To: Kojo Nantambu,
President, Charlotte-Mecklenburg NAACP

Dear Mr. Nantambu,

Let me start by acknowledging that I owe an eternal debt to the NAACP and your generation of civil rights warriors. Had it not been for the sacrifices you made, I would not have been able to accomplish all the things I’ve accomplished in my life. The barriers of discrimination were not lowered by magic or goodness; they were razed by the determined efforts of people like you.

Thank you.

Now it’s 2011, and I worry that the once-great organization of W.E.B. DuBois and Thurgood Marshall has rendered itself ineffective, perhaps even useless.

Case in point: Have you been reading about the melee that occurred in uptown Charlotte at the close of the Speed Street festival? According to police, the trouble started when thousands of young males – African American males – decided to act like thugs and fools and square off. Two people were shot; one died. Some 70 were arrested.

And for what?

Police say it was the worst uptown violence since the Fourth of July fireworks show in 2006. As you might recall, that incident also involved African American males.

Do you read any of the murder reports published here or in other local media? It is now sadly predictable that the face of violent death in our city – and in fact our nation -- will be black.

Are you as embarrassed as I am?

Why the silence? Is there no word from the NAACP?

Although I disagreed with you when you labeled Charlotte “a racist bastion,” I was not overly critical of the role you played in the dispute over MLK Day. Effective advocacy requires diverse tactics.

Problem is, the NAACP of today seems to have only one primary tactic – shouting racism.

We all know that racism exists; let’s not spend a great deal of time chewing that cud. The bigger question is, what do we do about the things that we as African Americans can and must do for ourselves? Things like raising our children to be respectful of themselves and others. Things like teaching our young men not to sire children they have no means or intentions to father. Things like teaching the value of education and honest work, even at low pay.

These are not issues easily talked about in polite company, let alone addressed and solved. But address them we must.

There is a saying that goes like this: If the only tool you have is a hammer, then every problem starts to look like a nail.

The NAACP was correct in using the hammer of “racism” when laws and customs prevented us from claiming our full rights to U.S. citizenship. But now that those legal barriers are gone, are not new tools required to address the far more vexing issues we face today?

In the past, you have accused middle-class blacks who disagree with you of being weak-minded tools of the white establishment. For shame. Attacking the people you have been entrusted to lead will not solve our problems or gain you new members.

On the contrary, I think the local NAACP would be well served to embark on a listening tour. Get away from your own echo chamber and hear what other successful individuals are saying and suggesting. You might be surprised to find that our desires are similar.

It’s do-or-die time. Besides, how long can we as African Americans keep holding our collective breaths each time our city hosts an uptown event?
***
Glenn H. Burkins is editor and publisher of Qcitymetro.com. Email editor@qcitymetro.com.

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