Something Has To Give

It seems that we have gone back in a time machine when things were just as confusing in the 1960’s as they are today.  In the words of some it has gotten “crazy out here,” but this time it is with a new and younger generation feeling the pain.  The old Jim Crow policies and practices of the last century and a half have reemerge and been remixed to create new red lines in social justice, class and by race.  And this new upcoming generation seems to be fed up with how things are going and willing to take it to the street and across social media.      

The laundry list of what is happening out here is reflective of the ongoing struggle for equal rights, equal pay, equal justice, equal treatment, equal education, equal health care and equal opportunity.  The short list includes a number of things that are “out of sight and out of mind,” including black on black crime, gangs, domestic violence, policing policies gone awry, shootings, abuse, white and blue collar crimes, political side stepping, exploding prison population, widespread drug use, and high rates of poverty, endless world conflicts, affordable health care, poor housing, and high unemployment.    

What is happening today is creating a new generation of community, family, and youth advocates that are entering the workforce with a new sense of urgency and passion to see things beyond today and to work toward common goals with meaningful outcomes.  For them this is a different world from what they have envisioned for themselves, their generation, neighbors and the world.  However, what this generation is waking up to is the reality that what they are seeing and experiencing is something that is deeply rooted in the makeup of America and its big business. 

In the eyes of this upcoming generation, this is an outcry.  Not only is this generation inheriting a lot of national debt, but also a lot of social baggage that includes outdated political physiology and strategies.  Believe me this is not a figment of your imagination, these are real issues, affecting real people, with real costs and “right now.” Let’s put it this way... It is going to take all that we have to turn things around, all hands on deck to do the right things and to find ways to level the playing field so that all of us can enjoy the best of what the America Dream was, is and can be.  It is my hope that this new generation also takes it to the polls and vote when the time comes.  What do you think?           

Remember The Fallen

For the past two generations and counting we have been known as a nation at war.  And it seems things will not change during this decade.  Some conflicts have been large scale mobilizations that have included active services, Ready Reserves and state National Guard troops.  While on the other hand there have been many more smaller operations that include guarding foreign Embassies, NATO peace keeping missions, humanity causes and special ops.  But nevertheless, we continue to send men and women into harm’s way to be the defenders of freedom and to protect a host of national interests around the world.     

According to a recent article in The American Legion magazine (May 2015), entitled “America At War,” by Alan W. Dowd, in which he provides a chronological view of U.S. military interventions and the prices paid since the Revolutionary War (1775-1783).  In his research of various sources including the Congressional Research Service (CRS), Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Department of Defense, Veterans Museum and Memorial Center, Smithsonian Institution and various media outlets, he noted that there have been 330 U.S. military interventions or “notable deployments of US Military forces overseas” since 1798.  From that list he takes a look at 26 conflicts in terms of vital statistics of the nation’s most consequential and/or costly military engagements.    

What is so striking from his research is that he looks at the costs of these conflicts in terms of the number of U.S. Military deaths, wounded, total serving during that conflict and what were the financial costs as it relates to the GDP (Gross National Product).  The raw data is unbelievable and eye opening and to somehow realize that war will continue to be a part of our daily lives for many more years to come.  There are no easy answers of how to prevent the next war or conflict, but every day we are reminded that we live in a world full of people who lives are touch and affected by the results of war.   

Of course this is not the whole picture about the “cost of war” and the ongoing impact upon families who lost fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, uncles and aunts while they served in the military.  Let’s not forget those who became Prisoners Of War (POW) and those wounded and return physically and mentally disabled and who now need ongoing and long term medical care.  Let’s not forget about all those families whose quality of life have been altered, shattered and shorten due to military service.  And what about all those returning veterans who are unable to find and keep a job, living homeless, no place to go, unemployed, and who have limited access to quality health care. You cannot place a price tag and add those numbers up.  So, I say be thankful and kind to those who serve, “for freedom is not free.”   What do you think?           

When Training Disappears

Many people saw this coming a few decades ago and now it is really upon us, the pipeline for workers in the skilled trades and manufacturing is broken.  This is not just me saying this, but most community, business and key manufacturing leaders will admit that this as a major stumbling block to helping cities being able to revive their economies.  Without a few exceptions, these pipelines of workers are "blue collar” jobs that pay well and are a part of the middle class.  

There are a number of reasons as to why we have reached this tipping point and crucial juncture in America.  First of all, it comes as more “baby boomers” (1946-1964) are aging out and retiring.  Secondly, many technical/community colleges have scaled back career specific programs in urban centers and secondary schools districts have eliminated nearly all forms of career technical education.  Thirdly, a high percentage of skilled jobs of the past no longer exist or have moved to the suburbs or were outsourced overseas.  Lastly, to make matters worse, the changing and emergence economy requires a new level of skilled workforce... that is ready to go. 

These reasons as well as a number of social factors have created a “huge hole” in the training infrastructure in developing a highly skilled and quality future workforce.  Additionally, there are few training centers that focus specifically on equipping workers with the skills necessary for new processes in modern technology.  With such a massive hole in the training cycle and because many skills take an extended timeframe to learn, the gap is getting wider and wider with each passing day.  In addition, the gap is looming much larger and deeper do in part to the return of more manufacturing jobs from off-shore sites.  Finally, and when you factor in that more than two generations of young Americans had no exposure to any career technical education at all,... well this is where we are and this is what we look like.      

To add another twist to this reality is the fact that the technical education and training needed to obtain a livable wage employment is not readily available, easily accessible or affordable to those living in urban America.  With all this and more, it is easy to see that part of what is keeping families living in urban cities from moving forward.  Not only has work disappeared from urban America, but training needed to meet the demands of a new economy has disappeared as well.  With such disconnections, disruptions and disparity, it is going to be an uphill battle to get things going in the right direction again.   It is not impossible, but the odds are long and the hole is deep.  What do you think?           

When Work Disappears

To most of us “baby boomers” (1946-1964), this is nothing new; community uprisings, civic unrest, looting, riots, burnings, marching, shootings, injustice, militarization of law enforcement,  poor housing, lack of quality health care and unsafe neighborhoods.  But to a new generation in the 21^st century, this is a wakeup call as they try to push forward a new agenda and a new future for America.  As some in the millennial generation (1980-2000) are finding out, it’s going take some tough calls, rough roads and will require a new mindset to effectively deal with what is happening. 
  
At the heart of what is so wrong in America these days is the fact that finding a livable wage job for African American men in particular and most people of color in general is hard.   During the old days during the mid-1900 through the 1980s’, there were countless jobs available in manufacturing, construction and support industries located in urban cities.  In fact you could just finish high school and literally walk across the street and begin working in a blue-collar job the next day.  Today, that is not the case due to outsourcing, business closures, consultation and relocation of core industries to the suburbs and overseas.   Over the past few decades these business transitions and more has left thousands of people living in urban America out of meaningful work and with no other means in which to survive.  In addition, even if you had the skills to work in the new factories built in the suburbs, getting to work also was a challenge. 
      
William Julius Wilson, a noted sociologist and faculty member at the University of Chicago, wrote a book entitled, “When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor” in 1997.  In his research and writings he highlights the devastating effects that the disappearance of work has on individual, family and neighborhood life in the urban ghettos.  The loss of these blue-collar jobs from urban America affected how things unfolded and soon became one of the leading underlining root causes to urban problems.  As he sees it, this unique isolation, concentrated unemployment was further hindered due to a lack of local available training and education.  In addition, he examines the attitudes of employers toward residents from the inner city, regardless of their skills and talent and its effects on hiring policies.  He also dismantles the conservative argument that the people of the ghettos lack drive and aspiration, but on the contrary found out that those living in the ghettos or urban centers had the same desire for success and a stable life as anyone else.   
     
More remarkably, this upcoming new generation of leaders is finding out that in order to turn things around in urban America, there must be livable wage employment.  This employment must be both available and accessible.  While much of the jobs from a generation ago have disappears from urban America, the majority of the people and their descendants are still there.   It is my hope that these new leaders no only see the need for meaningful employment in urban American, but also do something about it.    What do you think?