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In The Wake Of King

Following the murder of MLK in April of '68 several nights of rioting, mass looting and arson swept our country's major cities. Baltimore was severely effected and has yet to recover. Besides the loss of life, there was millions of dollars of destruction. The few businesses in rioted areas that survived fled the city for good. Rioters burned down their own communities and left them at an economic dead end.

Ironically Civil Rights achievements made it possible for middle class and upwardly mobile blacks to move to the suburbs, largely stripping the urban black neighborhoods of whatever socio-economic and cultural resources remained. And thus the horrific conditions of the contemporary black urban ghetto took shape.

A pathology of failure, victimization, and despair set in deeply --reinforced by broken families, drugs, violence, and the poverty-perpetuating welfare system. In the midst of this devastation leaders such as H.L. Gates (director of the W.E.B.DuBois Institute) cling to the worn out cliché of more State paternalism. Although testifying* that his own successful orientation and drive was due to an encouraging and stable family life, Gates believes the solution to the many profound difficulties of the black underclass resides in government controlled afterschool programs. So much for the self-determination of DuBois and the virtues of Kwanzaa.

Thankfully, there are yet a few voices in the wilderness. God-fearing men such as Alan Keyes and Kenn Blanchard provide a genuine alternative and real hope.