Ferguson and Beyond

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture1 Comment
FERGUSON, MO - AUGUST 14: Demetrus Washington joins other demonstrators protesting the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown on August 14. | Image Courtesy www.ksdk.com
FERGUSON, MO – AUGUST 14: Demetrus Washington joins other demonstrators protesting the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown on August 14. | Image Courtesy http://www.ksdk.com

The major stumbling blocks to a final resolution of the race issue in this country are the men and women sworn to uphold the laws of the land. Over the years, the police departments have never been able to come to grips with the obvious fact that Black Americans should be treated in the same manner as all other groups in the country. During the terrible years of slavery and the equally disgusting years of apartheid up to just a couple weeks ago in Ferguson, Missouri and Staten Island, New York, as well as Los Angeles, California, Oakland, California and San Antonio, Texas, individual officers have behaved like bullies with guns. In all these cases, their targeted groups are young Black men. They have always been the recipients of law enforcement’s need to practice violence on someone.

During the heat of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., rhetorically asked, “How Long,” and answered “Not Long.” He was preaching to the white establishment, admonishing them that Black America’s patience was running thin, and serious changes had to be made. Today, the younger generation is delivering the same rhetorical message with a different slant. They are also asking “How Long,” but their answer is “No Longer.” Too much time has passed without a final end in sight and they are not patient like the generations before them.

They are very much aware that the Emancipation Proclamation was supposed to bring freedom and equality and it didn’t. They are very much aware that when their ancestors fought in World War I, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam War, that would bring an end to the lynching and police brutality against their people and that did not happen. They are very much aware that the Civil Rights Movement was supposed to help open the doors to economic equality and that did not happen for everyone. They know the jobs are not coming to their communities but the police still are. They know that six years of the Obama Administration has not altered their permanent and historical position of poverty in the richest country in the world. They know that an eighteen year old young man is not supposed to get shot six times, twice in the head and left lying in the middle of the street for over four hours.

Because they know all these things, they chose to confront life instead of enjoy it. They cannot value a college degree until the entire country values their worth and their right to exist just as it does for other races. The young people are correct in that these racial issues have festered like “a raisin in the sun” far too long. This country must be made to understand that the conditions in our central cities cannot continue on their present course. It is long past due for all of us to reflect on James Baldwin’s prophecy back in 1963,

“God gave Noah the rainbow sign,
No more water, the fire next time.”

Quote taken from James Baldwin’s Fire Next Time,

Carver Library: Hub of African American Literary and Cultural Activity in San Antonio, Texas

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture, San Antonio, TX, Uncategorized3 Comments

carver branch libraryIf one were asked to identify the main cultural hubs for African American literary activity, San Antonio, Texas would probably not be in the mix. Cities with much larger Black populations would lead the list. I am sure New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angeles, to name just a few would be mentioned. I acknowledge that these cities deserve such consideration.

However, let me add to this list the Carver Public Library, located in the center of the African American community in San Antonio. Named after the famous educator and scientist George Washington Carver, the library first opened its doors in 1930. It served the African American community during those terrible years when Blacks were refused entry into the Central Public library and all the other ancillary branches. There is probably no greater blemish on this country’s democracy than the fact that a race of people was barred from entering all of its libraries, the symbols of knowledge.

Today, the Carver Library is the center of cultural activities, presenting literary and cultural programs practically every weekend. Under the leadership of Branch Manager D. L. Grant, Carver is gaining the reputation as the most important institution in the city for dispensing information about our history. It also serves as a place where contemporary issues are discussed. Its activities have earned the Carver the title of a grandchild to the famous 135th Street Library in Harlem, during the great Renaissance period of the 1920’s. Under the leadership of Regina Andrews and Nella Larsen, that library hosted some of the most intense and informative literary events of the period. Such notables as Gwendolyn Bennett, Ethel Ray Nance, Jessie Fausett and Countee Cullen participated in poetry readings at the library. Langston Hughes and Claude McKay were provided writing areas in the basement. And the first exhibit of African American art in Harlem was held there.

The Carver mirrors the 135th Street Library with similar activities. For the past five years, the Carver has held a distinguished Martin Luther King Lecture Series, of which I had the pleasure to be their lecturer in 2012. In February of this year the library hosted an afternoon with an outstanding group of authors that included Mary Morrison, Rhonda Lawson, kYmberly Keeton, Dr. Mateen Diop and Chris Pittard, during Black History Literary Weekend. One of the more unique programs that Black Men United for Reading and Writing (a select group of Black men who sponsor literary events in the city) organized at the library is a series of Slave Narrative Readings, supported with spirituals sang by the men’s choir from St. Paul United Methodist Church.

This past weekend is typical of the programs the Carver Library supports on an on-going basis. Early Saturday afternoon Prosperity Publications hosted a discussion workshop titled, “The Deconstruction of the Black Woman in Literature, Film and Music.” Four of the most brilliant Black women in San Antonio shared their knowledge of the subject and the audience was allowed to respond. The session was recorded and will be loaded on You Tube within the next month. After that program Dr. Ronald Kelley, a motivational speaker and advisor to public schools on how to mentor young Black men, moderated a discussion around the Ferguson, Missouri tragedy. The library was packed with concerned citizens anxious to express their frustrations about the brutal murder of Michael Brown.

This community has come to depend on the Carver Library as the place to congregate and discuss relevant issues to the community. Just like the 135th Street Library in Harlem served as a gathering place for the many intellectuals, writers and community organizers, the Carver Public Library serves that function in 2014 for the same group of activists in San Antonio, Texas.