The Consortium of African American Organizations announces the unveiling of its new website at
www.caao.net. Take a look and let director Connie Atkins know what you think.
Choking the Pipeline
We take advantage of the fact that this month begins on a Thursday to
inaugurate what may be a new tradition: using the first Thursday of the month
to focus on a specific local community nonprofit or issue.
As
a reminder, when we debuted Nonprofit Thursdays six weeks ago, we were
acknowledging the critical role nonprofit organizations play in civic,
business, social, and of course, religious life, most especially in Cleveland’s
black community. We celebrated new executive leadership at three of the city’s
principal black organizations: The Urban League, The United Black Fund, and the
NAACP.
At
the same time we alluded to the tendency of too many organizations in our
community to marginalize themselves by recycling the same officers and board
members. This unhealthy practice has retarded the development of new
leadership and fresh ideas in the black community for at least forty years.
In
a healthy environment, board members and executive directors alike would
constantly look to recruit and develop new participants and supporters.
There
is an enormous reservoir of talent in our community waiting to be tapped:
• The
young neighbor who organizes the bake sale to raise funds for her child’s
elementary school can use the same talents to benefit a neighborhood center or
advocacy group.
• That co-worker skilled in organizing workplace functions who
consistently demonstrate a knack for great ideas for entertaining, fundraising,
or recruiting.
• The new attorney/insurance agent/ accountant/ corporate
executive/ returning veteran in your neighborhood who could contribute mightily
to your organization while simultaneously expanding their own personal network.
There
is a natural progression of responsibility in both the workplace and
the civic arenas. New recruits start at the bottom, have a chance to make
mistakes and learn from them, to demonstrate energy, industry, initiative, team
spirit. They move from neophyte to assistant to associate to primary to chief
as they demonstrate mastery and reliability and readiness. Before long the best and brightest are ready for leadership roles in our churches, social agencies. Some may emerge as
potential candidates for public office.
At
the dawn of a new era in the sixties, when the possibility arose that a black
person might become mayor of Cleveland, Carl Stokes was ready. He had
demonstrated the skills and commitment necessary for the job. He was 36 when he
ran the first time.
Contrast that era to 2001 when another young lawyer, a
native son with national credentials, tossed his hat in the mayoral ring. It
took his uncommon tenacity and the eventual endorsement of his Congresswoman to
overcome the inbred and closed structure of our community and make Ray Pierce a
viable candidate against the wishes of an aggregation of cautious and timid gatekeepers.
It
is not so much caution and timidity that causes so many of our organizations to
turn their collective backs on welcoming and developing our young people into
future leaders. It is unfortunately something worse than that: a misplaced
sense of entitlement, a desire to hold on to some puny or imagined piece of
power or prestige.
When
insiders hang on too long they cease being community assets and become
community clogs. They choke off the natural paths our youth to stretch and
grow.
When
young people don’t see opportunity or a welcome hand, they are likely either to
disengage or depart. Most of us have seen our children leave Cleveland for
places of greater opportunity.
Where
are the opportunity structures in Cleveland when what should be our premier and
even second-tier organizations have the same board members in place for
decades?
One
of the worst offenders in this regard is the Cleveland branch NAACP. The
president has been there twenty years. Several members of the executive
committee have been there twice that long.
In
our first paragraph we said we would spotlight a community nonprofit. As it happens this time the spotlight reveals mold.
But we end by
making this plea: resolve to join the NAACP in 2012. If we can reclaim the most
sclerotic organization in our community from its politburo, there’s no limit to
what we can do.
Occupy
NAACP in 2012!
