| Empowering The World's Diversity |
| Welcome to HerndonDavis.com! Home of The Herndon Davis Diversity Reports |
| FACE THE FACTS • Homicide is the number one cause of death for black men between fifteen and twenty-nine years of age and has been for decades. • Of the roughly sixteen thousand homicides in this country each year, more than half are committed by black men. A black man is seven times more likely to commit a murder (excluding military actions) than a white man, and six times more likely to be murdered. (Black mothers live with these numbers. We don’t know how they sleep at night.) • Ninety-four percent of all black people who are murdered are murdered by other black people. • The life expectancy at birth of black men is sixty-nine years, compared to seventy-five years for white men, eighty for white women, and seventy-six for black women. • In the past several decades, the suicide rate among young black men has increased more than 100 percent. • In some cities, black males have high school drop-out rates of more than 50 percent. • Young black men are twice as likely to be unemployed as white, Hispanic, and Asian men. • Although black people make up just 12 percent of the general population, they make up nearly 44 percent of the prison population. • At any given time, as many as one in four of all young black men are in the criminal justice system—in prison or jail, on probation, or on parole. • By the time they reach their mid- thirties, six out of ten black high school dropouts have spent time in prison. • About one-third of the homeless are black men. This is madness! Back in 1950, there were twice as many white people in prison as black. Today, there are more black people than white in prison. We’re not saying there is no discrimination or racial profiling today, but there is less than there was in 1950. These are not “political” criminals. These are people selling drugs, stealing, or shooting their buddies over trivia. Excerpt reprinted with permission from Thomas Nelson Publishing |
| By: Herndon L. Davis |
Book Review and Commentary
What is most striking about this book is that it is highly intellectual without being intimidating to those it
is trying to reach. It is thorough in its analysis of underperforming black communities but it doesn’t leave
us there. This is most definitely a solutions driven handbook, a valued tool, a guiding light and a gift to
all those who seek its treasures.
First, we’re forced to face the ugly facts about America’s black community: (See column to the left).
Next, we’re provided with needed in-your-face statements such as “Men claim your children and sisters
hang in there” With 70% of black children born to single family homes and with a divorce rate twice as
high as white people in America, obviously the black family is in crisis. These are facts that we are
challenged within the first chapter.
But as in any situation there’s always hope as long as we’re willing to pursue it. For the remainder of the
book readers are treated to a cornucopia of repackaged common sense tips, life skills, and sage advice
geared directly towards black parents. Although much of the advice may appear to be no-brainers to the
middle class; there are many people born and raised into the vicious cycle of generational poverty and
single family homes who often have never heard it or even had any of these values instilled in them
growing up.
And the co-authors, Cosby and Poussaint do not tread lightly either as no stone is left unturned. Their
collective advice spans the entire spectrum of life as they speak about the following:
-The correct way to tend to a crying baby (i.e caressing versus shaking)
-The preference of breast feeding children.
-Effective ways to discipline a child (firm rules and punishment versus continuous beatings)
-Preparing nutritional meals versus meals filled with pizza and macaroni and cheese.
-Eating dinner together without the television
-Dramatically cutting out television usage
-Providing encouraging words of support and love
-Assisting children with their homework and staying engaged with teachers and school administrators
-Stopping sibling rivalry especially between children with different fathers/mothers.
-Monitoring intake of hip hop/rap music
-Providing a warm and stable home for children.
Cosby and Poussaint also distill advice to parents themselves in getting their own act together such as:
-Facing their own insecurities of being ashamed of being black
-Facing their insecurities of skin color
-Favoring certain children and/or protecting certain children based upon their skin color
-Mistreating their children based upon dislike of the “baby’s daddy/mama”
-Taking their work frustrations out on children.
-Using profanity around their children
-Not using standard English around their children
-Offering advice on how to improve their language skills.
Come on People is an essential guide to individuals who don’t know what is that they don’t know. This
book guides them to their own conclusions and eventually to their fate as productive, happy and
successful people.
What is most striking about this book is that it is highly intellectual without being intimidating to those it
is trying to reach. It is thorough in its analysis of underperforming black communities but it doesn’t leave
us there. This is most definitely a solutions driven handbook, a valued tool, a guiding light and a gift to
all those who seek its treasures.
First, we’re forced to face the ugly facts about America’s black community: (See column to the left).
Next, we’re provided with needed in-your-face statements such as “Men claim your children and sisters
hang in there” With 70% of black children born to single family homes and with a divorce rate twice as
high as white people in America, obviously the black family is in crisis. These are facts that we are
challenged within the first chapter.
But as in any situation there’s always hope as long as we’re willing to pursue it. For the remainder of the
book readers are treated to a cornucopia of repackaged common sense tips, life skills, and sage advice
geared directly towards black parents. Although much of the advice may appear to be no-brainers to the
middle class; there are many people born and raised into the vicious cycle of generational poverty and
single family homes who often have never heard it or even had any of these values instilled in them
growing up.
And the co-authors, Cosby and Poussaint do not tread lightly either as no stone is left unturned. Their
collective advice spans the entire spectrum of life as they speak about the following:
-The correct way to tend to a crying baby (i.e caressing versus shaking)
-The preference of breast feeding children.
-Effective ways to discipline a child (firm rules and punishment versus continuous beatings)
-Preparing nutritional meals versus meals filled with pizza and macaroni and cheese.
-Eating dinner together without the television
-Dramatically cutting out television usage
-Providing encouraging words of support and love
-Assisting children with their homework and staying engaged with teachers and school administrators
-Stopping sibling rivalry especially between children with different fathers/mothers.
-Monitoring intake of hip hop/rap music
-Providing a warm and stable home for children.
Cosby and Poussaint also distill advice to parents themselves in getting their own act together such as:
-Facing their own insecurities of being ashamed of being black
-Facing their insecurities of skin color
-Favoring certain children and/or protecting certain children based upon their skin color
-Mistreating their children based upon dislike of the “baby’s daddy/mama”
-Taking their work frustrations out on children.
-Using profanity around their children
-Not using standard English around their children
-Offering advice on how to improve their language skills.
Come on People is an essential guide to individuals who don’t know what is that they don’t know. This
book guides them to their own conclusions and eventually to their fate as productive, happy and
successful people.
Interview with Dr. Alvin Poussaint
In my engaging one-on-one interview with co-author, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, I pressed him for more details on the book, who the book is geared towards
and why.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s View of "Come On People"
After doing a round-up of television interviews promoting the book, amazingly the true value of its worth still was seemingly lost explains Poussaint.
"People didn’t get really get a true picture of the scope of the book. We were trying to suggest to ways of how people could be victors in all of the
different aspects of their life and what types of things needed to change."
For instance "We have an epidemic of obesity in the black community. A lot of parents don’t know what nutritious food is. They’re feeding them soul
food and then together with soul food their feeding them a lot of fast food which is not very nutritious We feel that a lot of people need to be reminded
about nutritious food and how to feed their children and keep a healthy home with regard to home and diet."
In fact the book covers everything from maintaining a stable diet, money management, raising families, as well as stressing education and also how to
become activists for causes that matter most to individuals.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts on the Black Church
With such negative statistics in certain segments of the black community what exactly should the role of the black church be? Are black churches doing
their job in helping to uplift the black community? If not how should black faith communities engage themselves in reversing the negative trends within
the black community?
Dr. Alvin Poussaint expresses the following:
“I think as always the black church is very important and has played a key role in the history of black people in America, much of it positive. And it’s
from the church that many of our civil rights leaders came. Also a lot of black churches because I’ve spoken at a many of them do lot of community
programs, community outreach where its not just people coming to church on Sunday and hearing a sermon. So I think that’s very positive.
But I think then there’re some churches where the people [are like] I have a personal God but they’re not doing very much for the community. They’re
not trying to solve some of the problems. They’re not out reaching out to the young people or to the children and developing programs. It becomes like
what can God do for me and not what I can do for God in a sense of serving the community.
We were emphasizing that people who are connected to the church and God should be more service oriented and do things to help clean up the
community. That is in our mind to be true Christians in kind of the spirit of Jesus Christ. Church isn’t just something you go to on Sunday and hear a
sermon and maybe even feel a bit entertained but then go home and don’t carry these Christian principles and practices into your home life into your
community life or even in the way you treat people in the community.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts on Hip Hop Culture
In chapter 5 of “Come On People” it takes a decided stand against negative media in its portrayal of black people and with hip hop culture being at the
top of its list. Both Cosby and Poussaint take on hip hop artists taking them to task for perpetuating both violent images and degrading images towards
women.
However in the defense of hip hop, there is an opposing view and voices that says “We’re only rapping and singing about what we see and what we
experience within our community. We’re just telling it like it is.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s response:
“I don’t agree with that. First of all there’s always been positive hip hop. And the people who do that selection are the record industry and then the hip
hop artists play to the record industry in terms of what they think markets and sells best. So if they think the n-word sells well which it does, then I
think a lot of hip hop artists move in the direction because that’s the way they get their jobs and that’s the way they get their records out and that’s the
way they make money
Now they could be reflecting in a sense their negative feelings about being black or their negative feelings about women and so on. But that doesn’t
mean that’s its okay. In other words, their values in putting down black people and putting down women and demeaning and degrading them isn’t a
value that should be supported and it shouldn’t be okay. Whatever your feelings you have to take the high road in your relationship to black people.
They even celebrate violence in gangster rap when we’re having an epidemic of homicides among young black men who actually look to gangster rap
for their values without many competing factors for their minds and souls. Black children at very young ages are exposed to those kinds of lyrics and
calling each other the n-word and thinking women are no good and what life is about is sex and getting some and then maybe blowing your friends
away.”
Dr. Poussaint adds that rappers in gangster rap “aren’t singing about education” and that it’s “very very negative.”
“I don’t think that we should feel intimidated by the industry or excuses well their just expressing the sentiments of the community because I don’t think
that’s true. And if you talk to most of the community, they’re afraid of violence. The parents and other people are terrified of violence and the lost of
all these young lives, but yet they celebrate in a lot of gangster rap. A lot of young women don’t want to be seen as hoes and bitches.
If we’re going to get all angry with Imus we have to get angry at the people in our community who are doing it to their own people.
However Dr. Poussaint does stress that “I’m not saying all of hip hop. I see hip hop as an art form that’s beautiful that’s part of the evolution of black
music in the country but I do object to some of the values that it perpetuates and is perpetuating and promoting and making the abnormal normal. To be
thuggish they make normal. So then black kids try to imitate being thuggish as if it’s the normal way to be when its not. When it leads even to their own
self-destruction.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts On Institutionalized Racism
Many black critics of Bill Cosby and Dr. Poussaint have stated that the highly accomplished men do not firmly address institutionalized racism and
instead points the finger of blame towards the poor.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s response:
“Both Bill Cosby and I feel that there is systemic racism in America and institutionalized racism in American there’s no question about that. We
acknowledge that in the book. There’s still racial profiling.
Our point is that even though that still exists and that it existed in worst forms in the past. That the history of black people has been that they have
jumped over those hurdles despite the racism and didn’t succumb as victims and say there’s nothing I can do to better myself or better my community.
By having that type of posture we have been very successful by and large as a people in overcoming segregation and making great strides in a very
short period of time.
We all started off being poor. And now we have a poverty rate of 25% but the rest of black people are above that poverty line so we’ve come a long
way by trying and striving and still trying to succeed and get past the barriers and not kind of just give in and quit and say there’s nothing we can do
because racism is so overwhelming. Well racism is here but it’s not as overwhelming as it was 50 years ago. Even during segregation there were
black people going to historically black colleges in the south who were being successful and making something of their lives.
We think the danger is in people feeling well we’re just helpless against this racism and so we’re going to be hopeless and we’re so hopeless we’re
just going to live self-destructive lives, we’re going to kill each other, and we’re going to steal and rob and go to jail. We feel that people have
choices in these circumstances even with the racism about what they do and what kind of choices they make for their lives.”
We’re urging people to be activists and that people have to be activists against systematic racism and they have to be activists on behalf of themselves
in doing better and in taking the high road and not the low road.”
Herndon L. Davis is an author, lecturer and TV/Radio Host. He can be reached directly at www.herndondavis.com
In my engaging one-on-one interview with co-author, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, I pressed him for more details on the book, who the book is geared towards
and why.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s View of "Come On People"
After doing a round-up of television interviews promoting the book, amazingly the true value of its worth still was seemingly lost explains Poussaint.
"People didn’t get really get a true picture of the scope of the book. We were trying to suggest to ways of how people could be victors in all of the
different aspects of their life and what types of things needed to change."
For instance "We have an epidemic of obesity in the black community. A lot of parents don’t know what nutritious food is. They’re feeding them soul
food and then together with soul food their feeding them a lot of fast food which is not very nutritious We feel that a lot of people need to be reminded
about nutritious food and how to feed their children and keep a healthy home with regard to home and diet."
In fact the book covers everything from maintaining a stable diet, money management, raising families, as well as stressing education and also how to
become activists for causes that matter most to individuals.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts on the Black Church
With such negative statistics in certain segments of the black community what exactly should the role of the black church be? Are black churches doing
their job in helping to uplift the black community? If not how should black faith communities engage themselves in reversing the negative trends within
the black community?
Dr. Alvin Poussaint expresses the following:
“I think as always the black church is very important and has played a key role in the history of black people in America, much of it positive. And it’s
from the church that many of our civil rights leaders came. Also a lot of black churches because I’ve spoken at a many of them do lot of community
programs, community outreach where its not just people coming to church on Sunday and hearing a sermon. So I think that’s very positive.
But I think then there’re some churches where the people [are like] I have a personal God but they’re not doing very much for the community. They’re
not trying to solve some of the problems. They’re not out reaching out to the young people or to the children and developing programs. It becomes like
what can God do for me and not what I can do for God in a sense of serving the community.
We were emphasizing that people who are connected to the church and God should be more service oriented and do things to help clean up the
community. That is in our mind to be true Christians in kind of the spirit of Jesus Christ. Church isn’t just something you go to on Sunday and hear a
sermon and maybe even feel a bit entertained but then go home and don’t carry these Christian principles and practices into your home life into your
community life or even in the way you treat people in the community.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts on Hip Hop Culture
In chapter 5 of “Come On People” it takes a decided stand against negative media in its portrayal of black people and with hip hop culture being at the
top of its list. Both Cosby and Poussaint take on hip hop artists taking them to task for perpetuating both violent images and degrading images towards
women.
However in the defense of hip hop, there is an opposing view and voices that says “We’re only rapping and singing about what we see and what we
experience within our community. We’re just telling it like it is.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s response:
“I don’t agree with that. First of all there’s always been positive hip hop. And the people who do that selection are the record industry and then the hip
hop artists play to the record industry in terms of what they think markets and sells best. So if they think the n-word sells well which it does, then I
think a lot of hip hop artists move in the direction because that’s the way they get their jobs and that’s the way they get their records out and that’s the
way they make money
Now they could be reflecting in a sense their negative feelings about being black or their negative feelings about women and so on. But that doesn’t
mean that’s its okay. In other words, their values in putting down black people and putting down women and demeaning and degrading them isn’t a
value that should be supported and it shouldn’t be okay. Whatever your feelings you have to take the high road in your relationship to black people.
They even celebrate violence in gangster rap when we’re having an epidemic of homicides among young black men who actually look to gangster rap
for their values without many competing factors for their minds and souls. Black children at very young ages are exposed to those kinds of lyrics and
calling each other the n-word and thinking women are no good and what life is about is sex and getting some and then maybe blowing your friends
away.”
Dr. Poussaint adds that rappers in gangster rap “aren’t singing about education” and that it’s “very very negative.”
“I don’t think that we should feel intimidated by the industry or excuses well their just expressing the sentiments of the community because I don’t think
that’s true. And if you talk to most of the community, they’re afraid of violence. The parents and other people are terrified of violence and the lost of
all these young lives, but yet they celebrate in a lot of gangster rap. A lot of young women don’t want to be seen as hoes and bitches.
If we’re going to get all angry with Imus we have to get angry at the people in our community who are doing it to their own people.
However Dr. Poussaint does stress that “I’m not saying all of hip hop. I see hip hop as an art form that’s beautiful that’s part of the evolution of black
music in the country but I do object to some of the values that it perpetuates and is perpetuating and promoting and making the abnormal normal. To be
thuggish they make normal. So then black kids try to imitate being thuggish as if it’s the normal way to be when its not. When it leads even to their own
self-destruction.”
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s Thoughts On Institutionalized Racism
Many black critics of Bill Cosby and Dr. Poussaint have stated that the highly accomplished men do not firmly address institutionalized racism and
instead points the finger of blame towards the poor.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint’s response:
“Both Bill Cosby and I feel that there is systemic racism in America and institutionalized racism in American there’s no question about that. We
acknowledge that in the book. There’s still racial profiling.
Our point is that even though that still exists and that it existed in worst forms in the past. That the history of black people has been that they have
jumped over those hurdles despite the racism and didn’t succumb as victims and say there’s nothing I can do to better myself or better my community.
By having that type of posture we have been very successful by and large as a people in overcoming segregation and making great strides in a very
short period of time.
We all started off being poor. And now we have a poverty rate of 25% but the rest of black people are above that poverty line so we’ve come a long
way by trying and striving and still trying to succeed and get past the barriers and not kind of just give in and quit and say there’s nothing we can do
because racism is so overwhelming. Well racism is here but it’s not as overwhelming as it was 50 years ago. Even during segregation there were
black people going to historically black colleges in the south who were being successful and making something of their lives.
We think the danger is in people feeling well we’re just helpless against this racism and so we’re going to be hopeless and we’re so hopeless we’re
just going to live self-destructive lives, we’re going to kill each other, and we’re going to steal and rob and go to jail. We feel that people have
choices in these circumstances even with the racism about what they do and what kind of choices they make for their lives.”
We’re urging people to be activists and that people have to be activists against systematic racism and they have to be activists on behalf of themselves
in doing better and in taking the high road and not the low road.”
Herndon L. Davis is an author, lecturer and TV/Radio Host. He can be reached directly at www.herndondavis.com
In an overwhelming act of community concern, comedian Bill Cosby and Harvard Medical School
professor, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, MD partnered together to co-author a bold but loving, educational yet
inspiring book titled “Come On People.” Written with the expressed intention of providing an uplifting
hand to underperforming black communities this book provides amazing life skills as well as stories of
hope and success in overcoming despair and tragedy.
After being featured on countless news programs such as Meet The Press, Good Morning America,
Larry King Live, the Oprah Winfrey Show and many others; the gravity, volume and impact of “Come On
People” still has not been given its full credit or valued honor; at least not until now. I personally
interviewed Dr. Alvin Poussaint who provides an even greater insight into the book.
professor, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, MD partnered together to co-author a bold but loving, educational yet
inspiring book titled “Come On People.” Written with the expressed intention of providing an uplifting
hand to underperforming black communities this book provides amazing life skills as well as stories of
hope and success in overcoming despair and tragedy.
After being featured on countless news programs such as Meet The Press, Good Morning America,
Larry King Live, the Oprah Winfrey Show and many others; the gravity, volume and impact of “Come On
People” still has not been given its full credit or valued honor; at least not until now. I personally
interviewed Dr. Alvin Poussaint who provides an even greater insight into the book.
Dr. Alvin Poussaint
Director of the Media Center of the Judge Baker
Children's Center in Boston. He is also a Professor
of Psychiatry and Faculty Associate Dean for
Student Affairs at Harvard Medical School.
Click here to read his bio
Director of the Media Center of the Judge Baker
Children's Center in Boston. He is also a Professor
of Psychiatry and Faculty Associate Dean for
Student Affairs at Harvard Medical School.
Click here to read his bio
