Jackson Free Press

The equation seems simple. In order for society to create productive adults, it must first nurture them as children. Young people are the foundation of our future. Some will be our next teachers, doctors, lawyers, bus drivers, skilled laborers, star athletes and music moguls. Still some will run afoul of the law, becoming yet another crime statistic.

The math goes something like this.  The more of those "problem" kids we catch and save, the less likely they are to turn down the wrong path.  The fewer kids we have traveling down that path, the fewer adults who may lead a life of crime.

Our kids are my No. 1 concern. As a hip-hop artist, I encounter them daily. Some good. Some troubled. But in either case, they are kids who need positive reinforcement. That's the primary reason I supported Mayor Frank Melton—not for economic or social reasons and not for his Sheriff Dillon-like pledge against crime.  

I backed him, as I said during his campaign, because he pledged to focus more attention on the city's youth.  A refurbished Farish Street, a vibrant downtown and booming local economy mean nothing if we don't leave it in capable hands.  I think, however, that we're headed in the right direction.

Boot camps, truancy sweeps and the like are never popular with the bleeding hearts. Too harsh, too aggressive, they say.  But trust me, there's a new hybrid of teen walking the streets of Jackson. In my opinion, harsh and aggressive is the best way to get their attention. This is not an old-timer's rhetoric; hell, I'm not far removed from their age group.  

Now, I don't agree with all aspects of the boot-camp solution. As with any program, it has some minuses. But the concept of discipline is not one that should be lost on today's youth.  A lot of them lack it.  A good "talking to" or the best counseling session just doesn't always work. A literal foot-in-the-you-know-what is sometimes the remedy.  

Other members of the M.A.P. Coalition and I spoke at the Oakley training school a few weeks back. You could sense that even words from those with similar experiences were not reaching the kids. Let's start by coupling some of the finer points of rehabilitation and youth counseling with the discipline that boot camps bring and develop a program that really works. Next, let's try to support initiatives that make parents take more responsibility for their kids.  

Yes, like the truancy sweeps, whether you agree or not, this will force those parents to understand the urgency of education. They will have to identify the reasons why their kids are not in school and repair them—immediately.

Saving our kids is paramount.  Being either a parent, teacher or even mayor means doing what may be viewed as "unpopular" or "too tough." But it may just make this city better off in the long run.  One of those truants may be the next doctor that saves lives instead of the next criminal that breaks into your home.  Think about it.  

And that's the truth … sho-nuff.

Previous Commentsshow

I agree with the sometimes needed literal foot-in-the-you-know-what remedy. Now regarding parents taking more responsibility, so many parents never assume responsibility or have long since lost control of their children. This is not to say that a parent’s responsibility is now over, but how does a parent, specifically of a teenager, regain control. Parents must take responsibility very earlier regarding obedience and discipline and this is by far the most challenging initiative.

K RHODES

Dec 7 2005

Sho you right, Kamikaze. Nurturing is the key. Although I showed outstanding natural ability from the outset, it was very late in my teens before anyone took any real interest in making sure I became all I could be. Most people, including teachers, community leaders, and some family members, tried to tell me I couldn't amount to anything because of who my parents were and where I grew up. But I hated being poor, recognized my natural gifts, and was too hardheaded to accept their plight for me. Along the way, I tried to kill a girl for knocking my books from my desk some 5 or 6 times. I took a switch from my teachers and cursed her out. I pulled a knife and threaten to cut a girl for writing my name on a list of boys who were talking in class ( I was only bluffing this time). I put tacks in a teacher's chair. The teacher didn't show up for school and the Superintendant showed up in her place. Luckily, I told the Superintendant there was some paper in her chair and she let me remove the tacks before she sat down. Even luckier, she never saw the tacks. Ms. Hayes, a large 200-300 pounds teacher attaked me after the knife incident. Rumors have it that she had me up off the floor and I was shaking as if about to expire. I was so scared that I don't remember much about it. In the following years, Ms Hayes told all of my sisters and brothers what she did to me. She sent word for years that I come to visit her which I failed to do until it was too late. She heard I had changed and was on the right track. I regret not making it to see her before she died. At 15 years of age, I met a teacher named Mrs. Fulton who told me, "I've been watching you. If you try a little harder, you can make all A's. No one had ever told me anything like that before. Her words still drive me to this day.

Ray Carter

Dec 8 2005

As a homeschooled kid, I used to wonder if I'd ever get rounded up on truancy violations. We filled out all of the necessary paperwork, but what if there was a screwup (we were, after all, talking about the government) and they ended up knocking on my door, ready to take me over to the detention center until my mother could get it all straightened out. So part of me gets a bad taste in my mouth, looking at all those buses on TV and Melton in his G.I. Joe costume. But I have to admit: This is much closer to the Frank Melton I used to love watching on TV than just about anything else he's done. Because on "The Bottom Line" when I watched it, it was ALWAYS primarily about the city not doing enough for at-risk youth--keeping drug dealers and prostitutes out of their neighborhoods, making sure they get to school, and so on. This stands in sharp relief from the rhetoric of many of his supporters, who just dismiss every black male under 40 as a "thug." He humanized at-risk youth in west Jackson in a way that nobody else on TV was really willing to do at the time, and I think it woke up a lot of people. I'm not sure he's doing the right thing, but he's doing what the good Frank Melton would do--the Dr. Jeckyll persona, as it were. The more interesting question for me, though, is what will actually happen to the kids over the next few years. If kids end up going back to school and graduating and being able to earn real money and escape the cycle of poverty, that's great beyond words, and it'll do some real good for this city. But rounding the kids up on the buses, while maybe a necessary first step, is the easy part. Cheers, TH

Tom Head

Dec 9 2005