Photo by Richard Reilly |
Say what you will about our racially-divided, culturally-backwards, pro-police city there’s one distinction where St. Louis has become the absolute best: Protesting. No other region has been more resilient, more diverse in age and race, more spiritual, determined, persistent or more braver than ours. The level of creativity, organizing and deciding where, when and how to protest has captured the world’s attention and exposed the deep, deep layers of systematized racism in a major metropolitan area. History will record St. Louis as the 21st Century version of Selma Alabama in terms of civil unrest and push-back against non-violent demonstrations against unwarranted police aggression.
But then what? Where will this audacious movement
take us?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not criticizing the
protesters. They’re doing what they’re supposed to do: Protest. People, mostly
young people, have put their safety, their jobs and their lives on the line to confront
and expose injustices. Young, progressive politicians, religious leaders and
business-owners have stepped to do their part as well. They’ve made it
abundantly clear that this city will not be cowered by police acts of oppression
or intimidation. Yet, it can’t be denied that the rest of us have not done our
part.
But then what? Where will this audacious movement take us?
In one of my
recent commentaries, I quoted Mayor Lyda Krewson who defined St.
Louis’ current climate as one impacted by “institutionalized racism.” I agree
with that definition but we must honestly unpack our collective culpability in enabling
and abiding the “systems” that have deemed black lives expendable and
worthless.
Brace yourself. I’m not going to detail our region’s
long history of economic, housing, criminal justice or educational disparities
along racial lines. That’s well documented. I’m going to discuss how we, black folk have
failed our young people; how we, black folk, need to develop plans to combat
institutionalized racism in our region; how we, black folk, need to create our
own, alternative systems to finally, finally uplift and protect our young people.
I'm writing about how we can ensure that they can transform the historic societal nightmare into
the ballyhooed “American Dream.”
At some point in time, black people, and those who
love us, must confront the fact that this system was not
created for our benefit. It is a greedy, class-based, racially-tilted structure
designed for the advantage of mostly wealthy, mostly white men. The civil
rights movement was mainly about racial equality but there's still much to do in addressing racial
equity. Many of us settled. We allowed ourselves to believe that integration and
access to politics, being allowed to move into white neighborhoods, work for white-owned
companies and, eventually, elect a black president would solve our collective
ills. We were wrong.
Back in the late 1960s, when laws outlawed overt segregation,
many of us abandoned traditional black neighborhoods for better opportunities
elsewhere. Some celebrated upward mobility while turning blind eyes to those
left behind. We willingly turned our young people over to the employment, educational,
social welfare and criminal justice “systems.”
At some point in time, black people, and those who love us, must confront the fact that this system was not created for our benefit.
Let’s be honest, poverty, which nurtures and breeds crime,
is disproportionate in black neighborhoods. America, which doesn’t have the capacity
or compassion to tackle generational, race-based poverty has opted for the detrimental
preschool-to-prison pipeline as its solution. Because of this moral deficit, our children
are adrift. Many are caught up in the dangerous game of survival by any means necessary. All must fight the battles of their parents,
grandparents, great grandparents and the stinging legacy of slavery and racial oppression.
So, again, what’s the plan after the protests?
Krewson, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and many other media
outlets point to “solutions” outlined in the Department of Justice’s report and the report
compiled by the “Forward Through Ferguson” Commission after the 2014
police shooting of Mike Brown. There’s nothing wrong with these assessments. Both
stress systematic injustices, both address police reform and one highlights
job opportunities inherent in the corporate world. What they don’t do, perhaps can’t do, is detail
how black people can “do-for-self,” sustain themselves and their neighborhoods
and create environments where they control wealth, politics and police
interaction with the targeted populace.
Herein is where liberal
ideologies collude with far right-wing fears. You see, oodles and oodles of
whites (both conservative and liberal) believe blacks should be treated fairly; that unarmed blacks are killed
disproportionately by police and that blacks have received a bum deal in this society.
However, some balk at the idea of truly “empowering” black people by giving
them the same resources historically gifted to whites. Most won’t admit it, but many-and
public opinion polls back this up-believe that if blacks “get something” it
will be at the expense of whites. They believe that investing in real “black power” is the antithesis of Dr. King’s "dream"
where all races reach the proverbial “mountaintop” together.
However, some balk at the idea of truly “empowering” black people by giving them the same resources historically gifted to whites.
It is in this radical,
revolutionary arena where black leaders and those who truly empathize with the
plight of black people must step up. It
is here where the lessons of Marcus Garvey, Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X must
be mainstreamed and adapted into a modern-day game plan for social,
educational and economic progress. What they preached back in the day-land-ownership, economic independence and growing our own food-is just as pertinent today.
Let us take a candid
look at black communities here and around the country. For centuries, every
ethnicity (accept black people)-Jews, Germans, Koreans and Middle-Easterners-have
capitalized off the wealth of black neighborhoods. To be clear, I’m not
criticizing people who were smart enough to decipher how, why and when black people
spend their money. In fact, I am in awe of the numerous gas stations and
convenience stores operated by Muslims in the ‘hood. They have studied us. Walk
into any of these operations and you’ll find they sell the “bling,” the fast,
fatty foods, the cell phone services and other commodities unique to the black
consumer base. This maxim also applies to the myriad of fast food restaurants,
pay-day lending and check-cashing operations owned and operated by non-blacks
in black neighborhoods.
I am in awe of the numerous gas stations and convenience stores operated by Muslims in the ‘hood.
In my 30-plus years of
researching, writing and talking publicly about black people and our many, many
societal woes, I’ve concluded that the only way to end the trajectory of “victimhood,”
is to do-for-self and build “systems” that we control. This is why
I, along with the North Area Community Development Corporation (NACDC), created the
Sweet Potato Project. Since
2012, we’ve provided at-risk youth (16-21) jobs where they learn how to grow
produce on vacant and community lots. We teach them marketing, branding, sales,
product development and how “supply & demand” dynamics work inside and
outside their neighborhoods.
Our vision is that
of a large collective of North St. Louis land-owners growing, packaging and
distributing fresh food and food products together. This, I maintain, is a practical,
common-sense approach to addressing unemployment, food deserts and nutritional
needs and community redevelopment.
How? Well, imagine young, urban youth trained to be a part of
the burgeoning locally-grown food movement? Envision them owning vacant
properties, growing food and making money off their yields. What may happen if their
parents, siblings, and peers plant and grow together? Well, they will be empowered
and accountable for the safety and stability of their neighborhoods. Furthermore,
imagine the all-around impact of restaurants, bakeries, grocers, schools,
hospitals, public institutions and individual consumers all buying food and
food products from this collective. We will then have a food-based economic
engine in North St. Louis designed to fuel sustainable entrepreneurism, jobs,
and small business growth.
Please don’t misunderstand or assume that I’m offering an all-out
panacea for the ills that impact poor black people. I’m not naïve. However, I
do believe it’s a viable plan. It’s one way to introduce do-for-self economics
and entrepreneurism into black communities. The goal is for other entities to
build off the template. I recently read about a housing initiative in Detroit
where Cass Community Social
Services are building 250-to-400-square-feet “tiny homes.” At building costs
ranging from $40,000-to-$50,000 each, low income people rent-to-own homes
in seven years or less.
This may be a sensitive subject for some. But I’ve
been sharing this message since 2015 when I spoke at the Conference for Catholic
Bishops in Washington D.C. There an audience member asked “what can whites do” to better
the conditions of African Americans? My suggestion was/is: “Bet on and invest
in Black. Look for ways to socially and economically empower black people where
they live.”
Let’s give the
Black Lives Matters group and other bodacious young protesters another place to
practice their resiliency, creativity and resolve. Imagine
a housing program like this added to a land-ownership, food-growing initiative
in St. Louis. Those 21-year-olds or older, who own land, grow food and make
money will have the additional opportunity to build off their accumulated
wealth in their own neighborhoods. With
city resources and institutional support, they can use their combined
collateral to open restaurants, coffee shops, grocery stores, nightclubs and
alternative educational institutions. Their collective economic influence can
be used to finance the campaigns of progressive, political candidates, develop
private security operations and demand police give them the same attention and
respect afforded more tonier areas.
Let’s give the Black Lives Matters group and other bodacious young protesters another place to practice their resiliency, creativity and resolve.
This has been the clarion call of the Sweet Potato
Project for six years. Fortunately, we’re not alone. We’re working with other
like-minded nonprofits who are similarly intent on using food to empower poor
people. What’s missing is vision, powerful alliances and partnerships and,
frankly, the involvement of black people who believe in the potential of ourselves
and our young people.
In a recent
commentary, I chastised the Post-Dispatch
for insisting protesters have “a plan.” In a city tethered to the teat of uber-rich
developers and void of urban solutions, I challenged the newspaper to examine
its role in codifying the status quo.
Today, in all sincerity, I challenge black leaders,
black people and those loyal to our cause to step up. For once, let us commit to forging a progressive, all-encompassing path forward after the tumultuous protests.
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Sylvester Brown Jr. is a writer, community activist and executive director of the Sweet Potato Project, a program that seeks to empower low-income youth and adults through land-ownership and urban agriculture.
Comments
" I’ve concluded that the only way to end the trajectory of “victimhood,” is to do-for-self and build “systems” that we control."
I wholeheartedly agree. That requires access to capital. There are organizations where "Angel investors" supply capital to start-up ventures. So, the next step is to create an "Angel" network for St. Louis' black community. Any takers?