I have always enjoyed Dr King's quote "We must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope." It is so timely. Not simply because of the C word and the pandemic that has shaken the world. It is this triple epidemic of aliteracy, illiteracy and apathy during this time that threatens the capacity and potential of future generations. The complacency is leaving a trail of bitterness, grief and misfortunate. I have shed more than a few tears for myself and so many others, in particular young people. I am saddened by it all but never shaken in my faith in the power of literacy. It has been and remains a weapon against mass confusion and chaos. I know all about our current circumstances but without HOPE I, we, have nothing. This is not a sound bite, this is truth that has been crushed to the earth, by way of deceit, lies and miseducation. We must water it, nurture it, cultivate it.. if it be truth, it never dies , it instead resurrects. It rises. Just the other day a student asked me to assist her with an assignment that requested that students reflect and write about how is Dr King's legacy relevant today. She started by saying that she didnt think he or it was because we don't use nonviolence tactics today. I delved deeper and asked her what else she knew of him and found she was limited in her knowledge. How can we request that our young people know about a person like King and so many others if we only give them "I Have a Dream" and no "Letters from Birmingham"?We give them" Content and not color" but no "Poor People's Party". Ohhhh to be a legacy lifter is a privilege but along with it comes the responsibility, send me God! I will carry this torch for literacy/reading to the mountain tops and valleys for as long as I live. Believe THAT! It is a knowing in my bones, my blood, my head and my heart. I have read the narratives of those formerly enslaved from Federal Writers Project, I have searched the archives of the ordinary and the black intelligensia, I have dug out the geneaology records that revealed the "X" my ancestor marked on an Army enlistment document. I have read countless narratives of black folks who learned to form these characters
(letters) that formed words, that formed meanings , that informed decisions and destinies against the odds.They did it with nothing, no grades, no awards, no pats on the backs, no trophies, but the reward was a freed mind. Literacy was transformative and liberating. Bethune said the "Whole world opened to me when I learned to read" and Dr Anna J Cooper's tenacious pursuit of learning carried her to Paris at the age 67 to receive her PhD. She was the fourth black woman to have earned a Phd. This was 1925, less than a century ago and 306 years after the arrival of the "White Lion" to Jamestown carrying enslaved Africans. This weekend, tomorrow and in the days to come do more then reflect, introspect on the ways in which you can become more actively involved in the drum line for this social justice endeavor, start by leading with literacy.