A stronger community begins at home..

There are those of us who have become complacent.
Overweight - lazy - happy to turn a blind eye to what could so easily be us - thank god it's not us - and pretend that we can't see.
There are so many reasons why we could be judged and found wanting...
How long will many of us continue to act as though our communities have no value?
There's an old saying... " You teach people how to treat you"

If the message ( in some cases) that the African and Caribbean community send out is that (I'm alright..personally.. but my wider community is of no value.. to the point that I would like to distance myself as much as possible )..tell me - what do you think the impact may be?

We've got some young boys who appear not to value their own lives much less anyone elses - whys that?
Could one reason be because - in the eyes of the world.. in the eyes of their communities... their lives are of no real significance?

When messages of failure and underachievement are still the preferred discourse across many schools - when the media focus on the negative - when BME characters in soap operas or films are still of the thug - gangster or womaniser/cheater type) when the media and wider public often distort images of these youngsters ( to the point that they now view each other with serious suspicion and fear ( heck.. even I do sometimes).. to the point where attack is often though to be the best form of defence. When they are used by older dealers as 'nowt' more that local distributors...and protectors of 'turf'..
When men and women are often pitched against each other - encouraged to dislike each other..disrespect each other..fear - each other.

Tell me..what else can we expect.

Many of our community groups will face cuts which will limit their ability to provide much needed specialised services. We've already witnessed the demise in youth services ... (who cares?)
Legal aid will become much harder to obtain...(who cares?)
The police will continue to disproportionately stop search - arrest and jail black men... (Who cares?)

...and those who may be fortunate enough to not be directly affected will continue to eat cake and get fat

I have spoken about neo racism in another Blog so I wont go into that here - but this week - I've had 3 people come to me with stories that made my eyes squint. Not water - but squint.. ( I don't cry easily.. I just get really disgusted!!)
Stop..We must stop.
Let us retain our dignity and our love not just for ourselves - but for each other.
We already love everyone else and that's cool...
but let's shake off this backward mentality that some (many) still cling to..
please...pretty please.. for me??
This week - there was more sad news ( please check the link at the end of the blog for details on that )

Let this - 2011 - be the summer of change
As Bunny wailer says

Pass it on....
Strong communities are communities where equality and respect exist amongst all - regardless of difference. Where the ideology of equal value is able to thrive.. where we learn from each other.. care for each other...enjoy each other..
If not.. we become unwitting contributors and conspirators.
We become agents of pain - instead of agents of change
Which do you want to be?




Here's what Lee Jasper had to say on the matter