Best Time Ever To Be Black In America

Best Time Ever To Be Black In America
by Rodolpho Carrasco
Saturday, June 5, 1999 in San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group
(Rodolpho Carrasco is associate director of Harambee Christian Family Center in Pasadena, Calif. and a columnist for the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group. Check out more articles by Rodolpho Carrasco here.)

A 13-page spread in this week's issue of NEWSWEEK highlights the growing success of African Americans. According to most available indicators - including income, employment rates, academic achievement, even future hopes - the lot of Blacks in America is better than ever.

NEWSWEEK'S timely reflection on the state of Black America is packed with details worthy of discussion and debate. Four items seem particularly noteworthy.

ONE: It's the best time ever to be Black in America.

My friend Derek has been saying this for years. The best of times for Black America is the entire thrust of the NEWSWEEK article, and a point that is driven home with impressive statistics.

Black incomes are up. The median income for a family of four has risen from $30,000 in 1980 to about $35,000 in 1997. Black education is rising. 87% of Blacks had a high school diploma or equivalent in 1997, as opposed to 60% in 1973. Unemployment has dropped, from 15% in 1985 to 9% in 1997. In regarding to the future, 71% believe their family income will rise, 64% believe the quality education in local schools will improve, and 57% see more job opportunities for their family.

TWO: The Black church has a leading role in these improvements.

When asked by the NEWSWEEK survey to identify factors for improved conditions among African-Americans, the number one factor cited, by 46% of Blacks, was Black churches. I pray this is good news for Black pastors and church leaders everywhere. Lord knows they deserve some props.

I think of Rev. Tyrone Cushman of Pasadena Church of God, one of the hardest working men I know. He does not just serve his congregation in the middle of a low-income community. Cushman sticks his neck out by preaching, throughout the San Gabriel Valley, the need for racial reconciliation. The reconciliation message, no matter the amount of lip service people give it, is a hard one for most people to accept. But Cushman perseveres because he believes reconciliation is at the center of the faith he preaches.

THREE: There remains a place for Black protest.

The sub-line of the NEWSWEEK story reads that, despite Blacks' rising fortunes, many Blacks are not celebrating.

One need look only so far as the Abner Louima case in New York City to understand why. Louima, a Black man, alleged that in 1997 white police officers abused and sodomized him while in police custody. The case, now in trial, made spectacular headlines last week when officers broke ranks with principal defendant Justin Volpe and declared that Louimaís allegations were entirely true. Volpe promptly changed his not guilty plea to guilty and gave a full confession to his crime.

Prior to Volpe's confession, many expressed frustration with a so-called "Black protest machine," in which "professional agitators" like the Rev. Al Sharpton used the Louima case to play race and power politics. The flaw in this analysis of Black protest is Volpe's confession. Sharpton and Company were right to agitate.

The Louima case sheds new light on another Black-led protest closer to home. In Riverside, protests are ongoing on behalf of Tyisha Miller, a 19-year-old Black woman who was shot and killed by Riverside officers as she sat in a parked car. Officers say that Miller brandished a firearm. Witnesses and protestors dispute the officersí version of the Miller shooting.

Given the outcome of the Louima trial, where an officer who claimed innocence throughout the ordeal was lying all along, few can fault protestors for aggressively seeking justice.

FOUR: Black teen cigarette and alcohol use is drastically lower than that of White teens.

This statistic blew me away. NEWSWEEK reports that in a 30-day period during 1998, 42% of White teens smoked cigarettes and 39% got drunk, but the corresponding figures for Black teens were 15% and 14%, respectively.

Too often, Black teens are seen in a negative light, so this information about low usage levels comes as a great encouragement. Now, Iím not naive. I know some Black teens are up to something negative or unhealthy, as are some teens of all races. Statistically, however, what Black teens are not up to is smoking cigarettes and getting drunk, and that's laudable.

As mentioned above, the NEWSWEEK article contains many more discussion items. The article has its flaws, however. One of them is the suggestion that the popularity of Black entertainers and athletes among White people is an important sign of the improved lot of Blacks. The fact is that from slavery to Jim Crow to today, there has always been a place for African Americans as entertainers or athletes. Less visible and less celebrated are the educators, politicians, businesspeople, and fire and safety providers.

Since it's much harder for America to celebrate a great teaching lesson than a fancy pass or a nice tune, let's celebrate one now.

Robert Farrar, a teacher at private Polytechnic School in Pasadena, excels not just in his classroom. Last month, Farrar received his Ph.D. in Education from Pepperdine University. Hard work, perseverance, and a spirit of graciousness propelled this product of the Pasadena public school system to his achievement. He's a role model. In NEWSWEEK's constellation of Michael Jordan and Lauryn Hill, I would put him right alongside those two millionaire entertainers.

Actually, I would put Farrar a little higher.

The copyright for these materials are owned by Rudy Carrasco.  These materials were used with permission by TechMission