the talented tenth

There must be a database with a list gifted and talented youth of color somewhere. I think the NAACP working in conjuction with the Urban League is behind this. Lifting as we climb indeed.
Everytime I go to some kind of event, whether it is a mixer for interns in the media industry, a scholar awards banquet, or a youth conference the degrees of separation between folk are pretty slim. It goes a little something like this:
Me: Hey Keisha, it was nice to have met you. Where did you say you go to school again?
Keisha: I go to [insert elite college or HBCU here]
Me: Do you know [insert name of friend/associate/someone who runs in the same circles]
Keisha: Girl! Of course I know them!

And of course they do. Most of the college bound or college educated kids I know are or have been involved in some kind of prepartory program, went to a summer enrichment camp, and have participated in a pre-business/career organization, such as Prep for Prep, Posse, Minds Matter, SEO, INROADS, CLEO, CTY, A Better Chance, Magic Johnson Foundation (shouts to my TMS fam!), Ron Brown Scholars... clearly the list goes on and on, like the Erykah Badu song.
(sidebar - click on the links and educate any kids you know about these programs. They can make all the difference).

So where do we come in? We the scholars, the black and brown intelligentsia, what do we owe? Many of the products and grads of these various programs probably would have gone on to excellent colleges and embarked on successful careers. Vision and drive are the all important factors, yet the road was made much easier for us given these programs. There is much to be said about gathering a large group of like minded, driven students of color, when the main stream media denies its very exsistance or treats us as an anamoly. Often times when I'm sitting at Amherst, the only woman of color in a class I think back to an INROADS workshop or any other event when I was surrounded by my brothers and sisters who were carring the torch passed down by W.E.B Du Bois, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Charles Hamilton Huston (Amherst alum, you better act like you know!).

Now we have to keep up our side of the bargain and do our part. We were not given these gifts and opportunities freely. We need to postpone line stepping and doing the cupid shuffle for 5 minutes and make sure we hip others to the things we were able to take full advantage of. Matther 22:14 says it best, "For many are called, but few are chosen". And we have been chosen to make sure that the semi-elitist Du Boisian concept of the Talented Tenth, becomes the All Talented, with all of us reaching our fullest potential.

Indeed, to whom much is given much is required (special shouts to my Schuyler folk)