements — we must make it a priority to work on the most critical and urgent matters in our community. As I always say, “The blessed and the best of us, must take care of the rest of us.”

So why did the criticism make me so mad? Because so much of it was unaccompanied by real ideas, thought-provoking suggestions, plans of action, or inspiring initiatives or solutions. How can you complain if you are unwilling to join the fight?

How can you get mad, if you are disinclined to make a difference in someone else’s life? And why would you take the time to write an accusatory e-mail to Soledad O’Brien instead of writing a letter to your representative in Congress demanding health care for all children and pregnant women, increased funding for schools, or new initiatives to increase black-owned businesses in black neighborhoods?

“Black in America 2″ will offer many solutions to the ills facing African-American people. I think it will make the naysayers happy. But it will only make me happy if the naysayers “raise a ruckus” by joining the fight to better the lives of all black folks.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Malaak Compton-Rock.

Wikio

E. do REGO,founder and chief administrator

Filed under: Education, Health Care Issues, Prisons

Investing in Education: The American Graduation Initiative

Posted by Katherine Brandon

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read the transcript

As part of his effort to build a stronger foundation that will allow us to lead in the global economy, the President announced today a historic initiative to strengthen our nation’s community colleges, and called for five million additional graduates by 2020.

Speaking at Macomb Community College in Michigan, the President stressed the importance of education to America’s prosperity:

But we also have to ensure that we’re educating and preparing our people for the new jobs of the 21st century. We’ve got to prepare our people with the skills they need to compete in this global economy. (Applause.) Time and again, when we placed our bet for the future on education, we have prospered as a result — by tapping the incredible innovative and generative potential of a skilled American workforce. That’s what happened when President Lincoln signed into law legislation creating the land grant colleges, which not only transformed higher education, but also our entire economy. That’s what took place when President Roosevelt signed the GI Bill which helped educate a generation, and ushered in an era of unprecedented prosperity. That was the foundation for the American middle class.

(President Barack Obama greets the crowd at Macomb Community College in Warren, Mich.,
Tuesday, July 14, 2009. Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Yesterday, we told you about the Council of Economic Advisers’ report about the future of the U.S. labor market. The report described a shift towards jobs that require greater analytical and interactive skills, and the benefits of higher education. It is expected that jobs requiring at least an associate degree will grow twice as fast as jobs requiring only a high school education. The President understands that education is fundamental to reviving our economy and strengthening our workforce, which is why he is committed to increasing graduation rates, and has asked every American to commit to at least one year of higher education:

But today I’m announcing the most significant down payment yet on reaching the goal of having the highest college graduation rate of any nation in the world. We’re going to achieve this in the next 10 years. (Applause.) And it’s called the American Graduation Initiative. It will reform and strengthen community colleges like this one from coast to coast so they get the resources that students and schools need — and the results workers and businesses demand. Through this plan, we seek to help an additional 5 million Americans earn degrees and certificates in the next decade — 5 million. (Applause.)

You may remember Dr. Biden recently spoke about the critical role of community colleges in our higher education system. Community colleges are rapidly growing, and are needed now more than ever to keep America competitive. The American Graduation Initiative will build on the strengths of community colleges and launch new initiatives and reforms that will increase their effectiveness and impact by figuring out what works and what doesn’t, modernize facilities, increase graduation rates, and expand and create new online learning opportunities.

• Read the White House fact sheet on the American Graduation Initiative.

The Initiative is estimated to cost $12 billion over the next decade, but the President has outlined a plan to pay for it by cutting waste, while increasing Pell Grant scholarships and reducing the deficit:

Not since the passage of the original GI Bill and the work of President Truman’s Commission on Higher Education — which helped to double the number of community colleges and increase by seven-fold enrollment in those colleges — have we taken such a historic step on behalf of community colleges in America. And let me be clear: We pay for this plan — this isn’t adding to the deficit; we’re paying for this plan — by ending the wasteful subsidies we currently provide to banks and private lenders for student loans. (Applause.) That will save tens of billions of dollars over the next 10 years. Instead of lining the pockets of special interests, it’s time this money went towards the interests of higher education in America. (Applause.) That’s what my administration is committed to doing.
Wikio

E. do REGO,founder and chief administrator

Filed under: Barack Obama, Education

Obama urges ‘new black mindset’

Mr Obama said the “pain of discrimination” was still felt in the US

US President Barack Obama has told America’s oldest civil rights organisation that African Americans should take charge of their own lives.

He told the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) there were “no excuses” for minority children not to succeed.

Mr Obama’s comments came in a speech at a dinner marking the 100th anniversary of the NAACP.

It is his first speech focussing on race since he became US president.

The BBC’s Jon Donnison in Washington says the tone of the speech was passionate, even preacher-like.

“Make no mistake: The pain of discrimination is still felt in America,” Mr Obama told the NAACP members gathered for the anniversary dinner in New York.

He said discrimination was still felt by minorities in the US, including African Americans, Latinos, Muslim Americans and gay people.

But he told the NAACP members they had to take responsibility for their lives and their communities.

No one has written your destiny for you – your destiny is in your hands Barack Obama

“Government programmes alone won’t get our children to the promised land – we need a new mindset, a new set of attitudes,” he said.

The president said African American communities had “internalised a set of limitations” and “come to expect so little from the world and from ourselves”.

But he said African American children should instead aspire to be scientists, engineers, Supreme Court judges and presidents.

“We have to say to our children: ‘Yes, if you’re African-American, the odds of growing up amid crime and gangs are higher. Yes, if you live in a poor neighbourhood, you will face challenges that someone in a wealthy suburb does not.’

“But that’s not a reason to get bad grades, that’s not a reason to cut class, that’s not a reason to give up on your education and drop out of school,” he said.

“No one has written your destiny for you – your destiny is in your hands. You cannot forget that, that’s what we have to teach our children.”

Mr Obama also said he wanted to see a return to strong parenting and adults taking responsibility for the discipline of all children in their community.

He drew on his own experiences of growing up with a single mother, praising her for giving him “the chance to make the most of life”.

Wikio

E. do REGO,founder and chief administrator

Filed under: Barack Obama, Education, NAACP