Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 29, 1992 TAG: 9203290111
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: AMANDA BARRETT STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Oscar Williams, director of research and leadership at Virginia Tech's Center for Volunteer Development, painted a dreary picture of the future of black men.
"We are not in the quantity and quality that we used to be. You are so far ahead of us that you can see us in trouble."
His attentive listeners were crowded into a small hotel conference room to hear Williams speak about "Genocide of the African-American Male."
Williams was a speaker at the eastern regional conference of Zeta Phi Beta. Hosted by the local chapter of the sorority, Omega Zeta, the conference had about 300 participants.
The black Greek organization was organized in 1920 and has more than 500 collegiate and graduate chapters in the United States and Africa.
Nationally, the organization is involved with projects to fight illiteracy and substance abuse and incentive programs to encourage women to seek prenatal care. Zeta Phi Beta also sponsors career education, employment services and training in running for political office for its members.
Locally, the Omega Zeta chapter has adopted the Northwest Child Care Center. Chapter members donate books and time to the center.
Even though the country has gotten away from overt racism, blacks still face discrimination, Williams told the conference during almost two hours of give-and-take Saturday morning.
"We are now in a situation where 50 percent of all black men are unemployed. If a man has no job, he has no prospects. Something happens to his dignity, his self-worth," said Williams.
"And since they can't get lawful employment, they are most vulnerable to unlawful employment.
"What we need to teach these young people is that there ain't no shortcuts to success. The fast life will catch up with them and they will end up in either jail or the cemetery."
Diane Phillips, a defense attorney from Washington, challenged Williams, saying the threat of jail doesn't scare most drug dealers.
Williams offered few concrete solutions to that or other mutually agreed challenges from the audiences.
He also offered little hope for badly needed jobs.
"We used to be able to go to Detroit or New York and get a job. But the plants like General Motors and Ford that lured us to the greener pastures up North are moving to Mexico where they only have to pay $1 a day for labor," Williams said.
One reason for diminishing job opportunities is that too many blacks don't cherish education, he said.
"There is a 30 percent dropout rate of black youth in junior high school. So if you are looking for your daughter to marry an educated African-American, you probably have to go somewhere else because they are not readily available here."
Possible solutions?
Franklin County school teacher Bertha Roberts suggested all-black schools.
"We need to prepare black students so they won't lose their identity." Too many times, she said, black students who attend mostly or all white schools can't relate to other black students.
While Williams thought that all-black schools might pose a public policy problem, he agreed that black adults need to be personally involved with black students through programs such as 100 Men and Boys. In the 100 Men and Boys program, black men go into the schools, monitor hallways and serve as mentors and role models.
Promoting self-esteem is the key to success with young black males, said Washington public school teacher Tommiesene Beaven.
What worries Williams most is the unrealistic expectations many black youth have about life and work. He said that many think that all they need to do is put time into school and then they will get a good job.
Parents need to insist that their children get a real education, not just time in school, Williams said. Parents need to insist on high school diplomas and college degrees.
Black people also need to work at the church level. "Churches need to attack these problems with mentoring programs," he said.
by CNB