Chionesu Bakari Program For Young Men “Guiding Light of Noble Promise”

“Building on the Foundation”

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vol.2 issue 02December/January 2015

A Word From The Director

Happy New Year and Welcome to 2015! As we head into the 2nd half of our 9th year we look forward to many spectacular events; our 4th Annual Gala, Caribbean Family Cruise, Historical Trip to Selma, AL and our 10th Summer Program.

In the last month the young men have taken part in living out history by attending the #JusticeForAll March on Washington, connecting them with past and present historical events. The Elders of St. Paul Community Baptist Church, Brooklyn, NY, the all male “Eldad Medad Dance ministry”, and several CB Dads joined the trip to the March along with the young men. This month the young men went to see the movie “SELMA”. In February, the young men will connect all their experiences with a trip to Selma, Alabama to visit the locations discussed in the movie. From the experience of marching

on Washington to visiting Selma, it is my hope that the young men will learn and appreciate the hopeful, challenging and triumphant life experiences of our African American civil rights icons and ordinary citizens of that time and that they are applied in their everyday lives.

This February, I am especially humbled to be among the honorees of the MALIK Fraternity Black History Gala for the work I and my staff have done for the young men of Chionesu Bakari. Along with myself, distinguished honorees include Eagle Academy Founder, David C. Banks and Bronx Dem. Assemblyman Carl Heastie for their uplifting work with young men and women. I look forward to celebrating with you on this momentous occasion on February 21, 2015. More event information can be found in this issue and online.

In June, we will host our annual Chionesu Bakari Gala. This year, I am honoring the CB Staff of the last 9 years and our Young Men. We will specifically honor staff members, Elder Victor Young, Elder Vaughn Curmon, Keir Nelson, John Robinson, Dante Leary, Hakikah Shamsiden, Monica Britton, Charlene Caldwell, Melissa Anderson, and Susan Rodriguez. I am forever grateful for their dedication to the program. I look forward to a wonderful night of celebration with them.

Relax and Recharge! Join us, as we host a Caribbean Cruise in August. The cruise will be a relaxing and fun time with families, new and old friends. Find out more information inside.

Special shout out to the CB Young Men & Parents who volunteered this holiday season, gift wrapping to support college tours led by Team Q within SPCBC.

In the next issue, we will share information on our CB Parent efforts to support cancer research. Unfortunately, cancer has affected many parents, families and friends of CB and I feel it is important to do what we can towards aiding research to eliminate this deadly disease.

Lastly, we are continuously proud of our CB Alumnae in Colleges/Universities, now over 40 strong. We are thankful for the group who gave back to CB in December offering encouragement and words of wisdom to the young men. CB Alumnae also joined a presentation taken from “I Honor My Father” by Rev. Dr. Johnny Ray Youngblood entitled “Every Black Man’s Obituary--Maybe!”

As always, we are continually grateful for your time and support and hope that you enjoy reading about the young men and the organization’s activities in this issue. May you have a prosperous and wonderful New Year and may God grant all the desires of your heart.

Namaste

Horace L. Moore, Founder/Executive Director

DIRECTOR’S WELCOME 1

#JUSTICEFORALL / WASHINGTON, D.C. MARCH 2

CB YOUNG MEN TALK W/ NYPD DET. YUSEF HAMM 4

LETTER FROM A YOUNG BLACK MAN 5

SPOTLIGHT ON 2 CB FAMILIES 6

CB COMMUNITY SERVICE DAY 7

CB CRUISE 8

CB UPCOMING EVENTS 8

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

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Most would concede that the existence of Chionesu Bakari in times like these remains crucial, and necessary. In the wake of what many consider unfair and unjust decisions made by the criminal justice agencies throughout the country regarding the deaths of John Crawford III, Michael Brown, Reynaldo Cuevas, and most recently Eric Garner, the African American community is left with the all familiar question; “Why did another one of our black men have to die at the hands of one who took an oath to protect and serve?”

In a letter from a Birmingham Jail, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” People around the world watched the video of 43yr old Eric Garner as an altercation ensued between him and several NYC Police Officers on July 17, 2014 in Staten Island, NY. Millions watched as an officer placed Mr. Garner in a choke hold while trying to physically restrain him. Subsequently, Mr. Garner was heard struggling to yell, “I CAN’T BREATHE!” It was reported that Mr. Garner said he couldn’t breathe 11 times. The New York City medical examiner ruled Mr. Garner’s death a homicide, but a grand jury decided not to charge the officer in his death. The consensus from people around the country was that this was indeed an unjust act and a threat to justice everywhere. The announcement that the grand jury would not indict, came only days after the announcement that the police officer who killed Michael Brown, would not be indicted. People around the country protested by participating in marches, staged “die-ins”, blocked traffic, blocked bridges and students from elementary schools through college walked out of classes to show their disapproval of the no indictment rulings. In a letter, Dr. King wrote; “It is unfortunate that demonstrations are taking place in Birmingham, but it is even more unfortunate that the city’s white power structure left the Negro community with no alternative.” It is clear that Dr. King used necessary protest to bring national attention to racism and illegal practices that African Americans endured in Birmingham then, just as protesters do today.

It is in these times that thoughts constantly flood our minds and we wonder incessantly, what to do to keep our children safe. It is in these times that we are glad that we have programs like Chionesu Bakari, which consistently emphasizes our shared belief in the worth of our young sons. We hold fast to the fact that these young Black men receive intentional teachings which speak to their manhood in America and allows them, a forum and safe space to dialogue with peers and elder Black men who have had similar experiences.

Thankfully, the young men have in Chionesu Bakari, a brotherhood to lean on and they have mentors to seek guidance from. CB adjusts to the needs of the young men in such times. Responding to the current events with dual purpose of exposure and expression,

Chionesu Bakari young men traveled to the December 2014 Justice For All March in Washington, D.C. The young men participated in a life changing experience, peacefully protesting and exposing them to the magnitude of these situations. Upon their return, the young men expressed their thoughts through a powerful presentation to

the St. Paul Community at large. They presented a short piece on the importance of being a part of the march and their feelings as young black men.

IN THE WAKE OF POLICE SHOOTINGS OF YOUNG BLACK MEN, CHIONESU BAKARI IS A VALUED RESOURCE

#BlackLivesMatter...#JusticeForAll

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CB Young man, Reggie was in awe, “the thing that stood out for me was that there were different races of people [out for the cause]”.

Asst. Director, Elder Young described the March as “Fantastic! We were all there together. It was history in the making. We were there with the idea to change legislation to be more just. When the CB young men are older, they can say they had a hand in that.”

CB young man, Mekhi Murphy, was moved by the speakers at the march. “I heard the parents of the young men that died speak. They made me think really deeply about what is happening”.

Parents who have entrusted their sons to Chionesu Bakari typically share similar feelings around raising young black men in a society where they aren’t valued. We are forced to have conversations not only about how to not fall victim to predators in the neighborhoods where we live, but must also talk to our sons on how they should conduct themselves when stopped by the Police. The stress that parents deal with from the time our sons leave home on a typical school day and the time they get home can be overwhelming at times.

CB Father, Dan Rodriguez shared, “As a CB dad participating in the Washington, D.C. National March against police brutality and for the value of Black Lives with the CB Young Men was a powerful transferring of a legacy. Fighting for our human rights by marching with CB was passing the mantle to the young men and has kept me hopeful that the movement for change is alive!”

CB Father, Inskip Miller shared, “The March on Washington was impactful! It was a sunny, clear but cold day. To watch the multitude of so many people of different ethnic groups and ages was moving. Having served as NYC Police Sergeant for 23 years and now having to raise a 14 year son it is a dynamic that is familiar. Knowing all too well that there are and will always be more great Police Officers than bad, the bad must be held accountable for excessive abuse and misuse of power. In the same manner the Criminal Justice system must act accordingly.”

The connection between the experience at the March was solidified as the Chionesu Bakari collective viewed the movie, SELMA this month. Now as the participants in Chionesu Bakari, prepare to travel to Selma, Alabama in February, they are experiencing their own civil rights movement. Chionesu Bakari is a vehicle to help them navigate the current movement, and for that we are grateful.

By Antoinette Miller and LaToya Kittrell

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In the wake of all the controversy surrounding the multitude of incidents involving Police Officers and Black men across the country, the young men of Chionesu Bakari expressed feelings of confusion, mistrust, apprehension and hurt. Their main concerns stem from an uncertainty on whether or not they can feel safe when they are in the presence of police officers. To put it plainly, our young men believe that they can do everything right and still end up on the wrong side of the law. Not knowing whether they will return home each day plagues their thoughts, and seeing the incidents where Black men did little to nothing wrong end up dead at the hands of police only magnify their concerns. CB founder, Mr. Horace Moore, believes that it is important for our young men to be equipped with the tools necessary when dealing with conflict resolution and community relations with the police at large. NYPD Detective Yusef Hamm, President of the NYPD Guardians Association conducted a workshop with CB young men to create a dialogue, answer their questions and

give them an opportunity to hear a police officer’s perspective on the dangers of their job, how the police department profiles suspects and the best way to conduct themselves when and if they are ever approached by a police officer. The purpose of the Guardians Association is to help defend, protect and ensure the rights of African American police officers, civilians and the community they serve. Part of their mission is to develop brotherhood and fellowship within the department amongst its members and in the community. Detective Hamm said the one thing he would like to communicate is that “no one, including police officers, want to be judged as a group. Each police officer is an individual that should be judged based on their own merit and character”.

Unfortunately, time did not permit every young man to have his questions answered. However, according to Youth

Liaison, John Robinson, the take-aways from the questions that were answered was that the NYPD Officers perform a very dangerous job every day. They are under a great deal of pressure and it is a stressful job. Suspect descriptions are usually limited to approximate height, build, skin color and general clothing. Because of this limited description, a police officer may stop a young man that does not totally match the description but has similar attributes (i.e. the description may call for someone in a blue shirt, black pants and a black hoodie, and the police may stop someone wearing a red shirt but similar clothing with the belief that it’s possible the suspect changed his shirt). In an effort to reduce suspicion when talking to police officers, the young men were told to keep their hands out of their pockets, maintain eye contact, and answer any questions asked of them respectfully and to the best of their ability. While this is not a comforting thought, the young men see it as an unfortunate reality that is in direct correlation to their safety and existence.

We believe more interaction between our African American/Latino young men and our police officers is needed to establish an understanding of one another and a mutual respect for the trials and tribulations each one faces

daily. Then and only then will we be able to work collectively to truly protect our neighborhoods. More to come as this is the first of several dialogues that are planned with the CB Young Men, Parents and the New York Police department.. stay tuned for Part 2.

CB Young Men talk with NYPD Det. Yusef Hamm NYPD DET. YUSEF HAMM JOINS US TO ANSWER THE CONCERNS OF THE CB YOUNG MEN

By Charisse Smith

5By Rennie Coburn, Coordinated by Terri Butler

Upon entering Johnson C. Smith University, I still had the mindset of a high school student which caused me to perform on an average level during my first semester in college. I then became more comfortable by involving myself more in campus activities and social organizations. Before I noticed it, my freshman year was over. Overall, I did not do what I was sent to school to do. I quickly realized that I was not focused and had poor time management skills. When I returned home and went to Chionesu Bakari to talk to my younger brothers, it didn’t feel too good to tell them that my GPA was only a 2.1. After being around my brothers it hit me that I have to set an example for them. I realized that even though it’s my life, I still have people that look up to me and watch me; from the mistakes I make to the accomplishments I achieve. It was time to put the tips, strategies, and constant talks that went on throughout my years at Chionesu Bakari into practice. I went to summer school at my university and put everything I remembered into play and completed summer school with a GPA of 3.5. In addition to that I earned a 4.0 average for the Fall semester 2014. My current GPA is now a 3.0 and I’m proud to tell people that. Doing good in school is a great feeling to have. For the 2015 Spring semester I plan to attain another 4.0 and continue to maintain my GPA thereafter.

I believe that we need to value ourselves more and lift ourselves up. When we inhibit ourselves from making the personal changes that we need, or we deny ourselves the love that we lack, then it prevents us from progressing

the black community. We need to be the change we want to see in America. We always talk about change that needs to happen in our communities, yet we overlook the change we need to make within ourselves in order to get to the next level. We need to value ourselves more and lift ourselves up.

Honestly, I haven’t been totally involved in all the protests that are going on surrounding the killings of Eric Garner and Mike Brown like I should. Is that a good thing? No, because what is happening could easily affect me or someone I love in the future. However, I am not as involved as I should be because I get frustrated and I begin to feel like there is not much I can do by myself. How can I single-handedly do anything to save the thousands that, God forbid, will suffer similar tragedies. I feel like “we” as black people need to come together and work on changing our image.

We can’t simply protest and then go back to standing on corners. We can’t complain about the killings and then turn around and kill one another. We will never be taken seriously until we get serious. I feel that

Chionesu Bakari has prepared me for these events. Hearing from speakers that came in to do workshops and going on educational outings as a young man has opened my mind up to another way of thinking. As I see all the racist events going on I’m able to be calm because of my experience with Chionesu. Instead of reacting and causing a riot or doing more damage I am able to study what is happening. Racist events will never be a shock to me because I’m prepared for it, but until we can change our image I don’t see it disappearing.

Letter from a Young Black ManCB ALUMNI RENNIE COBURN

“We always talk about change that needs to happen in our communities, yet we overlook the change we need to make within ourselves in order to get to the next level. We need to value ourselves more and lift ourselves up.” ”

By Charisse Smith

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Hyacinth Jordan and her son Najee Quick were introduced to CB during a family vacation on the CB cruise in 2007. She knew some of the young men of CB including current CB

Youth Liaison, John Robinson who attended school with her older daughter, Aminah. She was also impressed with how the young men of CB conducted themselves during presentations at St. Paul. Najee enrolled that summer of 2007 and quickly bonded with the young men.

As of 2015, Najee has seen a lot of the United States through his experiences with Chionesu Bakari. Hyacinth believes that his participation in CB has positively

impacted how he interacts with his peers and adults. His teachers often comment on how well he articulates himself and his excellent manners. Najee is more conscious

of the history of African Americans as a result of his participation in CB. Currently, Najee is in the 10th grade and looking forward to going to college. He is on the football team

and hopes to explore a new interest in photography. He enjoys CB and believes the experiences and the training he has received thus far through the program has helped strengthen the foundation for the great person he is becoming.

Hyacinth is an Administrator with the City of New York. Learning that raising a son, is very different from her daughter, she feels she has benefitted from engaging with the other CB parents of young men Najee’s age that have similar goals. Hyacinth is thankful for CB because she could not have given Najee the same exposure to his culture and other parts of the world without CB.

Hyacinth’s daughter Aminah Gibbs is 21 years old and attends the Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Meet CB brothers Ryan White -14 yrs old (Fall 2013) and Brandon Bernard -11 years old (Fall 2014). Alana Bernard, their mom, first heard about the program from the Principal at her job and via a CB parent, Kim Ramdeen. Her initial expectations of the program was for Ryan to gain motivation and become more responsible. However, after attending & engaging in the parent meetings for the first year, her expectations expanded to include continuing to learn what to do as a parent and how to raise a son.

Ryan’s first impression of the program was that he simply hated it. He didn’t feel that he needed it and it showed in his demeanor; slouched shoulders and slow walking when he was dropped off to the program. It wasn’t until after the CB away trip in February 2014 that a change in his attitude occurred and he admitted the program “wasn’t that bad”. After the summer of 2014 with CB, his entire attitude changed and he came home speaking about all he had learned from his brothers and counselors. He even said, “maybe next year I can be a counselor”.

The change in his attitude was so evident, his younger brother, Brandon, who looks up to him, wanted to join the program. He would hear Ryan talk about CB and his experiences and had also met some of the CB brothers during parent meetings. Brandon begged their father to join. While Michael Bernard, their father was initially apprehensive about the program, however after seeing the change in Ryan, along with Brandon’s enthusiasm, coupled with having interacted with other parents in the meetings, he too saw the value in the program.

Michael is a manager at National Grid and Alana is a school teacher. They also have a 13-year old daughter, Alexis.

CB Family ProfilesHyacinth Jordan and son Najee Quick

Michael & Alana Bernard and sons Ryan & Bernard

Hyacinth Jordan and Najee Quick by Paulette Benson; The Bernard Family by Sharon Swain

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On Sunday, December 21, 2014 a collective of Chionesu young men and parents traveled to Kings Plaza Mall to participate in a gift wrapping event. The activity was in conjunction with the youth ministry of St. Paul Community Baptist Church. This being the last Sunday before Christmas you can imagine the scores of people in the mall doing last minute shopping and needing gifts wrapped. However, the people of Brooklyn being, well, the people of Brooklyn many were skeptical reading the signs that some of our young men held up offering FREE gift wrapping. There were no stipulations or regulations, just free gift wrapping services. We even provided the wrapping paper. In the true spirit of the season our young men, who are more familiar with the unwrapping of gifts, were able to sow the seed of joy into the lives of others with this simple gesture. A few of the young men were apprehensive about wrapping, but still gave it a try. Eventually, with some prodding, we were able to provide our services to a few dozen shoppers including one gentleman with approximately ten gifts that we even labeled for him.

As always we had an excellent time of fellowship! Shout out to master wrappers Sandy Newman, Deidre Smith and Nicole Kilkenny. By Tosca Myers

The MALIK Fraternity Black History Gala Honors Chionesu Bakari Founder, Horace L. Moore

Mr. Horace L. Moore will be among those being honored for his work in the community along with Bronx Dem. Assemblyman Carl Heastie

and David C. Banks founder of the Bronx Eagle Academy School for Young Men.

“Educating our youth one mind at a time”.

Join the MALIK Fraternity Black History Gala

Saturday, February 21, 2015

@Eastwood Manor, Bronx, NY Tickets are $95

Visit http://malikblackhistorygala.eventbrite.com for tickets & information

CB Community Service DayCB YOUNG MEN & PARENTS WRAP GIFTS TO SUPPORT COLLEGE TOURS

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Visit Chionesu Bakari Online

Learn More about our Program

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www.youngblackmanonline.org

CreditsThis newsletter is published by:

Chionesu Bakari Program for Young Men 859 Hendrix Street Brooklyn, New York 11207

Phone: 347-708-2008 info@youngblackmanonline.org www.youngblackmanonline.org

Available online at www.youngblackmanonline.org/news.

2013-2015 – All rights reserved

Executive Director Horace L. Moore

Newsletter Team Susan T. D. Rodriguez Paulette Bailey Terri Butler LaToya Kittrell Antoinette Miller Tosca Myers Charisse Smith Sharon Swain

Upcoming Events

CHIONESU BAKARI, a Swahili phrase meaning “Guiding Light of Noble

Promise,” is engaged in the ministry of saving and developing young

black males by reclaiming, renaming, renewing and reconditioning their minds. We strive to motivate young

black male children to think critically and prepare their minds and the minds

of their respective parents/guardians for the men they will grow to become.

May 2015 CB Parent Retreat

June 2015 June 12th - Annual Gala Tickets $125, Black Tie

Summer Session Begins July 6, 2015-August 15, 2015

August 12 - 20, 2015 CB Family Cruise

January 2015 CB Young Men @ SELMA Movie

February 2015 CB Young Men Away Trip

Selma & Montgomery, Alabama

March 2015 70’s Party

April 2015 CB Family Game Night

@cbyoungmen

@Chionesu Bakari