Greetings Fellow Morehouse Men,
…During my rebirth at Morehouse College, I took time to reflect upon what had happened
in my life over the past four years. For months I thought about how much my
story could be a blessing to thousands. The second day of New Student Orientation, I
was informed that my son, Elijah, was to be born into this world. Four years and nearly
80,000 miles later, I graduated on time, founded an organization—Morehouse Education
Association—and have made plans for my son to live with me. Anything is possible.
… We as black men, regardless of biological origin, are responsible for our boys. It is our
duty to train up the next generation, yet we have cashed in our obligation for the burden of
lost souls and a wayward generation. Black boys nationwide graduate at 47 percent, but we
only represent 2 percent of the teacher population. There is a clear understanding that we,
the affluent black male role model, have allowed others to control our fate.

While matriculating, I realized that no matter how grand our alumni are or the amount
of accolades that are acquired, we are only as strong as the men we attract and the men we
produce. For the sons of Mother Morehouse to turn their backs on their little brothers is
contemptuous, to say the least. To think that all of these stars in various fields have forgotten
the most important part of the Morehouse pedigree: “I’ve got my brother’s back.”
Our sixth president, Dr. Benjamin E. Mays, is quoted saying, “It isn’t a disgrace not to
reach the stars, it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for.”
Our boys are watching the stars, but they are all hip-hop artists, entertainers, and drug
dealers. We should be ashamed of ourselves for watching this occur and turning a blind eye.
Does an entertainer have greater influence than you? Is his fictional message of unadulterated indulgence more persuasive than a man who extends himself to love a child? I refuse to believe so. I cannot accept that from my elder brothers whom I admire so much.
So I began thinking about what we, Morehouse Men, have to offer these boys. The
answer I came upon was hope and options. We all decided upon different routes to achieve
success, but it is not often we pass this message on.
I want to launch a campaign called “A Black Man Can.” Through video we compile
a roll of Morehouse Men who have achieved success and have them state their profession
i.e. Shelton “Spike” Lee ’79 “A black man can become a world-class filmmaker.” With this
campaign we can produce an array of positive black male images that have never been seen
before in this country.
Morehouse College is the light of the world, and we wholeheartedly believe that. It is our
time to give our boys stars to reach for. It is time to shine our light on the masses…. There is
no shortage of stars in the sky, but there are very few directions on how to reach them.
“Et facta est lux.”
This article was released in Morehouse Magazine in 2012. Proof of the assignment to develop Black men has been unwavering for decades.
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