By now we know that twice a year we get to make time change. Each year those moments seem to just pop up on us even though we know they happen like clockwork. In the Spring, we move the time forward by an hour, which means we lose an hour of sleep. In the Fall, we move the time back an hour which means we gain an hour’s sleep. Some folks have mixed feelings about the time change, while others have strong feelings about our current times.
What if we not just make time change but also make the current times change? Well first, let’s go back to when America was trying to do that by getting its footing. After the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution, folks were trying to figure out whether they wanted to be a ‘collaboration of colonies or a confederation of States’. To meet the moment, they drafted Articles of Confederation. But after a couple of years things weren’t working as they wished, so they had to figure out whether they wanted to be a ‘confederation of States or union of States.’ They revamped the Articles of Confederation to create a U.S. Constitution as a democratic republic. That document has stood the test of time.
These days some folks want to turn things upside down, by hinting at suspending the Constitution. It’s as if they’re pushing for the rebirth of the Confederacy or coming at DEI like a new Revolution. Furthermore, some companies want to use DEI to flaunt their street cred in ‘name, image and likeness’ but chose to drop DEI from their ‘name, image and likeness’ of in-house programs. They seem to forget that the first ‘call to action’ of the Constitution is ‘to form a more perfect Union’, not a more white or more racist or more divisive union. Maybe we gotta stop the press and the madness and ask who’s ready to meet the moment? History shows that when we arrived at a similar crossroads, we deployed ‘three lanes of activism’ as is happening now:
- Blockade: Using our dollars as economic leverage through boycott and buy-in.
- Broadcast: Rallying/mobilizing around black voices in mainstream media or independent black media.
- Best Life: Charting a course to overcome the struggle, get a breakthrough and build excellence through education.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was an early catalyst in the civil rights movement. In addition, black media played a key role in keeping the community informed and on point. Back then, folks like Rev. James Farmer were key with training the masses on non-violent protest. Those efforts have always been about how we upgrade America. Instead, some want to keep repeating the cycle of America of ‘advancement, reversal, reconstruction, resistance’. This self-defeating, self-sabotaging cycle might remind us of those times when personal computers first arrived on the product scene. It was somewhat cumbersome to use in having to remember direct commands and wait for the response. Then things were upgraded to what we have nowadays in ‘point & click’. The tech heads heard the frustrations/complaints of consumers and came up with a better way to address those feelings.
While blockade and broadcast are important areas of activism, SAIC also realized that we could take a page from the tech heads and develop a strategy around a platform with content, programs and events that run on top of the platform like apps. This is like the OS model that tech devices use today. This way the three lanes of activism don’t end up building ‘loose cannons’ as idols & imposters in as much as building ‘civic strong’ people… ‘we the people’. Then, a bonus is that SAIC brings AI capabilities (automatic intelligence as opposed to automatic ignorance) by connecting data points across history, civics and culture. With all that said, if we’re gonna have #AmericaLiveUp to its ideals and best life, as we saw with the founders and tech heads, we gotta breakout a shift in:
1. Sword & Shield
Humanity has always produced change, and tech heads have always delivered upgrades by how things went from primitive to innovative. There was a time when the weapons of choice were swords & shields in combat. But the fight cannot go on forever. So, for every next-level solution, a shift occurs that involves diplomacy or innovation. Think of the days of the American Revolution to our current point, we went from collaboration to confederation to constitution. Folks then asked the question, What’s America missing? The answer led them to the motto “Out of Many, One” as well as legislation in American ideals/values.
2. Hearts & Homes
At first, political parties didn’t exist. Efforts in citizenship and leadership were guided by civic virtue of ‘hearts & homes for America’. Even James Madison in Federalist Paper #14 seems to confirm that by saying, “Hearken not to the unnatural voice which tells you that the people of America, knit together as they are by so many cords of affection, can no longer live together as members of the same family; can no longer continue the mutual guardians of their mutual happiness; can no longer be fellow citizens of one great respectable and flourishing empire.” But what we see much of today is mere virtue signaling.
3. Campus & Community
Our journey to a more perfect union has gone through upgrades in representation. Think of us starting out as ‘Community 1.0’ with education institutions training a new nation in self-government, while abolitionists focused on ending slavery. After the civil war more institutions came on board, including HBCUs. A shift to ‘Community 2.0’ occurred with industrialization training, while activists sounded the alarm on lynchings. As segregation took hold, a shift to ‘Community 3.0’ saw citizens trained in non-violent protest, and there was a rise in information-tech. Now there’s STEAM in education as we ask, “What’s America missing?”
4. Town & Country
With the initial Articles of Confederation, the founders soon realized some gaps. There was a problem with handling ‘common defense’ of the colonies. After the words “We the people in order to form a more perfect union”, you’ll see five areas they felt the new U.S. Constitution would address: establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. SAIC sees an opportunity to begin answering the question “what’s America missing” like the founders did in their approach to those five areas.
So, let’s go from primitive to innovative in America’s next chapter, as opposed to the reverse or just being about lining your pocket while the market tumbles. Join us in answering the question, “what’s America missing?” Plus, SAIC is looking at new ways to deliver content, programs and events where folks have a better handle of hot-button issues, by how they see America in color, not just in black & white. What do you do when you want a rebirth of the Confederacy? Maybe you go to the dark ages. What do you do for an upgrade to America’s story? Change the times and make our journeys one with more #MojoInAmerica!
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Tracks: Armin Van Buuren – Turn It Up – https://youtu.be/kivuDS-6HbQ?si=6CKI5wTMklTe1IFy
Dwayne Wiggins – What’s Really Going On – https://youtu.be/0GIFY7NI-OI?si=VnzYEF97vDeVkHel
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