The Forgotten Four - forgotten no more...

In the year 2000, Wichita experienced two unspeakable horrors within a matter of days. Two quadruple homicides on opposite sides of town; both senseless, both equally tragic. But the first of these savage attacks, the murders of Jermaine Levy, Dessa Laquita Ford, Quincy Williams, and Raeshawndra Wheaton (all aged 17), passed quickly from the media spotlight. The latter case, which came to be known as the Wichita Massacre, garnered national media attention. The former seemed all but forgotten, victims of our desensitized acquiescence to violence...

Two of these children, Quincy Williams and Dessa Ford, spent 10 years in unmarked graves. The family struggled to try and raise the funds needed to purchase headstones but had repeatedly fallen short. A cousin of Quincy and Dessa, Ms. Candace Reed, worked tirelessly to ensure that these children were remembered, and that we as a community would wake up to recognize the horrors and atrocities taking place on our streets, and that we would be inspired to act.

On June 26th, immediately following the "Restoring our Community" March, we held a community meeting in Tabernacle Bible Church. At that meeting, we asked the members of the community, to reach into their pockets and provide the $3,000 needed to purchase and place these headstones. Several people offered cash right on the spot and many more offered pledges until we'd finally reached the desired amount.

And now, the pledges have all been received, the bills have been payed in full, and it is my honor and pleasure to report to you that as of this morning, the headstones have been placed on the graves... The Forgotten Four are forgotten no more...

Ms. Reed went on to host a play that she wrote and produced about the tragedy that befell these children at St. Mark United Methodist Church. The play was well attended and Ms. Reed inspired us all, not only with her tenacity in keeping their memory alive, but also in her willingness to come forward with her personal testimony about violence and loss, and her heartfelt call to the community to make a change. Additional monies were raised that evening and in keeping with the vision of Ms. Reed, those monies will be used to establish a community trust fund for the families of the victims of violence, to ensure that no more families have to endure the tragedy of loss compounded by an inability to pay for proper services.

God id good...

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Bishop Long as a metaphor: Why together we must break the silence on abuse...

I have struggled for a couple weeks with how I would approach this subject... You see, I have strongly felt a check in my spirit, a calling to speak out on a crisis within our community, but I just hadn't found the words. But now I have... This is not about Bishop Eddie Long - This is about us, and all the bishop long's we've tolerated in an indefensible silence.

Now with regard to Bishop Eddie Long, I don't know if he is guilty or innocent. Truthfully, I didn't know anything about him prior to these recent accusations so my point here is not to cast aspersions upon him. The justice system will ferret that out... But we've been too silent for too long about the sexual victimization of young girls and boys within our community. And I for one, will not remain silent any longer.

Rather than deal with Bishop Long the Reverend, I'd like to take a look at Bishop Long as a metaphor. Consider a man held in high esteem. Well regarded, and well known. A man holding a position of influence and one who used that influence to serve as a mentor to youth within our community... But even as he made his positive offerings to the community, he was victimizing the very children he purported to mentor.

This is not an isolated incident. This is not an uncommon anecdote. Too many children within our community are subject to acts of sexual molestation or abuse and we as a community need to speak out about it.

Through our work and my contact with youth, I am alarmed by the vast number of children who harbor terrible stories about the times their trust was betrayed and their innocence attacked. I have been equally pained to learn of the men, most of well repute, who selfishly scar the lives of our youth. These stories are scattered all around us; unchecked, unchallenged, they are our collective secret...

But no more.

Now I certainly realize, that this is a complicated psychological issue, and certainly not one that could be easily solved with a public awareness campaign. But I also know that the first real step to making a change is that Somebody has to stand up and say "Enough". We need to stand up for the safety and well-being of our children. No more young girls should have to endure this. No more young men either... Our Juvenile detention facilities and jails are filled with former victims of abuse: people who've struggled unsuccessfully to process and deal with their victimization. Our relationships are suffering, our family units are in free fall, and the monsters remain among us.

Now I don't know how this fits into the work of the NAACP. Our mandate is very clear and our mission is unambiguous. We are an organization that is dedicated to protecting people from the effects of bigotry, prejudice, and discrimination. I am as proud to be a part of that work today as I have ever been. But I also recognize a greater mandate. That we are ALL called to stand up and be protectors of our children and of those who can not protect themselves. And on this count, we are falling short.

I am a Civil Rights Warrior. But we can not be so concerned with defending our civil rights that we neglect to stand up for our children's Human Rights.

That is why a couple weeks ago I sat down with Pastors Reuben Eckels, Micheal Tyson, and Kevin Graham, along with NAACP Youth Director Kenya Cox, and TKAAM Executive Director Prisca Barnes, to have a conversation about how we could begin a community dialogue around the issue of ending the abuse. I don't know what form the campaign will eventually take - but I know its time to say "Enough".

If you have suggestions, ideas, or just want to be a part of the change - please drop me a line either by email or on Facebook, and let's end the silence...

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The Restoring our Community Movement to develop a collaborative multi-organizational outreach for at-risk youth

After the "Restoring our Community" March on June 26th, the participating organizations were asked to subscribe to an eight point agenda. Within them being that each group would contribute one new initiative to reaching our most at-risk youth, and that each organization would commit to reconvening after a couple months so we could begin working towards some long term collaborative efforts.

On Saturday, September 4th, the "Restoring our Community" Movement reconvened during the Wichita Black Arts Festival. The turnout was WONDERFUL as each of the 35 organizations who came together during the June 26th march were represented in the work session and we were also joined by a couple new ones as well. We took time to go around the room so that each organization who had rolled out a new program or initiative had an opportunity to describe the excellent work they're doing in the community and that we could each familiarize ourselves with and appreciate the efforts of the various Organizations. We learned about new efforts and initiatives from the Ladies of Delta Sigma Theta, the Gentlemen of Alpha Phi Alpha, the Peace and Social Justice Center, the African American Coalition, 316TRZ, Justice Keepers, the Wichita NAACP, and many others...

We then turned our discussions towards building a multi-organizational collaborative effort. We proposed the creation of a large scale, long-term, rites of passage type program specifically targeted towards at-risk youth in our community. The program would be designed to help move them, via several steps and phases, away from negative behaviors and a negative social outlook into a pro-social and pro-educational outlook.

The plan would not require the creation of any new initiatives, organizations, or programs... Rather, it would "synchronize" the great efforts of our existing organizations, linking them together in a sequence that the youth would "pass through", allowing them to receive the best of the programs our community already has to offer. And while some of our existing programs seem inaccessible to many of our At-Risk youth who may not currently understand their relevance, the programs would be sequenced so that the benefits and lessons of each would open the doors to understanding the necessity of the next one, and the next one, and so on...

The outreach and recruitment would be managed by the Organizations currently doing Gang Intervention work (such as "do you want to live or die", 316TRZ, Justice Keepers, Sisterhood of Queens, etc). The youth would then go through their curriculum. This stage corresponds to the "Separation" stage in a tradition Rites of Passage program.

Next would be a curricular segment on "History and Context" which would not only address history, but would specifically deal with the context of struggle and sacrifice, and would impart an understanding and appreciation of Civic Responsibility. This segment will be provided by the Social and Civic Organizations who are currently doing this work.

Followed by a Curricular segment dealing with reconnecting the threads of family and community. This "rebuilding the village" phase would be provided by the many Churches and Religious organizations who are a part of this effort.

That would be followed by a curricular segment designed to broaden the youth's perspective beyond the narrow confines of the neighborhood. This segment will deal with diversity and cross-cultural issues, and will be provided by various cultural and interest group Organizations.

The final segment will deal with educational issues; from basic educational needs, to skill development, to reintroducing the idea of College and higher education as being a passport to a different and brighter future. This segment would be provided by the many educational and Greek Letter organizations participating in this effort.

And the thread that will tie all of these pieces together, is that when youth enter into the Rites of Passage program, each child will be assigned a Mentor from the groups who are currently providing Mentoring services to youth. This Mentor among other positive services, will also keep the child accountable for participating through all stages and will provide the necessary reinforcement and reaffirmation as needed.

There are still numerous issues to be resolved and questions to be answered, but the important thing is, we elected to move forward; to create work groups, and to begin meeting on a monthly basis to put this project together and get it off the ground! The first meeting will be in October!

Don't ever let anyone say that we 'can't' come together or work together. We most certainly can and the "Restoring our Community" movement is proving it! ~ I'll keep you all posted as new developments occur...

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Ok, so we've marched... Now what?

On April 14th, our community was hit by a senseless act of violence. A drive-by shooting occurred near 18th and Volutsia, in the middle of the day, taking the life of yet another one of our young people. The crime was especially tragic because there were a number of small children who were outside playing at the time, who not only witnessed the crime, but were also potential victims. This wasn't the first such crime of the year, and certainly wouldn't be the last. And all indications were, that as a city, we were in for a long hot summer...

The Restoring our Community March was held on June 26th through the heart of the Wichita African American Community. The march united 34 Civic and Social organizations to focus increased attention and effort on addressing at-risk youth within our community. Fraternities, Sororities, Churches, Politicians, City Leaders, Social Groups, Community Activists, families of homicide victims, and concerned citizens all came together and marched, 4 miles, at 12 noon, in 98 degree weather, to call for an end top the violence. We marched right through our own community. And as we marched, we passed the bullhorn from Pastor to Pastor and we prayed, loudly and collectively for peace in our neighborhoods. We talked to the people we encountered along the route. We called out to the people still in their homes. And we challenged everyone, ourselves included, to do more...

Each of the organizations who participated in the march were asked to contribute a new initiative specifically designed to address the needs and issues surrounding our at-risk youth. We asked each organization to find new ways to reach out to youth beyond the pool of the best and brightest who many of our efforts often serve.

Yesterday, the front page of the Wichita Eagle featured a story on the drop in crime our city has recently experienced. And while the city-wide drop has been only 1.5%, the story says that the drop has been spurred by a more precipitous drop in the 'core of the city'. And while there are certainly any number of inter-related factors that contributed to this drop in crime and violence, I think it worthy of note that when we as a community come together we absolutely CAN make a difference!

Next Steps:
After the march, we also asked each of the organizations to commit to coming together again to talk about some specific ways that we can increase and strengthen our collaborative efforts. That meeting will take place on Saturday, September 4th, at 2:00pm in the McAdams Center (in McAdams Park). Immediately following the Black Arts Festival Parade, we  would like to have representatives from each of the participating organizations gather in the McAdams Rec Center for a brief meeting during which we will discuss each of the Organizations efforts to reach at-risk youth, and discuss some specific long-term projects that we could collaborate on that would really increase our collective efficacy.

So please, join us as we move into phase II of the 'Restoring our Community' Movement

The Restoring our Community Movement
Phase II: "Bridging the Gaps through strategic collaborations"

Saturday September 4th @ 2:00pm
(following the Black Arts Festival Parade)
McAdams Recreation Center

Participating Organizations
The Wichita Ministerial League, the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the Urban League of Kansas, the Peace and Social Justice Center, Sunflower Community Action, the African American Coalition, Real Men Inc, the Council of Elders, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Sigma Gamma Rho, and Zeta Phi Beta Sororities, Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Iota Phi Theta, Phi Beta Sigma, and Omega Psi Phi Fraternities, The Wichita Chapter of the National Organization for Women, the Wichita Black Nurses Association, the Center for Heath and Wellness, the Universalist Unitarian Church, the Kansas African American Museum, 316 the Rescue Zone, "Do you want to Live or Die" , Woman to Woman, the Justice Keepers, the Advocacy Coalition of Kansas, Bigelow Bethea, Rice Services, the Boys and Girls Club, Real Men Real Heroes, the Kappa Leadership League, the Optimist Club, and the City of Wichita.  - AND YOU!!


If you would like to be a part of this effort, just plan to be in attendance on September 4th!!!

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Point #8: Sacrifice

Many of you who attended the "Restoring our Community" March and rally correctly noted that there were actually 8 points we discussed and not 7 as mentioned in my previous post. I hadn't included the 8th point because I was struggling with how to summarize it. But I guess the best way to summarize the point would be Sacrifice.

You see, the work of restoring and transforming our community will not be easy. It will not be divided into easy and convenient projects. It will require our time. It will require our attention. We will have to sacrifice to make this happen.

We began yesterday with a tribute of sorts. Back in 2000, Wichita experienced two unspeakable horrors within a matter of days. Two quadruple homicides on opposite sides of town; both senseless, both equally tragic. But the first of these savage attacks, the murders of Jermaine Levy, Dessa Laquita Ford, Quincy Williams, and Raeshawndra Wheaton (all aged 17), passed quickly from the media spotlight. The latter case, which came to be known as the Wichita Massacre, garnered national media attention. The former seemed all but forgotten, victims of our desensitized acquiescence to violence...

Two of these children, Quincy Williams and Dessa Ford, have spent 10 years in unmarked graves.  The family has struggled to try and raise the funds needed to purchase headstones but had repeatedly fallen short. A cousin of Quincy and Dessa, Ms. Candace Reed, worked tirelessly to ensure that these children were remembered, and that we as a community would wake up to recognize the horrors and atrocities taking place on our streets, and that we would be inspired to act.

...and we are so inspired

Point number 8 involved us recognizing that restoration will require personal sacrifice from all who wish to see it. We asked everyone, still sweating and hot from the march, to reach into their pockets and pay for those headstones... not tomorrow ..not to make a contribution towards them ...but to pay for them, completely, right then and there.

Robert Bethea from the Bigelow Bethea Funeral Services was among the marchers, and he volunteered to purchase and provide the headstones at cost. And when we asked the audience to give, so many hands went up so quickly that it was difficult to acknowledge them all... We met our target, raising exactly what we had asked for, and shortly after I hit publish on this post, I will be driving over to Bigelow Bethea to pay for the placement of the headstones.

If we are willing to sacrifice, there is no problem or issue we can't resolve. I was so moved and proud to be a part of this community at that moment... and yet I know, that this is only the beginning,,,

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The "Restoring our Community" March - 6/26/10

The weather man said it was 98 degrees out there... But still we marched. Not a short walk, not downhill, and not even down shaded streets. We marched 4 miles, at 12 noon, in the blazing sun, for nearly 2 hours, right through the heart of our community. We marched to send a message; that we are ready to make a change. That we are ready to be the change we want to see... Young folks and seniors, walking together, praying together, singing together as we called for an end to the violence that has plagued our community for too long.

It was beautiful...

I would like to personally thank the Wichita Ministerial League, the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the Urban League of Kansas, the Peace and Social Justice Center, Sunflower Community Action, the African American Coalition, Real Men Inc, the Council of Elders, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Sigma Gamma Rho, and Zeta Phi Beta Sororities, Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Iota Phi Theta, Phi Beta Sigma, and Omega Psi Phi Fraternities, The Wichita Chapter of the National Organization for Women, the Wichita Black Nurses Association, the Center for Heath and Wellness, the Universalist Unitarian Church, the Kansas African American Museum, 316 the Rescue Zone, "Do you want to Live or Die" , Woman to Woman, the Justice Keepers, the Advocacy Coalition of Kansas, Bigelow Bethea, Rice Services, the Boys and Girls Club, Real Men Real Heroes, the Kappa Leadership League, the Optimist Club, and the City of Wichita.

I would also like to offer a special word of thanks to David and Lynne Gilkey, Pastor Reuben Eckels, Pastor Lincoln Montgomery, Pastor Cynthia Wolford, Carl Kirkendal, Cindi Donaldson, Prisca Barnes, Leah George, Frankie Brown, Reverend Peggy Elliott, Pastor Titus James, and the Reverend Michael Tyson for helping to carry the vision...

Thanks to Reverends Wade, Steele, and Sims, who offered up their Church buses and vans to make sure that those who were tired or who needed a rest could get on the bus for a while and continue on the path. Thank you to Fire Chief Blackwell for analyzing the route and having the fire department open several of the hydrants as we approached to provide a cooling mist as we marched by. Thank you to McDonalds and Youthville for providing water and ice. And thank you to Maaskelah Thomas for being my sounding board...

I'd like to also recognize those who sacrificed to be a part of this event. Folks such as Wanda Hunt who came just after a home-going celebration, Lanora Nolan who 'literally' walked until her feet bled, Superintendent Mark Gilkey who had an event going on at his own church but still found a moment to slip away and march with us, Mayor Carl Brewer whose schedule was full but found a way to make it over and join in the march and stayed through the program to speak to the community as well.

And last but certainly not least, my heartfelt thanks to my "team". Elaine Guillory, Kenya Cox, Kenyal Lattimore, Lavonta Williams, VJ Sessions, Sandra Rankins, Mary Dean, Charles Coleman... you guys helped take the "pictures" in my head and formulate the vision... I know I sometimes work y'all to death, but I love you all for letting me...

And another very special thanks to the Wichita NAACP Youth Council. You guys created the facebook and my space pages, sent out over 2,000 personal notices and invitations, stayed down at the office until 10pm making signs, carried the banners, and did everything we could ask, and things we didn't even know to ask... So to Amani, Kyron, Jesyka, Isaiah, AJ, Ronnell, Andrew, Carl Jr, Kendall, Jowonia, Aaron, Shelby, Mya, Jordon, Sharell, and all of the rest of you, thank you from the bottom of my heart...

And lastly a special word of thanks to Candice Reed who helped keep us focused on why this is so very important...

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That said, this was only the beginning. The march and meeting were the "kick-off" events for what will be a long but rewarding process of transformation. Be clear, we will make some mis-steps, there will be a few gaffes and disappointments along the way, but if we stay focused and stay committed, we can do something that will serve as an example for cities across this Country.

The next step will be a facilitated session in August (we're still finalizing the venue). At that meeting we will work to design some multi-faceted and multi-disciplined collaborative initiatives that will maximize the shared resources and talents of the Organizations that have come to the table... How much more could we accomplish if we all strategically worked together? - In August, we'll see if we can't answer that question...

...but in the interim, yesterday we talked about 7 points that we can implement right now to begin the process of community restoration and transformation.

1. BELIEVE IT - The first thing we must do to begin the process of transforming our community is we must BELIEVE that we can. There are a Million detractors out there who will offer us reasons why we can't. We even have a million voices inside our own heads that will tell us that we're too flawed, too broken, or to self-centered to ever truly come together.. But conquering the haters and our doubts is the first step in this effort. It is a pre-requisite for the other steps. Believe that we CAN rebuild our community and SPEAK it to all those who will listen.

2. PRACTICE FORGIVENESS - We must all take the difficult step of forgiving one another. Within our community we have held on to far too many old grievances, hurts and disappointments. We too often listen to one another, not to hear the message we're trying to convey, but rather to validate our distrusts and disdains. By holding on to our grudges we deprive our youth of the opportunity to experience the healthy and nurturing communities we knew as children. If we as a community are to become like a shining city upon a hill, it will not begin with bricks and mortar, it will not begin with a summer jobs initiative, or a great new grant funded program. It will begin with us... It will begin with us FORGIVING one another and deciding that we are willing to leave our hurts and anger and mistrust in the past; Stand with one another (flaws and all) and TRY AGAIN.

3.TAKE THE PLEDGE - We must each pledge to place the interests of our Community above those of our respective organizations. This one is difficult... Those of you who know me, know that I love the NAACP. And my love is not passive; I will travel any distance and go to any length for my organization because I believe in its mission its purpose and its history. But I know that I was a member of our community before I'd ever heard of the NAACP, and I will remain a member of our community long after my NAACP days have ended... So my first loyalty MUST be to the community that nurtured me and that will serve as the home and foundation for my children and grandchildren. But the reality is that Grant Funding combined with Generations of "Willie Lynch" like conditioning have served to make natural colleagues into fierce competitors; willing to publicly tear each other down at a net-loss for the community. So we must pledge: If another Organization offers a service or program of greater benefit than what I can offer, I pledge that I will not compete with them. Rather, I will offer my services and talents to try and help them. I will make referrals as necessary and will offer my unqualified support, because in all our efforts the COMMUNITY must come first.

4. COMMIT to rolling out at least one new initiative specifically targeted to the at-risk youth in our community. We have no shortage of youth groups in our community and most of them are OUTSTANDING. We have any number of Excellent programs with great leadership and wonderful curriculums. But, if we are honest, many of our programs are serving the best and brightest. We take the great and make them excellent. But those of our children who have made poor choices, who have gotten into some trouble, or who are heading down the wrong paths, don't benefit from our programming. Once they're "out there" we tend to leave them "out there" and we rationalize it by saying that they have to 'want' to change... But we must not forget that they are children, and as children, how will they know the right way unless they are shown? These children on the margins have the same potential for excellence and their own unique gifts and abilities... often times they just need our attention, our concern, and our guidance. So we ask that each participating organization roll out one new initiative designed to reach these children and help them shine as well.

5. FULLY COMMIT the resources of your organization to support at least one effort or initiative of a different organization. We can't just talk about collaborating and working together, we have to make it happen.. After the March we distributed resource guides with contact information and a snapshot of the work of all of the participating organizations. We will continue to build that resource guide as we bring more and more organizations into this effort and as we edit, we will make the guide available online. Find something that you can support and lets start amplifying each others efforts!

6. COMMUNICATE - We are asking that each participating organization send a copy of your organizational calendar to the Community Voice Newspaper so that they can publish a Community Calendar. This will be a resource to help us support each others efforts and it will also help us to avoid scheduling competing events on the same days.

7. COMMIT to staying at the table. Our next event will be held in late August (details will be posted online).

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