![]() At some point in our lives we’ll reflect on and reminisce about the good old days. We'll talk about how we had simpler life. We’ll say “I’m glad I’m not a young person today, there are so many hurdles they have to navigate. We did not have to deal with gun violence, student debt, high unemployment, failing schools, and a myriad of other issues that our youth are facing today”. We’ll tend to forget that there were challenges when we grew up also. It’s human nature to look at the past and remember the good things; it’s a personal form of revisionist history. Although we’ll look at our past with nostalgic reverence most of us will acknowledge it for what it is. The past is the past. It is dead and buried. We should remember it, pay homage to it, and use it to build our future by continuing to move forward. Unfortunately there is a rising segment of the population in our country that literally wants to go back to the good old days. They want to go back to “traditional American values”. The simpler life for them was also a time of dominance and power. This movement is happening in plain sight and we are unwilling participants watching it happen. Many of the landmark judicial and legislative decisions that happened in the last 50 years are being challenged, manipulated, and in some cases overturned. Let's take a look at a few examples. ![]() I question the commitment of our politicians when it comes to the education of our young people. Educating young minds takes more than classroom instruction and standardized exams. It requires a commitment to nurture students and expose them to a myriad of educational and cultural opportunities. How can this happen if one of the first things on the chopping block during budget discussions is funding for after-school programs and the arts. I.S. 318 in Brooklyn, New York received national attention thanks to the award winning film Brooklyn Castle. Their chess team has won more national championships than any other in the country. They were the first middle school team to win the United States Chess Federation's national high school championship. According to an article in the New York Daily News, the team from I.S. 318 currently receives $20,000 from the New York City, money that could go away if the proposed budget, which calls for $130 million to be cut from childcare and after-school programs is passed by the city council. Is this how we invest in our children's future? In April 2012, after winning the National High School Chess Championship, the middle school students attended a ceremony inside City Hall. Mayor Bloomberg was quoted saying “I was really impressed with you guys,....You’re a lot smarter than I am.” I guess cutting the budget for after-school programs is how he shows his appreciation. I will be the first to admit the Civil Rights movement fascinates me. I find it striking that common, everyday people, with singleness of purpose, rose to the occasion to fight for what they believed in. These pioneers who we now call freedom fighters put their lives on the line to bring attention to social injustice. They were true trailblazers. Some of their lives ended too early, they were not able to see the fruits of their labor and conviction. Some of them continue to fight the good fight to this day.
The title of this article asks a rhetorical question. It has been over 50 years since the beginning of the movement. Although we face many new issues, some of them are just new faces on old problems. Social injustice, racism, poverty, and educational disparity to name a few still exist. Have things changed for the better because of the movement? Without a doubt I would say yes. Is there still much work to be done? I say most definitely. Are we prepared to fight with the conviction of those who blazed the trail to effect change? That is the question we must answer. In my opinion it is important that we understand where we came from to be better prepared for the work that needs to be done now. There are so many stories to share, more than I can put into a single article. I've share a few of them here. I encourage you to click on the links and read further. A friend of mine shared an article from Yahoo News entitled "Report says poor are moving to nation's suburbs". Published by the Associated Press in Los Angeles, the article submits that:
Maybe the "poor" are moving to the suburbs because they can't afford to live in the cities any more. Maybe those folks that moved out of urban areas to "get away" from the city realized that's it's too expensive and inconvenient to live in the suburbs. Maybe commuting costs, traffic, property taxes, and such are impacting the lifestyle they were expecting to have.
So if you raise real estate prices in urban areas and lower them in suburban areas under the guise of affordable housing you get "gentrification". Wikipedia defines gentrification as:
Beginning in 1940 with a ten-cent stamp honoring Booker T. Washington, the United States Post Office Department began issuing stamps to commemorate the contributions of African Americans. Based on their Historian's report dated February 2011, the Post Office has issued 138 commemorative stamps.
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EditorErnest R. Heyward is the Founder and President of the Marketplace for Social Awareness and Social Responsibility Inc. Categories
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