Twenty-five students from the African American Male
Initiative at North Carolina Central University made their way up the
steps at the Hayti Heritage Center. Their marron jackets and prideful strut
illustrated why the more than fifty people gathered waited for their arrival.
They represented the core of Black people’s dreams.
Founders of OneKMB (One Thousand Black Men) called a
meeting to discuss the future of Durham. It was a blending of eulogy and revival
with an action plan targeting increased gun violence.
“When we have kids using bathtubs for shields in Durham, we
can do better than that,” Antonio Jones, chair of the Durham Committee on the
Affairs of Black People and one of the founders of OneKMB, said.
Black men stood in an area above the crowd – like a
commissioned army taking an oath of service. They wore the pride of a common
bond, a commitment stirred by memories of scuffling in a world conditioned to
discount Black men.
“We’re brothers. We’re fathers. We’re sons, uncles, and in
some capacity, we’re mentors and coaches,” Omar Beasley, past chair of the
Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People and co-founder of OneKMB, said.
“We, as a community of Black men, have been working together to galvanize our
efforts, but now is the time that we can not allow Covid to be the reason for
us to not put our plans and programs in action.”
A year has passed since OneKMB organized as a challenge to
Black men. When the city was shut down due to Covid-19, crime didn’t take time
off. In Durham, and in places across America, gun violence has escalated during
Covid-19.
“We are here because there is no species on the planet that
will stand by and watch you slaughter their offspring,” city council member Mark-Anthony
Middleton said. “From the smallest turtle to the fiercest lion, there is no
species on the plant that will just idly stand by and watch their children
killed. Whether they wear feathers or talons, we will not stand by and watch
the slaughter of our children as a spectator sport.”
Middleton, another co-founder of OneKMB with Leonardo
Williams, a candidate for the city council, says he’s issuing a clarion call to
every Black man in Durham.
“Whether you are in the board room, or on the corner.
Whether you’ve been to college or not. No matter what area you participate in
life, we need every Black man in this city to stand up, unite and say it’s up
to us,” Middleton said. “We are not here to exempt the government, or to
relieve them of their responsibilities. But we are here to say we are going to
be perpetual, persistent partners in saving our children because we do not need
permission to save our lives.”
Middleton announced the four pillars of OneKMB. The group
will advocate for policies and programs already formed to address the
needs of Black people.
“So, I’m saying to our local and state officials, adequately
fund programs that are for us and by us,” Beasley said. “We have existing
programs, existing plans, that don’t have adequate funding.”
Middleton says OneMKB will be a support system for
existing programs.
“We will now have a virtual army, a data base of 1,000 plus
men that are willing to come in and buttress up your program,” Middleton said.
OneKMB will also build an economic development strategy
that utilizes resources among Black men to create pathways to opportunities.
Middleton says some Black men have special access due to experience and
relationships to offer direct intervention.
“Some can pull up and speak to brothers directly,”
Middleton said. “They can go into situations and pull people out.”
Williams says his work with OneKMB is personal.
“I’ve lost count personally of how many students I’ve lost.
Whether they were the killer or the one who was killed,” Williams, a two-time
Durham Teacher of the Year, said. “What I can say consistently is they are all victims,
and that is what we have to stop.”
Williams acknowledged that people are doing the work to
curtail gun violence without adequate resources, while far too many people are
left wondering what to do.
“I think we have been waiting for permission, but also we
have been audience participants for too long,” Williams said. “Now, we’re
sitting back eating popcorn watching news stories.”
