Black in America 2: Lessons Learned
As I sit here writing this blog entry, I am watching Black in America 2 hosted by CNN Reporter Soledad O’Brien. I watched the first CNN special last year and although I thought it was good, it primarily focused on the problems that plague our communities. However, the current special is focusing on solving problems.
The program begins with Malaak Compton-Rock and 30 kids from Brooklyn, New York traveling to Johannesburg, South Africa, through her program “Journey for Change,” with the goal for the kids to see the daily struggles of others. The point being is that when you see folks worse off than you, it can make a serious impact on you personally. They met young people dealing with HIV and AIDS, hunger, and the desire just to attend school. The impact was immediately felt by the kids. At the end of their two week trip one student said quite frankly, “I can’t complain with what I got.” However, when Soledad interviewed Malaak and she broke down crying saying that she only “can give the kids wings, but she can’t make them fly.” As an educator in the chemical sciences, this is something that I often struggle with. I have to remind myself that I am only there to give them the tools to succeed—I can’t do it for them.
However, I truly enjoyed the passion of one educator profiled tonight—Principal Steve Perry of Capital Prep School located in Hartford, Connecticut. The school was established by Perry four years ago, and 100% of all of their graduates go on to college. That is success. Perry’s own background fueled his passion to help others. If all of us could contribute to improving our communities in some way, things would certainly be much better. Perry did it by establishing his own school and Compton-Rock gave 30 kids an experience of a lifetime. Now, ask yourself what can you do?
The program begins with Malaak Compton-Rock and 30 kids from Brooklyn, New York traveling to Johannesburg, South Africa, through her program “Journey for Change,” with the goal for the kids to see the daily struggles of others. The point being is that when you see folks worse off than you, it can make a serious impact on you personally. They met young people dealing with HIV and AIDS, hunger, and the desire just to attend school. The impact was immediately felt by the kids. At the end of their two week trip one student said quite frankly, “I can’t complain with what I got.” However, when Soledad interviewed Malaak and she broke down crying saying that she only “can give the kids wings, but she can’t make them fly.” As an educator in the chemical sciences, this is something that I often struggle with. I have to remind myself that I am only there to give them the tools to succeed—I can’t do it for them.
However, I truly enjoyed the passion of one educator profiled tonight—Principal Steve Perry of Capital Prep School located in Hartford, Connecticut. The school was established by Perry four years ago, and 100% of all of their graduates go on to college. That is success. Perry’s own background fueled his passion to help others. If all of us could contribute to improving our communities in some way, things would certainly be much better. Perry did it by establishing his own school and Compton-Rock gave 30 kids an experience of a lifetime. Now, ask yourself what can you do?
I was moved to tears last night. The whole time I was watching, I had the feeling that I am not using my life to its full potential. I'm involved in various outreach activites, but I've not really allowed myself to be truly invloved with the kids. After watching last night, I realized that I really need to do more.
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