Having once lived in Atlanta I remember how it was black home owners were every where or renting homes instead of living in crampy apartments or projects like most Black American predominated cities. There was crime but none like other cities at least in Altanta there was a glimmer of Black hope compounded by some security stemming from that. I witnessed Black events with no hardly no crime, no gang violence or disturbance. Coming from the Midwest this was a complete change of pace for me. But during the last week canvassing for Kasim Reed campaign I witnessed abandoned home after home in Black Neighborhood. Fear amongst residents that were afraid to answer the door as we knocked outside. The city has change completely and you can see and smell the fear that we are losing the war of gentrification.
Today I'm sort of happy as I found out Kasim has won by a very slim majority. But what happened? In a city where you have a Black majority of 61% how is it there was a panic? I stood back at the campaign headquarters as these old Baby Boomers touted Dr. King and how it is so much easier for us whom can vote without the threat of death that loomed over them in their era. But all the while it never dawned upon them that the dnyamics of Atlanta and demograpics have changed and their focus is entirely wrong? The shifting of thousands of Black Housing Authority residents from Atlanta to developments outside the city limit and the moving in of Whites to re-gentrified areas has changed the voting numbers. These old crazy Baby Boomers are still trying to motivate by get out to vote slogans and touted their long ago accomplishments of the 60's and missing the whole point. That is we are losing the war of gentrification.
Another thing they touted was Atlanta was a place where Blacks could find education opportunities. This is true but is this where our main focus should be? Do these old people even read any points of views outside of their generational rhetoric? A white man with a convicted felony record has twice a chance of getting an education as a Black man with a college degree. And all over Altanta Black colleges pumping out degree blacks with no jobs in sight. The amount of people working on the campaign whom were students with no jobs except the little money paid for canvassing. Thousands of Blacks unemployed throughout the city and hundreds living homeless downtown Atlanta. It's very sad and disturbing sight to see such young faces lurking with no where to go downtown in one of the once most prosperous cities in Black America. We have lost and these old Baby Boomers need to sit down and let new focal points be our foward agenda like owning businesses as it's predicteed 40% of those working now will soon see this as the only option to survive.
As far as voting goes we are the only minority it seems that votes with a panic and desperation. Sure alot of people died for the right but we can't exist like a dog chasing a hot dog on a string only seeing black and white. How can any Black Major be successful or independent even coming from a community that weilds viturally little or no econmic power or demand? Mexicans and Chinese have major owned and operated grocery stores there's not one Black one in all of Atlanta or surrounding area. Can anything be more important than food?
I can't stress it anymore that this old generation needs to step aside. Go to any Black Bank and they will tell you that the bulk of their business is Black Business owners if they depended upon working college educated Blacks they would have to shut down. Go into any other minoritiy community and find where they don't have a huge voting population they still things done because their expanded businesses make them partially independent and more respected.
Kasim Reed is a highly educated brother whom speaks of opening recreation centers for out of control Black Youth. So when did our children's bad behaviour become the burden of other tax paying communities? Millions of dollars is about to be wasted just like in my hometown of St. Louis letting grown men play basketball. Recreation is what you do in your past time when you are not working. It doesn't generate business and these young men need jobs more than anything to take care of the kids they've fathered. A city already overrun with mismanagement doesn't need another huge non-money generating project to pay for. And what will eventually happen is similar to what happened in St. Louis millions of dollars of unaccounted and liability for Mister Reed and the next running Black Mayor.
My good fortunate is I've lived in so many cities where gentrication has been from Detriot, St. Louis, Atlanta, Oakland and others there's no doubt in my mind how to overcome it. We can place voting and education behind Entreneurialship and Unity or face the eventual demise of a secure future for our people. To generate business we must shed our communitie of the parasite businesses that don't contribute to our stability or provide jobs. This will open the way for our own members to provide these services no matter what the sacrifice we must pay to provide for us. Next we must deal with the security issues of anti-socialism, unfriendliness, violence and sociopathism that plaques our communities. Clean up the corners and send the criminals packing or off to hell. Without security there can be no unity and without that we can't control our destiny.
Thank you for reading.
Posted By: John Washington
Wednesday, December 2nd 2009 at 9:49PM
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