The epiphany of Leroy Brooks
Nearly two and a half years ago, columnist Slim Smith wrote several pieces about Lowndes County Supervisor Leroy Brooks and a meeting Brooks organized, which was held at the Sim Scott Community Center. The meeting, called “Men of Color,” featured speeches by Brooks and by then City Councilman Abdul Kabir Kareem on the subject of increased crime and violence in black neighborhoods.
In his column on the meeting, Smith reported: “poverty, drugs and unemployment are the driving factors behind the violence” and “Brooks’ group has specific goals and is developing an organized plan to address the problems the community faces.”
Brooks declared that “black men are not stepping up and doing their part … This is our problem …Whites are not doing these drive-by shootings; these teenage girls aren’t having white babies.”
Additionally, Smith offered the following: “One other observation that cannot be avoided. If the black men of the community are the solution, it’s pretty clear the black men of the community must be held accountable for the problem, too. After all, where were the black men of the community when these problems first began to emerge? Where were they when teens first began to act defiantly in the classroom? Where were they when dropping out of school became an accepted practice? Where were they when a 15-year-old boy is considered ‘beyond reach’? Where were the black men of the community then? Were there no dedicated black fathers, no black men in position of influence in the churches, government and community organizations then? No, the black men who gathered Monday at Sim Scott, most of them middle-aged or older, have been here all along.”
Also from Smith’s column: “It’s our fault,” Karriem said. At that point, Brooks rose and addressed the audience. He cannot use all of his energy fighting, he said, so he’s “opted to use my energy to change things.” Brooks said he had a “new sense of purpose,” one which he can direct towards youth mentoring, community volunteerism, fatherhood mentoring, crime prevention, and spiritual enhancement. Brooks said, in September 2014, that he’d begun to think about what he wanted his legacy to be. He is now dedicated to trying to get people where they want to be. A headline referred to Brooks’ “new sense of purpose” as an “epiphany.”
I was so impressed by Brooks’ new sense of purpose that I called him and offered to help in any way I could.
We spoke for some time even though I have never met him. He thanked me and said I’d hear from him. That was 2 1/2 YEARS ago. And, so far as I know, nothing has come of the Brooks Plan.
If that is the case, our prospects for improvement are dim. We are told by the leaders of the black community to “stay out of it… mind your own business.” We are only to hope for constructive change … silently. Even so, I’d like to know what Brooks’ “epiphany” has accomplished in the last 2 1/2 years. Wouldn’t you?
Ben C. Toledano
Columbus
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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