While watching the news last night, as I am hopelessly addicted to the current political climate and have been engaged in it tirelessly, CNN ran a story on Josh Packwood, the first white Valedictorian at Morehouse College in Atlanta.
I have to start by saying that some fine, intelligent AA men come out of Morehouse. They have put the stereotype of the young BM as thug, hopeless criminal, bound for prison to rest. What I found so striking and attractive about Mr. Packwood was that he seemed to have done something that a great deal of people refuse to do. LISTEN and open their minds to the reality that another group or ethnicity is faced with every day. I think he is a better person for it. During the interview I heard Josh use the word "Diaspora," I'm not positive, but I don't even think that I've heard white guys that I have dated use this term when directly referring to the African American community. At one point during the interview he was asked about the brother's on campus(I'm not quoting), or something to that affect, and without flinching an eye he stated that he feels that every Morehouse Man on that campus was his brother. How beautifully HUMAN! There was a small rumble about him being the Valedictorian. What a shame, because if a black person had earned the right to be class Valedictorian, and anyone did anything other than congratulate them there would be protests across America.
Please visit CNN.com to read the whole story, and sift through some of my possibly muddled points, and check out the pictures of this gorgeous young successful man.
3 comments:
He's seems a very nice young man and I wish him all the best. Heard a lot about him on other blogs.
Congratulations to Mr. Packwood and to Morehouse! In fact, Mr. Packwood is co-valedictorian with another black male student, but this fact has not been mentioned by the media reports (that part of the story is apparently not "news"). Well done to both men.
congrats to him!!!
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