Page 14 - Florida Sentinel 10-7-16 Online Edition

Features
Famed Speakers Set For National Conference For Black Children
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
ORLANDO – In a society that is biased against Black children, it’s more important than ever that they are up- lifted and celebrated by their own community, says renowned author and social commentator, Rev. Michael Eric Dyson.
“You’ve got to tell your children that they are beauti- ful and smart,” he said.
Dyson delivered the opening address at the 46th annual conference of the Na- tional Black Child Develop- ment Institute in Orlando. The four-day event brings to- gether community leaders, in- tellectuals, partners, elected officials, teachers, and parents from across the country to ex- change ideas on a variety of topics related to Black chil- dren and their families, in- cluding early childhood development, racial equality and criminal justice, and fa- therhood.
Poet and activist Nikki Giovanni, author and talk show host, Marc Lamont
Hill, and civil right attorney Benjamin Crump are scheduled to speak at the con- ference.
Founded in 1970, the Washington, D.C.-based insti- tute has engaged leaders, pol- icymakers, and parents on issues directly affecting Black children and families.
The annual conference comes on the heels of the chartering of the Tampa- based affiliate consisting of members from both Hillsbor- ough and Pinellas Counties.
In his speech, Dyson said saving Black children will re- quire Black adults teaching them to love themselves as they are.
“So many of our kids have been taught to not like them- selves,” he said. “We should love whatever God made us. We should tell our children... their epidermis should not de- termine the value of who they are.”
Dyson, a professor of so- ciology at Georgetown Univer- sity, said saving Black children also requires under- standing the political strug- gles of the day.
said. “You owe them the ulti- mate respect of demanding the best out of them so that God can get the best from them.”
Prior to Dyson’s remarks, Tobeka Green, the insti- tute’s executive director, im-
plored the conference’s sev- eral hundred registrants to stand up for Black children.
“All of us have a role,” she said. “The battle lines have been very clearly drawn. The question is, are you willing to do whatever it takes to win.”
REV. MICHAEL ERIC DYSON
It’s important that Black children must be made aware that their obtaining higher ed- ucation will not excuse them from scrutiny by mainstream society, he said.
“We tell them to get as much education as possible, but forget to tell them that folks will be mad when you do,” he said.
Above all, the success of Black children depends on the Black parents valuing them, Dyson said.
“You don’t know what’s in your possession...because God gave you a precious cargo,” he
Group Releases Black Child Report At National Conference
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
ORLANDO – The 46th an- nual conference of the National Black Child Development Insti- tute began Saturday with the re- lease of a report that highlights the strengths and talents of Black children and their fami- lies and communities.
The report, “Being Black is Not a Risk Factor: Statistics and Strength-Based Solutions in the State of Florida”, is a col- lection of essays and data that seeks to challenge the prevail- ing discourse about Black chil- dren that overly focuses on limitations and deficits and not strengths and assets of Black children, families, and commu- nities.
Areas of examination in- clude education, health, and lit- eracy, family and community empowerment, and policy and advocacy.
Featured in the report are Lutheran Services Florida’s Head Start and Early Head Start programs, which are de- signed to ensure children of color are ready for Kinder- garten.
Last year, more than 80 per- cent of students in the pro- grams were deemed ready for Kindergarten in all educational domains except math. More than 70 percent of students achieved Kindergarten readi- ness in math.
It’s important that the con- versation about Black children in Florida focuses less on sus- pension rates and more on top- ics of positivity, such as the increases in Black student grad- uation rates, school readiness, and parent engagement, Louis Finney, the executive vice president of Lutheran Services Florida.
Louis Finney, the presi- dent of the institute’s newly chartered Tampa Bay affiliate, said the latter is especially im- portant because the dynamics of the family have changed.
While more Black children are being raised in single-par- ent households headed by women, it doesn’t mean that fa- thers are not engaged, he said.
“We do have fathers in- volved and that’s underre- ported,” he said. “We have
LOUIS FINNEY
plenty of fathers who are around and spending time with their kids.”
The report purposely shifts away from stating deficits and focuses on Black children’s ad- vancements and areas of suc- cess, said Cemere James, the institute’s vice president of pol- icy.
“We’re looking at the state of the black child...to say how we invest in our families and our children,” she said.
The report also examines successful areas of community collaboration, such as the part- nership between advocates for Black children and the criminal justice system in Broward County. Since 2010, the county’s Children Services Council has provided diversion interventions to youth with low- risk offenses.
Because of the program, more Black child offenders – who represent more than half of the youth served by the pro- gram – are now offered a sec- ond chance after an arrest, James said.
By The Numbers
• More than 20 percent of chil- dren in the state of Florida are Black compared to slightly less than 14 percent nationwide
• In Florida, 46 percent of Head Start and 43 percent of Early Head Start teachers are Black. Nationally, 26 percent of Head Start and Early Head Start teachers are Black.
• In Florida, Black students comprise 23 percent of the pub- lic school population, but make up 40 percent of children ex- pelled both with and without continuing education services.
Source: “Being Black is Not a Risk Factor: Statistics and Strength-Based Solutions in the State of Florida” by the Na- tional Black Child Development Institute.
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