In his presentation, “Civil Rights, Hip-Hop, and Hope: The Power of Young People”, Dr. Alton B. Pollard III compared and enlightened us on the impact of teenagers, in previous generations and our generation, in the black community. During the Civil Rights Movement, students at high schools and colleges were involved in fighting for equal rights, and as advocates of change they convinced there parents to join in the “fight”. The “radicals”, as many were labeled, participated in marches, sit-ins, etc, letting their message be known, “enough is enough.” Fighting freedom was considered a “communal responsibility.”
Martin Luther King stated that “nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time: the need for man to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence.” As the decades processed, the young people used music, poetry, paintings, etc., to express their pain and struggles. In these urban neighborhood, namely in New York City, young adults used music and dance to refrain from being involved in gangs, violence, and drugs. The Hip-Hop movement produced lyrical artists such as, KRS One, Slick-Rick, 2Pac, Erykah Badu, Biggie, McLyte, Common, Lauryn Hill, etc.
Dr. Pollard reflected on all these past methods of change, but his question to us was “what is Generation X going to do to make a change in the Black community?” He expressed that the “fights of yesterday have transformed today” and we must find new nonviolent and influential ways to fight for social justice. We “must become the prayer we pray,” we cannot just sit around waiting for change to happen. Those teenagers participating in marches, riots, sit-ins were the same age we all are now, and many of them put their lives on the line to change our community to the way it is today. Are we ready to stand up for change?
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