By Roy Douglas Malonson

During our weekly Tuesday morning staff meetings, we?re often confronted with Black America?s biggest problem. Truthfully, we admit that personality classes oftentimes are as disastrous for African American News & Issues as they?ve long been for Black America?s fragmented leadership. If you?ve already guessed where we?re going with this, you also know that the operative word here is fragmented, rather than divided, as in the biblical proverb, ?Every kingdom divided against itself shall not stand.? What?s the difference? That?s a good question, and we?re glad you asked. A divided house is certainly a big problem, but simply coming together in most cases can easily solve it.

On the other hand, fragmented, translates to being shattered and/or scattered. Much like the nursery school rhyme character, ?Humpty Dumpty,? that couldn?t be put back together again. What we?re saying, is that ?bent out of shape? isn?t just a cliché -- used to describe people?s attitude when they no longer can agree to disagree, i.e., negotiate, arbitrate, mediate, cooperate?but a fact of life. Do we need a dictionary to explain that it?s very difficult to fix something that?s fragmented, because the broken pieces can never be smoothly fitted together again? Sadly, that?s what time it is in 2003 Black America, but let?s not get off course here. Because we have yet to explain what destroys Black organizations, churches, or even families beyond repair.

Perhaps, the best way to break down Black America?s most pressing problem is to go back to our weekly meetings. Ideally, we meet to make sure that everybody fully understands our prime directive. It?s very important that our whole team realizes the enormity of our obligation, now that we?re Texas? widest circulated newspaper with a Black perspective, that?s also an uncompromised editorial voice for disenfranchised Black Americans. Moreover, we?re discovering that we?re fast becoming a source for all citizens, with curious minds who want to know the truth that can only be revealed when a newspaper is dedicated to reporting all news without fear or favor. That?s why we encourage everybody at the table to speak openly and candidly, regardless of age or status.

Maybe that?s a mistake; insofar as many post integration African Americans, through no fault of their own, unwittingly express a White middle class perspective. Denial notwithstanding, when Black people are educated from the same premise as Whites, it?s very difficult for them to grasp the concept of a ?Black newspaper,? or even a Black perspective. Even worse, they often bring to the table unfounded presumptions, or you could say prejudices. For instance, a young staff member suggested that our newspaper should address issues more relevant to our youth, including the ?Hip Hop? generation. That?s a great idea, as well as good business. Nevertheless, the staff member?s idea was based on a presumption. Since our most effective writer is a senior citizen she presumed that he couldn?t possibly relate to our youth. She had no idea that the living historian was a certified counselor of trouble youth whose secondary study was socio-psychology. He, of course asked, ?Do you read my column?? Like far too many supposedly educated, political astute African Americans, she had to admit that she really hadn?t. Her opinion was based wholly on the fact that ANN&I doesn?t have a specific youth section. The kind of youth section that can easily be found in most publications, insofar as they have kids looking silly (with their caps turned backwards, or sideways), starring out of their pages, or TV commercials targeting our younger generation.

The question left hanging is, how can you criticize something that you have yet to analyze? Then again, there?s a much better question that Black America should be asking?before buying into educators, social engineers and corporate America?s clever marketing ploy. We should be asking, since we?re all in this spiritual war together, why do we think teenager?s problems differ from the adults they?re emulating? That?s certainly a question that Black America should explore, before asking the thoughtless question, ?What?s wrong with these kids today? If you dare analyze what may seem to be a somewhat political correct question (to brainwashed African America parents), the answer should be fairly obvious.

That is unless parents are in denial and refuse to realize that something is terribly wrong with today?s adults too. Biblical principles aside, when did Black parents start buying into a contradictory concept that kids, should have more common sense than adults, although we don?t teach them nothing? We suspect it was doing the Reagan Years, when former first lady Nancy Reagan?s offered the simplistic solution, ?Just say no,? for teenager?s drug problems? How can we possibly expect kids to have a stronger will and more discipline than world leaders? We Must Understand, it?s good business to target different age groups, by putting diverse labels on the same product to con us to believe it was especially made for an exclusive generation, or population.

It?s amazing how quickly adults criticize our youth, but never stop to analyze their problems. When analyzed objectively, problems such as the ever-growing high school dropout rate, it?s easy to determine that educators cause the problem. They insist on treating 15-year-old sexually active 9th graders like children, although they have children and are wrestling with the same relationship problems as they are. That simply won?t work, in today?s high tech, information age. There is no hiding place from our impressionable kids. What we?re saying is, if our youths have to deal with zero tolerance racial profiling, violent relationships, crime, drugs, etc., the same as adults, their problems are common denominators.

It becomes very obvious that our critics only read ANN&I, rather than analyze our Black perspectives. How many times must we explain that Black newspaper?s mission is unique and must differ with the mainstream media? Consequently, when we?re criticized for being different from all other media, we know we?re doing our job. Thank you critics.