Looking for a Way In

“If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu,” is a quote that is gaining considerable interest as more residents seek to become more engaged in helping their community to become better and stronger.  However, a number of residents find it difficult to help when they are not included in the decision making process.  Some residents see a system that is broken, policies off track and major decisions being made without any public input.  Still others feel left out of the entire picture until something bizarre occurs and then those in charge begin to ask for their help.  In the words of one resident...“Why ask for my help in a time of crisis, when my voice does not count when there is no crisis?”

Most concern residents want to be engaged when issues are being discussed that affect them and their community.  They resent when decisions are being made by people who do not live where they live, experience what they experienced, nor look like them.  For some it is the loss of trust, while some see race as a key factor.  Still others feel that a lot is being discussed behind closed doors, through side bars and at private lunches and dinners. All the while decisions are being made without any input from those who are going to be impacted.  

As we all know, too many of our communities are facing huge challenges and one solution does not fit them all.  Trying to find solutions that work on surreal problems is a job all by itself.  There is no single method or pathway to achieve success when dealing with an issue, but perhaps with more seats at the table anything is possible. And as the beat of challenging issues goes on for most neighborhoods, so does the number of opportunities to get involve open up. 
  

I know it is a tall order trying to keep all residents informed and engaged on a number of issues that are affecting their quality life.  And no matter how much information is shared on a consistence basic, social media, news feeds and email, it perhaps will never be good enough to please everyone.  This leads to only one conclusion, people must feel valued or important enough to be given an invitation to sit at the table when it matters the most, during good and bad times.  Just remember, that at some tables the seating is limited... so bring a chair. 

Looking for a Way UP

It seems as it will never end... all the senseless violence, crime, drug use and the indifference people are showing in the wake of more of the same old stuff each week.  It appears if we have lost our way or will in solving problems and getting things done for the good of society and future generations.  I know that a lot has changed within our great nation and more change is on its way, but the solutions we seek and so rightly deserve are in our hands; however we must have the courage to act upon our values and use some sound judgement. 

To all those who have never lost anyone to gun violence, drug use, mental illness, lived in an urban war zone, worked in a hostile environment, grew up in a dysfunctional family or served in the US military... then it is impossible to clearly understand what it means to be on the front lines or in the trenches of society when it matters the most.  As my late grandmother would say...“seeing is the believing, but experience is the knowing.”  In other words, if you have not seen or gone through something that has altered your life, then trying to judge other people who have to live with the reality of what is happening; then you are simply out of sight and out of mind. 


What people who live in urban America really need and that will make the greatest difference in their lives is not a hand out...but a hand up.  The helping hand they seek is the one that enables them to take control of their communities, begin to take the next step in opening a business, to clear the hurdle towards meaningful employment, build bridges to strengthen relationships with neighbors or to climb the ladder of corporate America.  It is to enable people to pull themselves up by seeing that they too can make it regardless of where they come from and the color of their skin.  It is to know that the situation that has them trapped caused by circumstances, a lack of opportunities and resources are obstacles that can be overcome.  So, can you lend me a hand?                 

Looking For A Way Out

The blight of the working poor continues to be under-reported by all media outlets.  But we all know that they exist even if we pretend not to notice.  The working poor are those who get up every morning and go to work regardless of their living conditions.  They have to go to work at jobs that in most cases do not pay anything close to a livable wage and perhaps just above minimum wage.  To make ends meet or get close to meeting, they work a second, third and sometimes a fourth part-time job, plus a side “hustle” to stay afloat or to just keep treading water.  Their daily “grind” includes long weeks, long hours, no time off, bad diets and a lack of sleep.  

What is so puzzling about their story and the reality of most people who continue to live in some of the most challenging neighborhoods in urban America is the fact that they believe that “better days are possible.” For many of them this is home and they have learned how to deal with the reality of a “rough” neighborhood and to escape is nearly impossible.  I know it hard to believe that people want to still live in these “little Beirut’s” and honestly believe that change is possible.  And yes! Some see these communities of boarded up houses, car jacking’s, gang violence, drug dealing, food deserts and slum lords as having an upside to them.    

Of course, there are a number of theories behind what is occurring in urban America. One such notion is that people are behind the madness of what is transpiring in urban America and are conspiring to undermine its possible resurgence.  Some also hold the idea that some people are seeking to benefit financially from an “urban America collapse,” by buying up all the boarded-up houses, empty buildings and vacant lots for economic redevelopment.  And yet there are others who see when “new housing” comes back to a particular neighborhood, the cost to live in the “new” is beyond their reach.  In some odd way people are feeling betrayed and want to blame city officials, business owners and community leaders for what is happening. 
       
However, improving the lives of the “working poor” should get our full attention in this 21^st century.  For improving their lives can also improve the conditions on the ground in the community and turning urban America around would be easier.  This is no laughing matter and from a difference point of view, the “working poor” is urban America’s best kept secret.  All that is needed is to help those that are on the bottom of the economic scale to become stronger by improving their earning potential.  Now that will be a story worth writing about and to witness.