Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 29 December 2000 — Page 9

FRIDAY, DECEMBER «uvo

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An obligation to ourselves . Whatworoal

our interests the last eight years. _

LETTERS

x “Both physical and cultural genocide of Africans involve decisions by non-African elites to dominate and destroy the African community. White policymakers whether from the right or the left, liberal or conservatives Democrats or Republicans, view the very existence of Africans as a problem. Thus only Africans them-

Positively

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Whaff wa rAallv ,he °pp ortuni, y ^ Kaab th# aum at

our interests the last eight years. """ " ~~ ,B F courtesy extended to all ministers _ ■■ Yes, Cdtain Blacks got invited to tO«(b OUT youth »ho cme lo ofer wotds of home OH Now “A" guest list, so what? Have they Mends. We, then, became YOOf'S EVO • done anything to promote our to- victims of spiritual homicide Across America to viimallv all terests? ptejuto. seatsm and other carried otk by nor “hrodwa.- Acroas Americamvinnafjy^

I would ask have they promoted ^ f*! they must Let me say this; being difler-'

it national agenda—butwehave l * le ent is not a sin. Ood respects and ™, ns ; no ; n ^

, narionri.fend. Ss, what vou *ff«®»®e« the humtm commands us to resoect^Ustrs.

initiative to, as Dr. AsaG. HilUard Wemustwakeup. AmeriKKK. Se « SeTlifeas My j»l®oWy. ^ CJuisdmn. ««n SrirSi^^S stated wake up. prepare and m- has never a ntel^^ when by^atnmfamjrmendiers, people of different friths. sure that Africans remain present it came to Africans. The founders j t0 rt 0UrseIves particularly at funerals of family ™ woman ^ become t j ^ u b i! n f°^ a& I and fully able to maintain a qual- of this republic had no intention of stiffen ^ b | cks unite md QT ^ members and Mends, by Mis- prcacher/pkstor to serve Ood as I ity standard of hfe. AMcans, even the few who were n :„ ? sionary Baptists. she believes is her mission but . ^“^Pf 11 * P° licc mve^tigat-, ^Looking at our communities not slaves, partaking to M citi- When an ** going to love and W»".*«^«<* offldal.a* ae cannot chance her render. As "P"?* 1 .! 11 **, : today in the midst of a much senship. ' respectourselvesmtoughtodolong '° 1 . , " ve . for me. I’ve been to the Benches ^ ^ brilyhooed economic boom, can Theystealthfullyanddeceitfuny ran^iaaing, coordtattog, fund ^ W® Mushms and with our young people for a long we honestly say we haye a quality disgmsed then hypoensy in the rts g ^ tave! ^ women ^ors ate often omitted, nnw, white so iwiy^ my wdhma five-blodijraihu. of _ , standard of hfe and hvtng? Are woidingoftheuConsotononnever If penmdedtosperiL weare set contemporaries stey safe behind ^/todwflb!; nifto we healthy, prosperous, sane and menuomog the words slave or sla- are we going to formulate a hobstic off to toe side and not allowed their closed pulpits; their dosed TS dtii-n produenve. vety, while estabhshing a govern- ethnocentric agenda fiw ourselves | lear ^ pulpit This is regard- church doors; and dosed minds, neont-fLoWiwide w«e hifhv -•Do we have long range acnon ment aid econonnc system which uke many otto ethnic communi- ^ Ie f ' , “|i ,,sh ' P " ,lh ,h ' Only Ood can free us from EZcSSto * ^

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self-reliant, self-sufficient and es- Sociologically, economically Reconstruction when Blacks oar- PeopJ* into Christianity. I, for Creator of ALL has Christinas. “

...... 6 aa..vv,n.v.wa.v... 6 cwv. 1 v- 6 ,w,a uiuauv/ii<uiuuitwnipwiiaaivu thic nn u/ than iinv timp in niir hi®i- — J r ditierences rerhaos mat is whv andprograms to ensure our being ofAMcans. toiy in tMs^untty except duriig ^the.^eraltotry toscare in this hoUday s^on. the one self-reliant, self-sufficient and es- Sociologically, economicaUy Reconstruction when BlSks par- people into Chnshamty. Lfor Creator of ALL has Christinas, ^ W^fl sontial players in a global market- and politically, AmeriKKKa was tidpa ^ in &e one, have attended a number of Hanukkah and Ramadan occur- Z^P^ASfiS^Tin.n „ . built on a foundation of gender and influenced public policy in die ^ ne '^, S f rvlCeS ^ e< ! ring simultaneously, (followed n n New Year’s Fve!” ^ Un assm ssss ^ beepme less dependant upon oth- the pursuit of happiness.” There are people working on Black ^ who .^^“ community could accomphsh. ers for our food, clothing, shelter We must face the fact racism is expanding this concept. We must V1Ct, f to hotmc ^ ^ More importandy, imagine what

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are wedded to Eurocentnc rde- accord,ngly We must stop wish- cominunity f(KUSK j B i ack 0WIKXl »teen-ager, were all denied hflnliftr flrtr Himmi I udd

ologies and their own personri tagtoingswranothetwiseandstop

success M formulate plans and rilowing folks to misrepresent ^ local movements, programs to benefit the larger themselves and toe facts. We have the obligation and opcommumty. „ Co"®^ “r l>" b| r® OP" 10 !'. ll« poromity to control our destiny.

- Too many Black parents mist Democrats were not responsiuMte Let’s take fiiB adYanuantotosse.B—Wtomnpmto^^^m^^^waMMMHtoNmtoMIMIItoMMMW 1 ’ :, Ji rB^^^Mtewmamva.... , , ——, w i Srari vliisupslaiaaiUis vjij - t .aiHJiucoamtviid virMiiylll e.vtoti.Trovsv.yi^tebtoO w 1 .!Rl I w >x

what is your Now Year’s resolution for 2004?

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Your Voi<e

Dr. Ben Carson, a gifted Black

surgeon, beat the odds

t By MARIAN WRIGHT EDELMAN A recent television special on the Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore gave many of us an opportunity to see the dramatic life-saving work that goes on in that hospital every day. One of the heroes featured on the show was the gifted Black surgeon Dr. Ben Carson, director of the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery and professor of neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery, and pediatrics at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Carson is world-famous for his skill in performing complicated surgeries on children with bfriin and spinal cord injuries as well as other conditions. ‘ He first gained worldwide recognition in 1987 when he became the first surgeon ever to successfully separate Siamese twins jdined at the back of the head. Bbth twins survived following a procedure that took five months td plan and 22 hours to perform. ' Incredible as it now seems. Dr. Carson had a childhood just like many of the young people the Children’s Defense Fund celebrates for overcoming adversity and beating the odds. Dr. Carson grew up poor in inner-city Detroit and Boston. After his parents divorced when he was 8, he and his brother were raised by his mother, who was one of 24 children and got married at the age of 13. Dr. Carson was such a poor student in elementary school that his fifth-grade classmates nicknamed him “Dummy,” and he eien got into a fight over whether he was just the “dumbest kid in the class” or the “dumbest person ii4 the world.” At that point in his life he was totally unmotivated with failing grades, low self-es-tefem, and a terrible temper by all measures, a child in danger of

being left behind. Fortunately, Dr. Carson had two things working in his favor. One was his strong faith in God that continues to sustain him. The other was a mother who was involved in his life and believed in him — a mother who prayed for the wisdom to go beyond her own third-grade education in order to instill in her sons an enthusiasm for learning. Her prayers led her to a plan that worked: Mrs. Carson began sending the boys to the public library .every day instead of letting them watch television and making them each turn in two book reports to her every week. Dr. Carson recalls that at first he and his brother thought this was certified child abuse. But as he began to read, his entire world opened up. Dr. Carson started realizing that through books he could go anywhere and do anything. He became interested in learning and in aspiring to something more than the factory job and nice car that most of his classmates wanted. By the seventh grade he*was at the top of his class, and his love of reading and learning and commitment to excellence and doing his best were fully ingrained. As he says now, “When I was in the fifth grade I thought I was stupid, so I conducted myself like a stupid person and achieved like a stupid person. When I was is the seventh grade I thought I was smart; I conducted myself like a smart person and achieved like a smart person. What does that say about human potential?” It was not until years later that Dr. Carson realized his mother had not even been able to read the book reports that had turned his life around. Eventually he received a scholarship to Yale University and went on to medical school at the University of Michigan. By age 33 he had earned his current position as director of pediatric neurosurgery at

Johns Hopkins. Dr. Carson has received more than 20 honorary degrees, 60 national citations of merit, and numerous honors and awards. His commitment to helping young people goes far beyond the miracles he is able to perform in an operating room. He frequently speaks to groups of young people. He is president and co-founder of the Carson Scholars Fund which recognizes young people of all backgrounds for exceptional academic and humanitarian accomplishments. He has also written three best-selling books about his life: Gifted Hands, Think Big, and The Big Picture. All three stress faith in God, belief in yourself, and commitment to excellence — values he first learned from his mother. And what about his mother? Not only did Mrs. Sonya Carson turn around her sons’ lives, but she eventually taught herself to read, earned her G.E.D., and graduated from college. In 1994 she was awarded an honorary doctorate degree, making her Dr. Carson too. Dr. BeiftCarson was once exactly the kind of youth that too many of us are tempted to give up on and write off. Yet now, he is one of the most respected doctors in the world. How many potential Dr. Carsons are there in our neighborhoods and communities right now? And how many of us are doing as much as Mrs. Carson did to let our children know that we believe in them until they can learn to believe in themselves and to set them on the path of following Dr. Carson’s example?

•

Marian Wright Edelman is president of the Children’s Defense Fund and a working committee member of the Black Community Crusade for Children (BCCC), whose mission and motto is: “Leave No Child Behind. ”

Kathy Elmora Note: All participants are employees of Forest Manor Multi- Cultural Center. “My New Year’s resolution is to empower, enrich, and inspire the lives of as many young people as I can.” Karen A. Moore “My main resolution is to startpaying my bills on time. I want to lose weight too. By this time next year I want to go back to college. Another resolution of mine is to be even more involved in helping my son with his schoolwork. And lastly I resolve to improve my job skills. I’m doing good here, hut.I know I can-do better.” Morganna Marsh “I think my main resolution is to remain more connected to my

VatorlaPrlmoua Smith

Mends and family. I’m usually the one that receives the birthday cards but forget to send them out to other people. They’ve let me get away with that for the past few years because I’ve been working and going to school at the same time. But since I recently graduated I need to focus on maintaining those relationships.” Colleen Armstrong “I’m going to try to do better with my finances. I’ve been taking some budgeting classes from various places, so that’s a start. I’m also going to do better as far as my health is concerned. I’m going to start off on a good foot, but see me January 31 and we’ll see what has happened.” Kathy Efanore

for next year inistrJMH e. I suflOP

“I’m new on the job, so I guess my resolution for next is to be the best admii assistant that I can be. I the entire staff here and I continue to help them goals. We did have a good year in 2000, but we want next year to

be even better.”

Lesa Oliver

... roriUl rohWfMe

“My resolution for 200LlMh| remain focused at IUPUI afkt try graduate with my degree at die end of the year.” Valeria Primous-Smlth^ For information rixxtt Foresf * Manor Multi- Cultural Center call (317) 545-1204. j

If vou would like to reDOflf^ any nowu or share yoor**

commanta, call

(317) 290-4744.

■1LM