Put Away Your Poker Chips, It's Time To Play The Race Card!

Pick a card --- ANY card! 

Somehow, politicians who come from diverse and “minority” backgrounds made it to the top of the ladder.

In Canarsie, State Senator Roxanne Persaud became a community name years ago when she headed the 69th Precinct Community Council. She was also a member of the Canarsie Lions. At the same time, she worked at St. Francis College. With all of this under her belt – and more - she won the vacant Assembly seat in the 59^th A.D. and represented us in Albany. Following this victory, she recently made it to the Senate and now represents the 19^th Senatorial District. How did she do all of this??

How about Brownsville native Eric L. Adams? He was also a local politician - serving as a State Senator - before he became Brooklyn's Borough President. But he was a NYC Transit police officer and an NYPD officer before representing the Flatbush community as Senator.

How about other dignitaries? Assemblyman Nick Perry...Councilman Jumaane Williams... These politicians are considered “minorities” and weren't billionaires or wealthy business leaders before representing minority constituents.

They are – and were – considered minorities who became successful as a result of hard work and dedication to learning what their civic responsibilities would be in their profession. Many of our politicians attended local or state colleges within the city and they worked their way up to different positions. I haven't yet interviewed a minority leader who hailed from Harvard or Princeton – yet they pumped millions of dollars into our community to make it more vibrant and resilient as ever!!

Hey – how the hell did they manage to do that if they grew up in some of the most poverty-stricken parts of Brooklyn?

Many politicians served on community boards, worked for the city in some capacity, or owned a law practice before making it to their prestigious positions. Many did volunteer work, internships and partnerships – some joined organizations just to get involved in something positive - and their scholastic history may NOT have included attending a Catholic school or some highfalutin afterschool program.

How did they get to where they are today? Well, I can start by telling you that it was NOT by letting their ethnic background dictate the road down which they traveled!

In the past few months, the media's been spreading rumors through ridiculous reports that minorities don't have the same chance to succeed as individuals living in wealthier neighborhoods. It's the lack of programming...it's the lack of funding...it's SOMEBODY'S fault that black and Hispanic children can't grow up to become police officers, civic leaders and law makers!

Really?

It seems like many minorities want to play the blame game and the race card when it comes to explaining why they can't “make it” in life. No, our childrens futures shouldn't be tested by removing critical programming they need to graduate or to give them more creative options in life. But there's more to achieving personal success than having certain resources at a school that students may or may not even take advantage of!

Let's get real!
Just because a basketball program isn't available in all schools – for example – does that give a student an excuse to fail miserably in every subject so they can be held back and not advance in their education or career? There aren't as many arts programs in local schools because funding goes to “better performing schools in white neighborhoods.” So we don't have a million dollar state-of-the-art _______ (go ahead and fill in the blank)! That means our kids should fail every test and not work to the best of their ability?

I don't care what your ethnicity is – or how much a family earns – if a student works hard enough, earns outstanding grades throughout high school, without having the advantage of certain programs, why shouldn't they succeed?

If your child wants to be involved in politics or science, hard work and dedication will get them accepted to a quality high school or college that may open the door to a career in the field of their interest. But if they don't work for success, are they going to sit back and say, “Yeah, figures I didn't get accepted, because I'm a minority and I don't have money to get a good education!”

Why can't black children do well in school? If they're foreign, perhaps there are language barriers. Maybe they don't come from a household where both parents are present to keep them on the right track. Maybe they're being distracted from their path to success by friends, gangs, technology...

Let's think of all the reasons - or excuses - that minorities make for being left behind.

Aren't there millions of “minority” immigrants who come to this country not knowing much? Haven't many foreigners – who wind up becoming doctors, software engineers and working in various other high income careers – made it in our country based on their work ethic and ability to process information? Haven't they graduated from school with a real goal and NOT an excuse as to why they've been dealt a bad hand in life?

In my opinion, starting at the “bottom of the ladder” is a normal way to achieve your big goals in life. What goals are we setting for our children - to fail because a school in a “poor community” won't provide certain amenities? It can be said that it's not WHAT you are, but WHO you are – and if we stop children from digesting the fact that they're never going to amount to anything because of their race, or even gender, maybe they will find other ways to climb up those ladders.

With all of the minorities in the world who have become distinguished, successful and structured leaders, it's clear that they're not an exception to the rule  - that the poorest people are destined to perform the worst. 
 

So put down the “crappy” cards you were dealt – you can always go to another table, play a different game, use a different strategy to win and make your way to the top!

UNPUBLISHED/UNEDITED MARCH 28th 2016