Today Within The Black Community - "In The Name And Memory Of Martin Luther King Jr"

Right now I am watching a recording that was automatically recorded on my Tivo because I have it programed to record documentaries.  The show is called "Decisions That Shook The World".  This particular episode is entitled "LBJ And The Civil Rights Movement".

This episode does a good job of documenting the struggles in Selma, Alabama which triggered President Johnson to push for the "Voting Rights Act of 1964" despite his previous reluctance to "take the nation through this controversy".  This attack upon peaceful marchers in Selma that were shown throughout the nation gave Johnson the impetuous and cover that he needed to advance the legislation.  The documentary noted that Johnson had thought that the "stars had aligned" upon delivering a powerful speech before a joint session of Congress and thus he was driven forward.

I have a similar feeling with regard to the "stars aligning" as I opened the newspaper this morning.  (Well actually I am reading the web site for the local newspaper).   The common link to the "Civil Rights Movement" and with the documentary above was the name and legacy of "Martin Luther King Jr".  More specifically - the "Martin Luther King Jr Blvd" in Atlanta Georgia.

In the December 17th edition of the Atlanta Journal Constitution there are two stories that take place on MLK Jr Blvd:

• The Publix Supermarket In The Historic Westside Village On Martin Luther King Jr Blvd Set To Permanently Close On Christmas Eve
• 30 Year Old Woman Found Dead In Her Southwest Atlanta Apartment Off Of Martin Luther King Jr Blvd In Her Bathtub With A Bandanna Over Her Face

Publix and the Historic Westside Village Development

I had heard about the announced closure of this Publix location about 3 weeks ago and was disappointed about it.  This store was heralded as the anchor for the redevelopment of this struggling community in the West End section of Atlanta.  In fact it is one of the only signs of the long promised transformation of this prime real estate on "Martin Luther King Jr Blvd" into a new social center for Atlanta.  A promise that was made about 15 years ago.     The store serves the immediate community which includes the students in the Atlanta University Center.  This is a top shelf retailer that is walking distance from the campus.

Please recall that this past summer I took a drive through this community and took pictures after the shooting death of a Spelman student on the AUC campus.  As I drove westbound down MLK Jr Blvd I looked around for the Publix on the right hand side.   I was startled when I looked over and saw a barren field where I was looking for the Publix facility that I knew to be there.  I was sullen as I thought "Oh no they closed the store and tore the building down?".  I circled the block to make sure that it was so.

It turned out that I had already passed the store complex and was further down the street.  The bare land that I was looking at was actually the plot where a condo project that was planned but never built was to go.  The Publix was intact at that time.  I let off a sigh of relieve.

Despite my critical focus upon this specific community - I have a lot of pride and HOPE for this particular community in Atlanta.  It is a community in which a large number of African-American young people receive their education.  It is a community of older homes.  Some of these homes have been "recapitalized" and have been restored into their original beauty.   Indeed it is a community that is rich with history.   This strip of MLK Jr Blvd is known as the "Headquarters of the Civil Rights Movement" because so many meetings were held at the Pascal's Motor Lodge and Restaurant that was located on the same block as the Publix.  The closing of the Publix is definitely a blow to the community.

Stuck On "Back In The Day"

Whenever there is a television show that features former President Jimmy Carter, Rep John Lewis, NAACP's Julian Bond and Andrew Young - you can be 100% sure that it will be a show that focuses upon the past glories of the Civil Rights Movement in America.  Despite what anyone might believe based upon the apparent tone of my writings- I have no contempt for these past actions.  I am a student of history and thus I absolutely understand how critical these actions were in shaping the world of today.  I have no problem stating that if these brave men and women did not fight against the SYSTEM that was set against them that I would likely not be where I am today.

Since I am living today and are confined to the realities of the present moment I am forced into the reality that I cannot be content by the glories that are visible in the "rear view mirror".  Those who focus in upon these images risk driving over the edge as they fail to see the winding road that is in front of them at present.

My frustration with the present Black Establishment resides in their willingness to make use of "Civil Rights" symbolism as a means of resume enhancement as they market how appreciative we should be for what they have done for us.  Yet today they are apparently so inept at managing the same threats that bear down upon the Black community.  The assaults are the same - only the actors have changed.

I can't blame the closing of the Publix store on the "Black Establishment".   This development is merely a symbol of their promises that did not come through.   Yesterday a protest march was staged in the parking lot at the Publix, "demanding" that they not leave the community and leave so many of the community residents hanging.   Having to travel a greater distance for their food shopping.   If you only listened to their version of the story as consumers you might be convinced about the justness of their cause.  Unfortunately this does not tell the entire story.

As I had mentioned before the Publix Corporation agreed several years ago to invest in this community with the understanding that several other investments would be made:

• A Large Condo Complex adjacent to the Publix facility was to be built - as the picture above shows, this area remains a dirt lot with no buildings upon it
  
• The retail establishments on the block down to "Ashby Street" now called  "Joseph E Lowery Blvd" was to receive a major facelift - these stores remain undone, with anemic sales activity in the majority of them
  
• The old "Pascals Motor Lodge And Restaurant" was to have its restaurant reopened as "The Busy Bee Restaurant" - today the entire facility remains closed with plywood boards covering the windows

 The actions of Publix need to be put into the context of all of the built up hopes that failed to come true for the area.   I applaud Publix for making a run at supporting the community for the years that they had "skin in the game".   Unfortunately the store never was profitable and now it must close.



CRIME ON MLK JR DRIVE

I have done previous reports about how frequently "MLK Jr Drive" has been the tag line of various crime scenes over the years in Atlanta.   The report that a 30 year old Black woman was recently murdered along this street with a famous namesake merely continues the legacy of this as "the most dangerous area in Atlanta".

The truth is that the threat of assault and murder upon Black people that was faced as part of the "racial" threat of the societal order back in the day has been replaced by a culture of "thuggism" that has taken over this same community.   Some try to promote the White Supremacist threat as a superior one than that which is experienced today.   The truth is that with the exact same results being obtained - this is merely a set of thoughts done for little more than "mental contentment" among those who seek to defend the establishment.  The community is terrorized and intimidated from these crimes in a manner that is little different than when "White racists" ran unchecked, doing the same thing.  The key difference is that the traditional rhetoric and "moral outrage" that worked will when the assailant spanned racial lines is not exploitable today.   The demand to "lock them up and throw away the key" would then confound their efforts to reduce the impact of the "Prison Industrial Complex".

Today's Events Are Tomorrow's History

The fix is very clear.
We can no longer allow our present leaders to rest upon their laurels.  If they were able to get the "Street Pirates" to pay more homage to history and thus stop their attacks upon our people this would be grand.

Instead our loyalties to the past merely enable those who are in power over our key institutions to remain in power despite having failed to deliver upon their promises.

The promises about how the removal of all of the names of "Confederate Generals" from the street signs and replace them with "OUR heros" played too much in the realm of symbolism that some people have an inordinate amount of their agenda based in.  This serves as filler for the management toward "directed outcomes" that are actually needed.

The only choice for this community in the West End is to "handle their business".   Maybe a second tier store such as "Wayfield Foods" might step in and bring this building back to life.  

The challenge of regulating the individual actions of those who are causing the crime and terror in this same space proves to be far more challenging.  The same demand for respect for the value of human beings that is made against the corporate and government establishment (when it is run by adversarial forces) needs to be imparted upon the would be "Street Pirates".   The language that is necessary to bring them into order has yet to be sufficiently developed.