Where do we look for help?

A few weeks ago while scrolling through my Twitter feed I noticed the following editorial on NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune: Life shouldn't be so dangerous for children in New Orleans.  These articles are heartbreaking, but they are all too common and often no longer cause the average citizen to sit up and take notice.  In fact, I suspect a large percentage of those reading the article will not even pause to give it a second thought as they view this as a normal outcome given the geographic location and the ethnicity of those involved.

This article piqued my interest because the authors primarily addressed the role and responsibility of Louisiana—the government—in remedying the issue of youth homicide.  While I certainly believe there are steps federal, state, and local government can take to address this issue, government intervention is rarely the answer to the problems plaguing our communities and this situation is no different.

There is a cultural dysfunction present in many of our urban areas and it results in the death and incarceration of a disproportionate number of young black males.  I do not believe the government is capable of adequately addressing this problem nor do I believe government offers the best solution(s) to the elimination of this problem.  I believe the solutions to this problem reside in the communities themselves, but before I get too far ahead of myself, let me provide you with some examples of cultural dysfunction in our inner-cities.

This year was the 38^th annual Crim race.  Shortly after passing mile three I passed a male teenager standing on the corner wearing a t-shirt with the slogan “Flint Above Everything” emblazoned across the chest.  On the surface this may appear to be relatively harmless, but I think it is a manifestation of the twisted thinking that pervades our inner-cities.  I immediately began to wonder what that particular slogan meant to the young man wearing the t-shirt: Flint above family?  Flint above God?  Flint above future success?  In short, was this guy seriously “ride or die” for a city he most likely did not choose to live in, but rather lived within its geographic boundaries due to his or his family’s limited financial means?  I also have tremendous concern about the folks printing, selling, and wearing this t-shirt.  People choose to purchase and wear these t-shirts for a reason; that is, what people choose to wear is indicative of how they think.  Young people are attempting to project an image when they wear such clothing and this image is part of the dysfunction we must address.  Finally, shame on those profiting from this dysfunction that results in the deaths of our youth.

What does this shirt say about the person wearing it?

My wife and I were walking down Saginaw Street in downtown Flint a while back and we passed a younger, perhaps 18-24, African-American male walking a Golden Retriever puppy on the sidewalk.  We immediately looked at one another and didn’t have to say a word.  Here is what we were thinking—“That is unusual.”  You see, the stereotypical dog breed for that demographic in Flint, MI is a Pit Bull with a chain around its neck straining against its leash with the owner trailing behind barely able to keep the dog under control.  Why is this so?  I believe it is another manifestation of the cultural dysfunction present in urban areas.  It is toughness by transference: my dog is tough and intimidating; therefore I am tough and intimidating.  Manliness or toughness is not dependent upon the dog at the end of a leash, but that is far too often the belief.  I am the proud owner both a Pit Bull and a Miniature Golden Doodle (go ahead, start the jokes)—neither serve to make me any more or less tough. 

Two of my babies

We must address this twisted view of toughness and manliness.  Toughness is doing what you should do even when you don’t feel like doing it, day-in and day-out.  It is going to a job you greatly dislike because you know your family is counting on your check to pay the rent, keep the lights on, and put food on the table.  Being a man is taking responsibility for your actions, owning your mistakes, and working to make it better.  Government cannot help us inculcate this type of thinking into our communities. 

Asking our government to develop solutions to the problems facing our nation’s inner-cities is simply not the answer.  First, I would suggest our government has consistently displayed very little interest in the well-being of our urban areas.  In addition, the steps they have taken to address past problems have largely proven to be ineffectual and in many cases exacerbated existing challenges or created new challenges.  In all seriousness, how is the government supposed to affect a paradigm shift that eliminates violence as a viable solution to solving problems in our cities?  Would you suggest that some public service announcements by President Obama might do the trick?  Perhaps we could start a "Just say no" campaign for violence similar to what we did with the use of narcotics—this is obviously said with tongue planted firmly in cheek.  Second, the solution to the problem is best developed by those most familiar with the problem or those experiencing the problem first-hand.  Third, in order to adequately address the problem, there must be support from the community plagued by the problem.  Thus, I believe it would work best if the solution was not handed down from lawmakers drastically distanced from these communities, but rather formulated within the area afflicted.  Our urban areas are facing serious issues, and while I do not know where the solutions will originate, I do know they will not come from Washington D.C. or our state capitols.