See America In Color

The Civic Revolution Gonna Be Televised! Or At Least Impact Culture Like Color TVs Did Back in the Day

Preview Summary –

There’s been an outpouring of frustration at Townhalls across the country. Folks are upset with how things have unfolded over the past 100 days of public affairs.
These days we can’t just get caught up with the emotions of things. We gotta understand the evolution of things.
What if U.S.A. now stood for the United States of Authenticity? It might give us a new way of looking at how we address the issues with clarity.

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Main Content:

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

It was one of the most anticipated NFL Drafts in recent memory. Folks showed up in droves at the Packers stadium. Others tuned-in for the multi-day, hours-long coverage on cable and broadcast. The big question was, “would Shedeur Sanders get picked in the first round?” Well, he ended up being selected in the fifth round as the 144^th pick overall. The experience of ‘dream delay, detour and disappointment’ is one that I can relate to in my own life’s work, as Sanders had in this process. Every sports analyst had their take on what went down or why he got picked so far down. Some wondered, “what kinda impact will he have in the league?”

The answer to that question is gonna take some time to unwind, but we’ve got other issues at hand. Over the past few months there’s been an outpouring of frustration at Townhalls across the country. Folks are upset with how things have unfolded in public affairs over the past 100 days. So, we gotta respond correctly to the cries of the America people over the next 100 days. Those cries might be because, as Fannie Lou Hamer once said, some folks are “sick and tired of being sick and tired.” Some cries are because we keep going through the same cycles, where things need to change. Others cry out because they’re hungry for real information, not the misinformation and disinformation in some media spaces.

These days we can’t just get caught up with the emotions of things. We gotta understand the evolution of things. Think about how we went from black & white TV to color TV back when. This shift happened because technology no longer relied on just projecting ‘white light’. Instead, it combined three streams of colored light, (red, green, blue). It’s those three streams that give us the beautiful picture on our color TV set. Furthermore, with B&W TV, if you turn up the brightness (whiteness) too high, it’s hard to enjoy watching. With color, if you take away red, green or blue, that’s sure gonna be a terrible picture.

Maybe that’s some of what we’re dealing with, which is deeper than just what we see in the politics of the day. When folks wanna take away Black history from the American story, that makes the picture worse. When folks just want to turn up the brightness (whiteness) of the American movie trailer, then it’s hard to enjoy living in America or to advance the American Dream. We can use the campaign/platform of See America In Color (SAIC) for how we get a better picture of civic/social issues for a higher level of citizenship. This way we’ll impact culture, like color TVs did back in the day.

**Civic Revolution Televised (to your smartphone)**

That’s why the Civic Revolution gonna be televised. It’s time to ‘set it off’! Let’s break down the issues to breakout a shift in town and country. Folks will understand how we got here as a nation by looking at the U.S. presidencies of John Adams, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. Then, what if the power of the people and the people in power came together in a major way to shore up our democracy? We can take a page from 1798 and regular citizens at the local level, public officials across State Legislatures, as well as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison at the federal level. When we model these actions, our Civic Revolution will be on a fresh path of:

1. Life

The nation’s founders were influenced by the Enlightenment era. They brought that to life in the Declaration of Independence which says, “all men are created equal and are endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights”. What they might not have fully shared is that we’re also born to fulfill certain inner assets around mind, body and spirit. Living a full life isn’t just tied to those God-endowed rights, but also to how we make life ‘pop’, like music does for the culture. When we express these inalienable rights and inner assets, we live like an impact player that’s seen as a rock star.

2. Liberty

For those inner assets to be fully expressed, we gotta have the liberty to think, do and act in ways that reveal our authentic self. It’s the real you that shines through. Otherwise, you’re living out of the ego self which is the made up you. America seems to be wrestling with that too. There’s the real America based on true liberty, and the made-up America based on grievance, hate and divisiveness. Living our best life is like listening to music. Those tracks are built around beats, hooks and bars which create flow. Our inalienable rights and hidden assets (e.g. calling, purpose, passion) can create flow too, a beautiful thing.

3. Happiness

Why is it that some Americans seem so wound up about any and everything? Is it that they’re unaware or out of touch? Our happiness often comes from experiences we have around the good things in life. But there’s also an extended happiness of inner approval and outer awareness. When those carry over to our life’s work, we might find ways to stand on civics the same way we stand on business or stand on sports for our dollars or enjoyment. If that sounds like a stretch, just consider that the founders included happiness in the nation’s Declaration, which they used as a tool of enlightenment to lead with civics.

4. Witness

The thousands who showed up at the NFL Draft can say, “they were there.” They were able to witness events in real time. In the Constitution there’re five objectives for guiding us in real time as a nation. One of them is found in these words: “secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.” That’s another way of saying we can be a ‘witness’ by being there as things happen and we can be a ‘witness’ in how we leave a legacy. It’s about walking in the shoes of history, connecting the dots across history, civics and culture to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.

What if U.S.A. now stood for the United States of Authenticity? It might give us a new way of looking at how we address the issues with clarity. There’re times we want politics to be a solution for things that are better solved through civics. With civics, we can build a crossover coalition in the spirit of what Dr. King called the ‘beloved community.’ It’s time for a new rising that reflects true enlightenment and puts us on a fresh path in life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. We can be a witness in shoring-up our democracy. That’s the kind of impact we’ll make in securing the blessing of liberty, prosperity and posterity.

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus, you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: Jac Ross – A Change is Gonna Come – https://youtu.be/ik1_D0Z0qv4?si=HsRuoo_3yef-cbdb

Bruce Springsteen – The Rising – https://youtu.be/P5pNqBhz8uI?si=-YQsmDoZd-KxIadZ

Do it ‘Boom’ for the Public Good! The Road to a Better America That’s Of, By and For the People

Preview Summary –

Some pundits believe what Senator Booker did recently, beyond making history, might also be a game-changer in our social tempo.
Since history speaks for itself, the nation’s founding saw people coming together based on two social streams: civics & politics.
Making history isn’t so much about trying to break records but trying to make a difference. However, some in public service have lost their moral/political will to be decent human beings.

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Main Content:

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

Another NCAA March Madness is in the books! Three weeks of intense competition led to the Final Four playoffs on the men’s and women’s sides. The UConn woman took the crown through the rounds as the big three of Sarah Strong, Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers racked up points like an April showers downpour. On the men’s side Florida came out on top against Houston, after a gutsy rally from 12 points down. The last time all four #1 men’s seeds made it to the Final Four was in 2008. Even though that happened again this year like basketball heaven, fans still had busted brackets.

These days we’ve got a different kinda busted brackets to deal with in public affairs. As economic policy gets rolled out, the stock market and many biz leaders have gotten roiled-up. Things have taken a nosedive with investor fears setting in about the global economy. Meanwhile, in Washington we saw something bold happen on Capitol Hill recently. NJ’s senior Senator Cory Booker, spoke on the Senate floor for 25 hours and 5 mins, breaking the previous record held by noted segregationist Senator Strom Thurmond. That 68-year-old record is no more, but making history is more than breaking records.

It seems Senator Booker decided to do it ‘boom’ for the public good. He realized that by the end of April, we’ll have lived through 100 days of a new Administration in Washington. It has been a rollout driven by politics, politics, politics. Now, politics is an aspect of public service that involves carrying out the policies of governing. As Abraham Lincoln once said, “government of, by and for the people shall not perish from the earth”. But what if the government is being run by factions of self-interest? Maybe it’s because some folks have lost sight of the purpose of public service as seen in:

The five objectives of the republic: social justice, domestic tranquility, common defense, general welfare, liberty & posterity.
The five pillars of democracy: voting access/safeguards, shared power, human freedoms, social equality, rule of law.
The five perspectives for making #HometownStrong comebacks: faith, fear, firsts, fight, face.

Some pundits think what Senator Booker did, beyond making history, might also be a game-changer in our social tempo. He said these first 100 days haven’t been normal and shouldn’t be seen as such. He challenged his colleagues to do better. He used John Lewis as inspiration, like many used Fannie Lou Hamer’s Boston speech in 1968 as inspiration, imploring Americans to wake-up for “good trouble”. That’s like SAIC’s ‘Operation Mojo’ to make our journeys one by how we empower many as one. It’s a chance to rekindle our ideals and virtues. One concern is some have lost the moral/political will to be decent human beings. In the past, when civics got lost or leaders lost their decency (e.g. slavery), politics did too. As we’re seeing now, some folks then make bias, bigotry and bombastic views, fashionable.

One author said the road of America’s founding wasn’t necessarily an ‘immaculate conception’. Plus, since then there’ve been times of contradictions, complications and complicity. But even with those past moments, the road to a better America can be one that rallies around a quote Senator Booker shared in his speech: “The power of the people is greater than the people in power.” History shows that ‘money as power’ has played a role in public policy decisions than put self-interest over public good. While there’s nothing wrong with wealth, there’re some wealthy folks who see themselves among ‘we the people’ and others who see themselves above ‘we the people’. So, what if the power of the people and the people in power came together in a major way? It might lead to a new sense of civic engagement in our:

1. Mindset

UConn player Azzi Fudd was asked at half-time of the game against UCLA, “How is it that you started the game so strong?” Paraphrasing, she said when you get to this level, it’s about having a ‘breakout mindset’ as a team. Everybody’s got to be locked in. Similarly, as things unfold today, we gotta be aware of the stakes. When players are locked in it raises their performance as individuals and as a team. Moreover, it helps raise fan engagement which can impact the outcome of the game. These days in our nation call for a ‘breakout mindset’ that raises our awareness and civic engagement.

2. Mojo

During the civil rights movement local marches got folks’ juices flowing. They’d often gather in black churches to strategize, synchronize and galvanize their mojo. In the 21^st century, what’s it gonna take to bring fresh mojo to the movement? Last time we mentioned that when consumers complained about the early PCs, tech heads came up with an innovative solution. This gave us Windows with a ‘point & click’ interface. SAIC uses that model for doing the same in our social discourse, by how we ‘point’ to the more perfect union we seek, and connect the dots across history, civics and culture to make things click.

3. Mission

Some of the nation’s founders and bold citizens back in the day might relate to SAIC’s “mission to educate, vision to empower”. Consider this sequence: Independence declared, 1776; E Pluribus Unum adopted, 1782; Constitution ratified, 1788; NJ’s ‘Township Act’ incorporated 100+ municipalities of citizens governing their public affairs, 1798; national political parties in elections, 1800. Folks led with civics before politics, in life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. That’s why SAIC’s civic rollout includes introducing a Resolution that helps folks rally around answering the question, “What’s America Missing?”

4. Millennials

The U.S. Bureau of Labor reveals that millennials will become the largest population block in the workforce by 2029. Folks in their late 20s to mid-40s will hold key positions of influence and authority in the foreseeable future. We’ve gotta make sure they’re on-board as we influence family, impact culture, invite community and inspire dreams. They’ll bring ‘#MojoOfMillennials energy’ that connects with these words Senator Booker said in his marathon speech: “Moments like these require us to be more creative, more imaginative or just more persistent and dogged and determined.”

So, how do we ‘point & click’ for a better America? How might we do it ‘boom’ for the public good? Our nation’s early days had people come together around two social streams: civics & politics. Civics spoke to our common good and shared humanity. They evolved with politics by outlining citizen concerns (grievances) and developing a template for governing as a democracy. We can use those examples for how we do the same towards life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in 21^st century America. Folks, this is your invitation to our ‘conscious party’ as “J.A.M. Sessions with the People”. Let’s push to start!

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: Ziggy Marley – Conscious Party – https://youtu.be/RSfQ4oE9W9I?si=6Mzfe4xqFLruGEvP

Tyla – Push to Start – https://youtu.be/2WU5pK3ZIQI?si=ws-l4ORUa3SuLZnM

Stop the Press and the Madness! Are Folks Ready to Meet the Moment Across ‘Three Lanes of Activism’ in America?

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!

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

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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The Repeating Cycle of America: It’s Time for Us to Grow-up as a Nation and Stop Being Stuck in The Past of Our Old Ways

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

Artistic genius at its best! That’s how many have been describing the Superbowl halftime performance by Kendrick Lamar. As one friend wrote on social media, “he used hip-hop bars to deliver symbolism and messaging over entertainment.” There’re a bunch of clips about the subtext and subliminal lessons in the performance. Not everybody saw it that way though as some felt the show didn’t have enough razzmatazz. But maybe the current social climate called for a different way to view the rhymes. Ever wondered how folks made it through crazy times of the past? Well, we’re living in such a moment.

To understand where we are in time, let’s look back to the period of Reconstruction. This ties-in with the phase of America’s story after the civil war that saw a ‘rollback’ (sorry biz leaders) in civil rights gains. Back then, when blacks were promised 40 acres and a mule, there was a rollback. When black folks started to win elected office, there was a rollback in ballot access. After voting rights and citizenship laws were passed, there was a rollback to what became known as Segregation. In our current season of backlash to Black History Month and anti-DEI sentiment there’s basically a rollback in fulfilling America’s ideals.

The problem is that Black history has always been a catalyst for change against the bogeyman, sometimes known as a ‘white supremacy’ mindset. Said another way, whenever America makes headway towards a more perfect Union, there’re forces that operate around:

Denial of truth: Self-evident truths turn into ‘social truth’ like sometimes happens at a bar.
Withdrawal of trust: As America withdraws from neighbors/agreements, denial is to autocracy as withdrawal is to hypocrisy.
Tyrannical in task: There’s so much angst due to knee-jerk decisions and faulty explanations.

In the past, this has led to citizens getting bamboozled by a skewed reality as leaders chose to unwind progress under the pretense of trying to upgrade policy. Plus, in some circles these days, patriotism seems to be more about a ‘race to riches’ than a service to the common good as a nation. It’s interesting, last time we talked about the words ‘establish justice’ appearing in the Constitution. Well, another objective listed after the preamble of ‘We the people in order to form a more perfect Union,’ is found in ‘general welfare’. Some in America have lost their way on ‘general welfare’ and handling of grievances.

Well, like Lamar’s halftime show, SAIC’s efforts as a social-edge campaign/platform bring symbolism and messaging with uplift entertainment. A new phase of our rollout (as opposed to rollback) is in ‘Operation Mojo’ where community partners join forces to ‘make our journeys one’. Not enough time to get into how this relates to history, but moments in our past have had wake-up calls. Those times in history were followed by two scenarios: (1) Boycotts, (2) ‘Social Moonshots’. In other words, there were upshift steps in civic engagement, social consciousness and programs to level-up our game. An important note is that America seems to have a repeating cycle. So, it’s time we choose to grow up and stop being stuck in the past of our old ways. We’ve got to learn from those past moments by how we:

1. Influence Family

People often say Black history is American history. One way to understand this is when white folks can take to social media and read between the lines of Lamar’s symbolism and messaging. This means his performance wasn’t just a ‘black history’ performance. There’re some ‘common good’ aspects to black history that have significance beyond black people. We know that’s true from Dr. King’s message about building a ‘beloved community’. Yea, he was rooted in Black America based on genealogy. But his message was the ultimate example of diversity, equity and inclusion as a family line or American family.

2. Impact Culture

One of the ways folks tried to impact culture back in the day was through intimidation. The KKK became a thing after Reconstruction because folks wanted to reset the narrative about the civil war. They also did that through ‘denial of truth’ by saying the civil war was about ‘State’s Rights’ when it really was about trying to hold on to slavery. We can impact culture today by how we relate King’s ‘beloved community’ with SAIC’s ‘mojo circles’. What if we could show folks another way to ‘slice & dice’ the craziness of our times through civics, the way Lamar gave us a new way to get the message across through his lyrics?

3. Invite Community

Think about how smart TV’s have made streaming apps and multi-media features possible? We can watch Internet broadcasts on our TV sets and ‘mirror’ content from our phones to our family room big screen. Well, think about what ‘smart civics’ might do to raise our civic engagement and social consciousness. SAIC’s expertise in this area is about connecting the dots across history, civics and culture. This way we’ll achieve ‘informed living, homeland rising’ with EASE: Educational, Aspirational, Social, Entrepreneurial. Ready to get on board our Friday Night Flights to a higher destiny of community?

4. Inspire Dreams

It’s hard to believe that next year will be 40 years since we’ve been honoring the MLK Holiday. It was signed into law on November 2,1983 and first observed as a holiday on January 20, 1986. That should be enough for us to see it’s time we grow up as a nation. Also, next year we’ll have the 250^th anniversary of America’s Independence. Let’s put it this way…America’s independence inspired dreams of a new nation built around democracy as a republic. Moreover, Dr. King’s dream was built around the idea of making diversity, equity and inclusion meaningful in our journey. How are those dreams looking these days?

At a civil rights movement transition point in April 1968, Dr King said these words: “The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land. Confusion all around.” By Summer ‘68, Fannie Lou Hamer at a Boston speech said America must “wake up.” Are we at a similar point now? Well, Dr. King outlined two high-level steps: (1) Fierce urgency of now, (2) Do something for country, keep moving with new energy. So, does ‘Operation Mojo’ interest you or your group? Let’s get through the rumble & tumble moments by how we influence family, impact culture, invite community and inspire dreams in the next chapter of America’s story.

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: P!nk – What About Us – https://youtu.be/ClU3fctbGls?si=kF83Dml6T4Z4yh0x

Chaka Khan – Keep Your Head Up – https://youtu.be/88DS-T7Ypa4?si=V5Art2MWV-7zFbLb

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Roll Call 2025 For Here and Now: What Presidential Inauguration, Civics and American Values Should Mean During This Season of Makeover

Not since 2005 had Christmas and the start of Hanukkah fallen on the same day. The significance of that coincidence happening this past holiday was not lost on many faith observers. Normally after Christmas the usual ‘small talk’ children have with others is “what did Santa get you?” While that question has been long answered by now, there’re some bigger questions that America needs to have front and center. There’s also the coincidence of Inauguration falling on MLK Day.

Since it’s the start of a new year to build on vision, there’re probably some action items you’re turning into goals. To make them a reality will take steady effort and maybe even probing insight. That’s where we find ourselves as a nation too as we ponder what presidential inauguration, civics and American values should mean during this season of D.C. makeover. There’s probably a steady effort underway to get folks in place. But what about the probing insight needed to make sure America rises to the occasion of the Constitution and its goals? Meanwhile, there’s a shake-up happening in social media and traditional media. Not enough time to get into it here, but for clues we gotta go back to America’s second President John Adams.

Following the pre-amble’s first few words of “We the people in order to form a more perfect Union”, comes these two words: “establish justice”. As SAIC is known for, we’ve done a deep dive in American history, the ‘Black to America’ story, and #HometownStrong comebacks for some probing insight. The founders wanted to establish justice as a nation because there was a sense of unfairness from the British throne. But America’s history has also seen a focus on ‘social justice’ in response to those experiencing the feeling of denial. There’s been equality denial, voting rights denial, opportunity denial, climate change denial, and more recently, election denial as well as DEI & truth denial. Dr. King understood this social justice element when he said, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Just to recap, those ‘threads of denial’ led to different moments in history. They’ve played a role in America’s tug-of-war between two sides: life, liberty and happiness vs hate, grievance and divisiveness. Plus, throughout history we’ve had moments of major ‘public lies’ that caused Americans to make decisions based on deception and not destiny. These ‘lies’ included the three-fifths clause, Supreme Court decision on Dred Scott as well as Plessy vs Ferguson ruling on ‘separate but equal’, and more recently, disinformation about the 2020 election results. It’s important to share these not simply to cry foul, but to remind us that history is like a ‘civics bible’, the more we apply it the better we’ll handle life’s issues.

Dr. King encouraged us as a nation to choose the path that led to a higher destiny of community in the same way that SAIC offers a path for a higher level of citizenship. When King wrote the book “Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?” there was a stretch between 1963 and 1968 that holds some relevance to the past five years. What could have caused him to go from his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech to his ‘Mountaintop’ speech five years later where he said, “The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land. Confusion all around.” Well, we might add a new subtext to King’s book title with the words “What’s America Missing?” If we had to interpret King’s dream and make it relevant to here and now, what might our 2025 goals (and beyond) as a nation look like? Maybe we should first revisit “Out of Many, One” and reset around how we “Empower Many, as One” to:

1. Build your Quad/Squad

In the ‘here & now’ Dr. King could rattle off some quick points of concern. He might suggest that some parts of ‘The Church’ has lost their high ground. He might emphasize that we need a new social consciousness mindset with education and civic action as two sides of the coin of economic/social impact. His dream might point to a newer sense of urgency for how we build our quad/squad so that America’s unresolved trauma, unresolved truths and unresolved trust don’t spread even further like wildfire. As with computers, when truth is lost, we end up in an error condition or major system failure.

2. Build your Brand

In the new year as companies announce that they’re rolling back certain initiatives, many are wondering, what does that mean for the ‘pace of change’? In civic life W.E.B. Dubois talked about us having a double consciousness of how we see America and how America sees us. Well in business there’s the idea of having a ‘double bottom line’ in how you make money and make a difference. Those in biz know that as you build your brand and attract customers, you’ve gotta do things even when it’s not ‘popular’. Similarly, to build success you gotta do some things that aren’t always convenient or ‘trending’ at the time.

Attracting Customers

3. Build Your Block

When “Out of Many, One” was adopted in the early days it served as a mantra in going from 13 colonies to become the United States of America. Back then there weren’t any political parties, just folks operating with the idea of “hearts & homes for America.” If we’re gonna “empower many, as one” we gotta empower many families as one, many communities as one, even ‘We the People’ as one. To get there, we’ve gotta put civics in the driver’s seat. With politics we tend to see a push/pull between money and power. With civics we get to be inspired by a push/pull between people and progress, between ideals and innovations.

4. Build Your Cred

What’s it gonna take to build more cred as a nation and level-up our Union? To begin answering the question “what’s America missing”? we need a model to connect the dots across history, civics and culture. Plus, maybe America needs a new mojo in our game, culture needs a new lingo to explain things and families need a new go-to for not repeating same-old-same. In sports, momentum rules the day. Teams can have similar records and somewhat equal talent, but it’s in how they bring juice, magic and charm that things click as mojo. Similarly, we can build our cred by how we deliver more #MojoInAmerica.

At Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s inauguration he said, “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”. There’s a certain kinda fear that’s hovering over the nation in this season of political makeover. Dr. King as a Baptist preacher might use scripture to remind us that “God didn’t give us a spirit of fear. But of power, love and a sound mind”. In this new period of civic engagement, let’s build King’s dreams and our purpose in speaking truth to power, operating in love with one another and maintaining a sound mind. Every kinda people make the world go ‘round and ‘We the People’ keep America moving towards destiny.

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: One Republic – Better Days – https://youtu.be/dbUI7JfHxLc?si=2BvAy-E-pbIILi7i

NF – Hope – https://youtu.be/YUdkYx9WH9k?si=eHvA_Zf1LeENndCg

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How Does America Explain Itself? (Part 2 of 2): A Wake-up Moment on the Reality of Our Times

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

The holiday line-up is in full swing! Things started to roll out before Thanksgiving with promos for Black Friday. It seems we’ve already shattered shopping records with more cash registers left to ring. Online sales continue to skyrocket as folks do more clicks than trips to the mall. Even in sports the line-up is set with twelve teams named for the new College Football Playoff (CFP) series. And of course, holiday lights are twinkling everywhere.

Meanwhile, others are gearing-up for a changing of the guard in Washington. With the final count of election results being just about done, some wanna regroup. As with sports, it helps to ‘review the film’ to see what led to the loss at the party level. But another way to understanding the ‘L’ is in whether we’ve lost or way as a nation. For starters, we get to see the full picture by comparing America over the past 20 years, with the first 20 years of America’s founding and rollout.

Interestingly, the first line in the Constitution is a statement of civics (“We the people in order to form a more perfect Union”). The rest of the Constitution comes with statements of politics. Similarly, the most quoted line at the beginning of the Declaration of Independence is a statement of civics (“We hold these truths…). The 27 grievances listed afterwards help us see how things can get caught up in politics. Maybe it’s not an accident that the motto E Pluribus Unum (Out of Many, One) happened in the first 20 years, when compared to America’s recent journey of ‘election whiplash’ over the last 20 years.

You’ve heard it said that we live life forward but understand it backward. From our ongoing deep dive in American history, the ‘Black to America’ story and #HometownStrong comebacks, we’ve made the following notes that might serve as a wake-up call on the reality of our times, based on the last 20 years of presidential campaigns:

When politics get put in the driver’s seat, civics get put in the backseat (or even the trunk).
History and its lessons are often overlooked or dismissed, so unproductive things repeat themselves like a memory-loss patient.
There’re times when roots & culture get the side-eye from those in politics, biz/admin or pop culture, which can leave regular folks in the dark.
When people or public officials miss the mark, it takes a ‘We the People’ view to bounce back. When politics is used as a wedge, those folks are working with a ‘We the Privileged’ view.

What you’ll see from looking at the first 20 years is that America has two ideological threads rooted in its political DNA: one based on enlightenment, the other tied to disenfranchisement. Taken a step further (or deeper), America’s journey has followed two threads: “Life Liberty & Happiness; Grievance, Hate and Divisiveness”. Moreover, whatever thread a campaign runs on, that’s likely how it will govern. With a closer look, you’ll discover three aspects in American history that help explain how these threads came to be. So as America tries to explain itself (to itself and the world), these threads shed light on who we say we are (ideals) versus who we show we are (identity).

In the next chapter in America’s story it’s important to connect the dots across history, civics and culture. Why? Well, we’d never allow in school, biz, sports or even family what we let happen in politics/civics. With the former arenas there’s some department that will sanction folks when they step out of line. In public affairs ‘We the People’ are the oversight body by how we vote. But we can’t sanction when we don’t understand the ideological threads of contradictions versus convictions. Like we saw in the first 20 years of America’s existence, it’s gonna take putting civics in the driver’s seat. This way we’ll know when the media finds its legs between reporting vs marketing, informing vs idolizing, and better understand the:

1. Stakes

Our body does hundreds of operations each day to stay alive. We make lots of decisions to keep our lives on track. Not all decisions are high stakes. Some are just run-of-the-mill. Every so often, we get an alert or info that requires a high stakes decision. The first 20 years of America’s existence had high stakes decisions producing our founding documents. The last 20 years of our existence have been on a razor’s edge. We gotta pay attention to social alerts and historical info for better high stakes decision making. We gotta better balance screen time and learn time, not just making decisions as ‘reality entertainment’.

2. Stars

Every industry has stars recognized at various awards. In culture, star-factor shifts and evolves with the times. What we’ve seen throughout history are folks who only want to celebrate others whose light shines white, versus folks who wanna celebrate others whose light shines in a multi-colored, multi-cultural way. In other words, there’re those who see ‘Whiteness as their wokeness, and otherness as your weakness”. The light folks shine on the inside, is the light they project on the outside. A black & white TV projects white light, but a smart TV’s beautiful picture projects colored light. That’s what SAIC brings to the party.

3. Stats

Every sport has its stats where analytics has become its own commodity. But so has happened in politics where lies, disinformation and distrust have become their own commodity that gets sold to the public. But Dr. King wanted us to avoid being sidetracked by bad stats. His hope during the civil rights movement was that it would help our nation achieve a higher destiny of citizenship. It’s not about one side trying to fool the other side or control the other side or turning culture wars into battles that fool the public. It’s about how we fulfill the ideals of America’s spirit and get back our ‘civic mojo’ to make our journeys one.

4. Story

Sometimes elections are like ‘baptism’. We get preached the ‘gospel of the parties’ then are all-in with the policy/programming. However, whether at graduation, a wedding day or baptism, that’s not a one-time thing but a lifetime journey of learning and growing. America, we got to do a better job after elections where it’s not just a one-time thing, but a lifetime journey of being informed, engaged and inspired citizens. After graduation we get to grow in skillset. After the wedding day we get to grow in marriage. After baptism we get to grow in faith. After elections, we gotta grow in the story of perfecting America.

Throughout history ‘We the People’ used civics to become more informed, engaged and empowered around the stakes, stars, stats and story. We’re at that moment where we need to not just be about ‘the show’ but also about ‘the know’. We must remind ourselves of what it means to be a democratic constitutional republic, not just a hodgepodge tribe of citizens. We’ve got to deploy a new world view, with history as a mirror to help us see who we are; civics as a map to see our way around; and culture as a motor to drive our way through to an America we desire and expect in our hearts and homes.

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: Bob Marley – Wake Up and Live – https://youtu.be/dq-_js08tU0?si=911h24tdDvfUQI6t

John Legend – Wake Up Everybody – https://youtu.be/iJgxJ6JrPkc?si=Rr7Y7mIFeXKzs9zn

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How Does America Explain Itself? (Part 1 of 2): A Wake-up Moment on the Reality of Our Times

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

Well America, what just happened? A couple weeks ago the Yankees fell flat in the World Series. Over recent days in college football, we saw Georgia get beat by Ole Miss. Even soccer had its shocking result as Messi’s Inter-Miami squad got knocked out of the MLS playoffs by Atlanta United. Maybe the post-game analysts, sports radio pundits and podcast hosts are gonna make it make sense.

Then came the presidential election. It’s going to take some time to have it all make sense, but we gotta avoid being stuck. After a disappointment like happens in a big game, the commentators might run through the season from start to finish to help connect the dots. Moreover, the analysis might look at the team’s past and present to consider their future options. We need to do the same to answer the question, “how does America explain itself?” Maybe one aspect is that folks see their vote like voting for contestants on a realty tv show. Plus, with around 6 million less folks voting for president compared to 2020, and the social hierarchy from history, looks like many had more dread than hope.

But there’re lots of other factors to pull in when reviewing the reality of our current times, in terms of history and legacy. For example, during biblical days there was a pendulum swing over a 450-yr period between good Kings and bad Kings, where God at times had to step in to set things straight. But let’s make it make sense from SAIC’s ongoing deep dive in American history, the ‘Black to America’ story and #HometownStrong comebacks. We learned that throughout America’s almost 250-yr history, author Corey Brettschneider says we’ve seen a similar pendulum swing:

We’ve flipped back-and-forth between reckoning and recovering in the journey of America.
It was the efforts of ‘We the People’ that ensured America kept moving and growing.

Reckoning had Democracy on edge, while recovery had it on elevate. Then, add-in thoughts Dr. King shared in 1967 from assessing the civil rights movement and race relations in his book “Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?”. He once said that “darkness cannot drive out darkness only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” SAIC’s footnote on King’s message is that “politics cannot drive out politics, have civics help do that.” A cold hard truth is that love doesn’t spread hate, only self-hate does that. Light doesn’t spread darkness, only darkness does that. So for America to heal, how’re we gonna address the self-hate, the darkness, the hypocrisy?

Furthermore, the presidential campaign revealed some things about trying to heal election wounds. No one with a wound goes out and keeps re-injuring the wound, expecting it to heal. It’ll heal when given treatment or surgery or time, as with athletes after a hard-fought game or injury. The problem we have is that sometimes politics keeps re-harming the wound. So we’ve gotto do some analysis to help America explain itself (to itself). For starters, there’s a void/disconnect in how we see America and each other in:

1. Humanity

SAIC’s social-edge framework is built on the shift from black & white TV to color TV. Black & white TV beams a stream of ‘white light’, with varying shades of gray. Color TV beams three streams of ‘colored light’ (red, green, blue), when combined give the beautiful picture on our sets. America began with a single stream of ‘white light’. The nation’s journey towards a more perfect Union is shifting to a multi-stream ‘array of light’. The ever-present challenge in America is some mainly want to stream ‘white light’. This sadly plays out across humanity and the annals of time in a mindset of “whiteness over otherness.”

2. Democracy

Each time our democracy was on edge it was preceded by a stark ‘public debate’ or provable ‘lie’. Around the time of our founding and the subsequent abolition period, the debate was that Blacks were inferior (three-fifths clause). During the Antebellum period, a ‘debate conclusion’ led to Dred Scott being told he had no rights as a citizen (Supreme Court Ruling). More recently after the 2020 elections, things went off the rails. In each case, the wranglings led to seismic moments in American history. So, understanding modern elections and how we got here means connecting the dots across history, civics and culture.

3. Party

Political parties took shape around 1796 and more fully by the 1800 elections as Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans. Now, don’t get stuck on labels since party names have changed and ideology flipped between parties over time. The key thing to note is ideology flips between living in contradiction or living in conviction. An example of this from the early days was in slavery as a contradiction to the Declaration of Independence ideal of equality. These days the contradictions play out in election polling data and public policy info. Was the election really about the economy or other contradictory factors?

4. History

It’s said that controversy sells, sex sells, celebrity sells. This election saw ‘bigotry sells’ surface in new ways. These were demeaning moments against different racial groups which have already begun to affect college campuses and Black voters. In the early/mid 1900s there were minstrel shows which often had folks in blackface as a gesture meant to be funny but was instead demeaning. Decades later there was Archie Bunker, who played the lead role in a sitcom serving up a similar mixture. What we just experienced and have seen in history felt like it came from the ‘political supermarket’ of old.

Maybe Dr. King would take a page from scripture or ‘Uncle Sam’ take a page from history in asking, “what does it profit a nation to lie to the whole world but lose its soul?” In early America we had one group of politicians pushing the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 while another group of NJ citizens were crafting the Township Act of 1798. Same year, two different realities. Since today looks like this is America, we can take a page from King’s work to “do something for country, keep moving with new energy.” The civil rights movement knew that it’s ‘We the People’ that keep us on the ‘life, liberty and happiness’ path.

Tracks: Jazmine Sullivan – Stand Up – https://youtu.be/X-6g7My_j14?si=XO1qpHiMVESZOWjr

John Mayer – Waiting on the World to Change – https://youtu.be/oBIxScJ5rlY?si=VCVIxXoKolm8Pq4z

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The Original Founders Playbook: How Their Novel Gameplan Helped Roll Out the Red Carpet for America

Doc Cunningham
Da Island Guy
Sounding Off Social

“Blue States are getting bluer and Red States are getting redder!” That was the jarring headline from a recent USA Today analysis of where we are as a nation. Their team of journalists did an extensive look-back on the evolution of politics and voting patterns over the past four decades. What they found sends warning flags about things that contribute to the partisan discord and social divides. What does that mean for the future of America? (hold that thought).

As Israel marked the one-year anniversary of the attack on its citizens, we see ongoing instability and rising tensions. There’s increasing concern that things could get out of hand and become a regional mess. But even closer to home, as the presidential campaign season rounds the corner towards the homestretch, some are wondering if we’ll have similar post-election drama as happened in 2020. It seems both situations need a new language to describe things, while walking in the shoes of history.

In the case of the Middle East, U.S. policy supports a two-state solution. With the situation as horrific as it is, maybe that new language for moving things along might include as a mantra, “Shared Peace Lifestyle”. Furthermore, with the U.S. social/civic climate, a similar step might apply. That’s the inspiration behind SAIC, as a novel concept around civic/social issues for a higher level of citizenship, having coined the term, #MojoInAmerica (MOJO – Make Our Journeys One).

Remember, SAIC was born out of a deep dive in American history, the ‘Black to America’ story and #HometownStrong comebacks. From those lessons, we found some key ‘pivot points’ along the way. There was the Declaration of Independence in 1776; the adoption of E Pluribus Unum (Out of Many, One) in 1782. The release of the Constitution to the States for review in 1787. Then there was the Federalist Papers being published on October 27, 1787. It’s why Oct 27^th is observed as National Civics Day. Of course, there’s that moment between Benjamin Franklin and a female bystander who posed the question, “What do we have, a monarchy or republic?”

While that question lands loudly within the current political climate, there’s a subtext that resounds even louder, kinda connecting from back then to now. Think of it in the ‘What do we have’ terms today:

Is it just about politics or also civics?
It is just protecting turf or uniting people?
Is it just the ‘horse race’ of running for a constituency or the ‘voice race’ of empowering citizenry?
Is it just promoting the policy or perfecting the Union?

With the choice at hand in the upcoming election, we can take a page from the founders’ playbook in rolling out the red carpet for America. The model left by them is one of turning the Constitutional Convention into civic mobilization that appealed to ‘hearts & homes for America’, otherwise known as ‘We the People’. Political parties didn’t arrive on the scene initially until 1796, and more established in 1800. What made the red carpet rollout special is that it was:

1. News Breaking

The three main writers of the Federalist Papers were James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. According to the online History Channel, when the first essay appeared in the Independent Journal, Hamilton argued that the debate facing the nation was not only over ratification of the proposed Constitution, but over the question of “whether societies of men are really capable or not of establishing good government from reflection and choice, or whether they are forever destined to depend for their political constitutions on accident and force.” These days, what’s news breaking is more ‘shock & awe’.

2. Crowd Sourcing

As the founders returned to their States, they had the chance to share ‘meeting notes from the Convention, release notes from the Constitution.’ There was that bystander question that got the ball rolling, as Franklin left the Convention Hall. When they arrived home, their focus was to engage residents in the benefits of being part of the Union. In other words, independence was the first step in democracy and republic, but to get to Union they did ‘crowd sourcing’ instead of ‘crown sourcing’. It’s like when a potential candidate announces a listening tour, they’re trying to fine-tune and maybe foretell their plans.

3. Mojo Building

The founders and citizens knew the stakes of ratifying the Constitution. Clearly, there was some ‘mojo building’ at play. The National Anthem hadn’t yet been written so ‘E Pluribus Unum’ and the Federalist Papers were the tools. One helped to rally the social climate, the other was paramount for forging the civic climate. But something else happened, like what immigrants get to experience in becoming naturalized citizens. As with public officials, we take an oath to “support and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic.” That’s tied to some ‘life, liberty and happiness’ patriotism.

4. Shift Making

The first three States to ratify the Constitution were Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, with ‘shift making’ across the land. SAIC as a social-edge campaign works to embrace civics and bridge divides. Example, in consumer tech we went from black & white to color TV; same box, different technology. With civic/social issues, SAIC helps highlight that we’re “same box (flesh & blood), but different cultures”. With TV, we went from same source (channels) to different streams/smarts. Similarly, with the issues we go from the same ‘isms & schisms’ then and now to viewing things through SAIC’s ‘smart prism’ as a nation.

Before there was ‘we the democrats’ or ‘we the republicans’ there simply was ‘we the people’. With red States becoming redder and Blue State becoming bluer, we can deploy ‘See America In Color’ to bridge the civics gap and partisan divides. As the red carpet got rolled out in the early days, all the founders had to work with was appealing to ‘hearts & homes for America’. In part, that’s the inspiration behind SAIC’s latest efforts to rally around civic engagement, civics education and social impact. This means taking a page from the founders, built around news breaking, crowd sourcing, mojo building and shift making.

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: Rag’n’Bone Man – Human – https://youtu.be/L3wKzyIN1yk?si=rT6qK9HaifvTkN-d

Tems – Higher – https://youtu.be/Qa1IaUywiO8?si=DQ5eUwgqMk-D-bd4

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Turning the Corner on Constitution Avenue: How America’s Story Might Get a Course Correction Through Social Capital Reinvention

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

Folks are excited about ‘opening season’ kickoff time of year! With Fall temps getting a little cooler, here’s hoping that the same can be said about our political discourse. As the campaign season hits the road after Labor Day, with candidate debates and television ads on tap, there’s something eye-opening that’s sure to go down.

This time of year might be seen in two ways: a ‘roots & culture’ takeoff and a ‘back to school’ jump-off. There’s a new season of returning programs and new specials to hit the small screen. We also have the hustle & bustle of daily life returning to regular programming. But there’s also the fact that cooler temps mean deeper ‘roots development’ with grass and trees. That’s what landscaping experts say. But what if this were also a great metaphor for the deeper ‘roots & culture’ development we might do as a nation?

SAIC spent the past few months during the lead-up to the Conventions season, making observations around two groups: those excited about the ‘politics of things’ and others excited about ‘the civics of things’. One of the ‘aha moments’ is that it’s much easier to monetize around politics than to mobilize around civics (let that sink in a bit). Said another way, it’s much easier to monetize candy than it is to monetize broccoli, but that doesn’t mean broccoli is less important.

With the Conventions over, some wonder what next? One of the takeaways from the 2024 presidential campaign trail is the idea that the next chapter of America’s story will be tied to matters of heart & home. In one sense, there’s a direct tie-in to family. But in a larger sense it’s about how we the human family operate with the same zeal for public good as folks do for elective office. Moreover, as everyday citizens, it’s about how we might “do something for country, keep moving for victory.” History reveals that victory is in how we “guard democracy, affirm the republic and save the Union.”

The next few months will likely be fast & furious in the political world. In addition, depending on our civic engagement, the next few years might be a chance for turning the corner on Constitution Ave through social capital reinvention, leading-up to the 250^th anniversary of America’s independence in 2026. We’ve got a shot at making a course correction, like planes do while flying on auto pilot. Sometimes it drifts a bit off the desired path but gets back on track due to the ‘smarts’ tied to airplane technology. Similarly, the ‘smarts’ in SAIC’s ‘social technology’, made possible by a deep dive in American history, the ‘black to America’ story and #HometownStrong comebacks, offers a similar course correction to Union Station for:

1. People (hopes & hurts)

America’s Declaration of Independence is a forward-looking statement based on self-evident truths around life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That’s the ‘hopes’ part of America. But it also shares a list of grievances (hurts) that led to the spin-off from the British empire. What the Constitution then tries to do is forge our collective interests as ‘we the people’ to form a more perfect Union. It seems for our social capital reinvention, we gotta look at what matters most for the hopes of the nation and the hurts of the next generation to reach new heights and move past senseless tragedies.

2. Family (hearts & homes)

When the nation was founded, there weren’t any political parties. It was just a group of regular citizens committed to governing their affairs. All they had was their ability to appeal to hearts & homes. That’s why a group of ‘friends of SAIC’ got together under the umbrella of ‘Hearts & Homes for America’. We’ve gotta do more around civics education to help break the hate in hearts. We’ve gotta do more around civic engagement to build more hope in homes. We’ve gotta do better around family to deal with possible pockets of pain and shortfall of purpose. We’ve gotta do more as a human family for the public good.

3. Community (towns & teams)

The upcoming season-opener for ‘Dancing with the Stars’ was announced. Some of the celebs who’ll be strutting their stuff include familiar names and those who recently made a name for themselves. There’re athletes from the recent Olympics to name a few. In Hollywood we get to see ‘showbiz as the star’ with all the celebs that go with it. At the recent Conventions we got to see ‘politics as the star’ with all the public officials that go with it. What would happen if we’d make ‘civics as the stars’ with all the regular citizens to go with it? Well reality check… there’re more regular citizens than celebs and public officials combined.

4. Country (democracy & diplomacy)

America as a constitutional republic, tries to balance the people aspect of democracy and the power aspect of diplomacy. We’re a democracy that’s for the people, of the people and by the people. We’re a republic through voting for those who’ll represent our wishes in Congress, made up of a House and Senate. We model diplomacy by how we allow freedoms to prevail inside our country and beyond our shores. It’s that delicate balance of democracy and diplomacy that signals who we are as a country amongst ourselves and who we are as a nation beyond ourselves.

So SAIC delivers content and programming to engage and empower. It’s got new ‘social technology’ to deal with hate, hurt and depleted hope, by how we ‘see America in color’, not just in black & white. There’s a Bob Marley song with the words, “Lively up yourself and don’t be no drag; lively up yourself, ‘cause reggae is another bag”. Well, as we look to “Turn. Up. Big.” in roots & culture, let’s shake-off the things that are a drag in family, community and country. And, whether you live on MLK Blvd or work on Constitution Ave, we’re ready to level-up civics and social capital like a new ‘bag’ (as young folks say).

Chime-in on impacting Democracy & Public Good, Education & Community or Entrepreneurship & American Dream, ‘Civic Mondays’ events or Civics & Community forums. Plus,you can “J.A.M. With Us” (join a movement) in civic engagement, social change and community life. Checkout the Signup Center below.

Tracks: H.E.R. – Journey – https://youtu.be/bTWftRNdU3w?si=NCc2SnNRSZKg61Ro

Protoje (Ft Jesse Royal) – Family – https://youtu.be/258_PV8K634?si=P-WeaAsefowElVno

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The Hottest Convention Season of Modern Times: What Democracy, Republic, Union Mean for America’s Great Expectations

Doc Cunningham
“Da Island Guy”
Sounding Off Social

It was one of the hottest stories in sports and media circles at the Olympics. The women gymnasts led by Simone Biles took home the team gold. It was a kinda redemption story after winning silver in Tokyo. There’s even been some after-effect with the drama around Jordan Chiles’ bronze medal. But in between that, was the Adidas brand’s new ad campaign that stirred-up bad memories from the 1972 Munich Olympics where members of the Israeli delegation were killed. The ad featured runway model Bella Hadid who is of Palestinian descent. She issued a statement condemning violence and apologized for being caught-up in this unfortunate promo.

That was some of the talk in pop culture, but there were other stories where the sense was things were feeling ‘hot hot hot.’ This past July has gone down as the hottest day on record, both literally and figuratively. It was reported by European Climate Services that global earth temperature, based on the averages of land and sea, hit a new high. On a Sunday in July a new record was set, then broken the next day.

Now, when it comes to the presidential campaign, the recent earth-shattering announcement and events during this Convention season left many folks stunned. A different candidate at the top of the ticket has brought new life politically and buzz socially. With this series of stories dominating news coverage, it leaves open the chance that we can have the summer of 2024 mirror the summer of 1787. Back then, the founders met to take initial steps of crafting a roadmap that would be tied to perfecting the nation.

Meanwhile, it feels like this might be the hottest convention season of modern times. Since the days of our founding and the journey of our making, we’ve had moments of crisis and crossroads, where we had to guard democracy, affirm the republic and save the union. On those occasions, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln left us with examples that were as meaningful then as they are now. You might remember these from:

Washington’s declaration in his farewell speech to watch-out for political factions and despotic leaders that might wanna veer from the founding ideals.
Franklin’s warning at the end of the Constitutional Convention that “we have a republic, if we can keep it”.
Lincoln’s courage during the civil war of issuing the Emancipation Proclamation to save the union.

In the current climate we can build on their example while taking a page from business circles. There’s this idea called SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) that’s used as a strategy for staying on the cutting edge in the marketplace. Well, in civic & social issues we might use that mindset to rally around a gameplan to get us through the election season and the make-or-break times in America’s story. One thing we might do is make ‘civics as the star’ by how we walk in the shoes of history. We the people can engage a Civics Convention as an updated template of what the founders had in mind. This’ll help set the stage as folks consider the:

1. Choice

It seems some are bored/mad with the founders’ design on things, in wanting a ‘divorce’ from democracy towards a Christian Nationalist image. That’s one track being offered for America. The other track builds on the founding ideals in a more inclusive way. It’s like SAIC’s model of social/civic reinvention, which mirrors the shift from ‘black & white TV’ to ‘color TV’. It’s a more inclusive framework that’s not just about projecting ‘white light’ but combines elements of ‘colored light’ through American history, the ‘Black to America’ story and #HometownStrong comebacks. This mirrors who we are and want to be as a nation.

2. Course

As the founders met in the summer of 1787, their efforts charted a course for the new nation. The guiding purpose has always been about perfecting the union. What might that look like in the 21^st century? When World War II ended, the NATO alliance was formed to bolster solidarity and synergy of European nations around democracy. We need a similar strategy now to foster synergy and solidarity on making ‘civics as the star’. During the Harlem Renaissance, Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that “intellect and artistic production could help overcome prejudice”. A public/private alliance having a similar role is needed today.

3. Courage

Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation to free the slaves during the Civil War. The push for freedom by abolitionists was heard in social and political circles. But there was the dilemma of blacks joining the Union Army without further inflaming border states that hadn’t yet joined the Confederacy. The courage it took to form the union in 1776 and to save the union in 1865, might be understood in words from Thomas Jefferson: “Whenever the people are informed, they can be trusted with their own government.” A public/private alliance and informed nation gives rise to more courage, less distrust.

4. Common Good

You’ve heard SAIC’s message before that “civics is to country as hygiene is to humanity. Without it things can get funky”. There’s no law to manage hygiene, it’s just something we do as self-care during life’s ins & outs, and as a common good for human interactions. That’s what this public/private alliance would mean in terms of nation-care. The founders gave us a roadmap for working and growing as a nation. It’s been updated over the years to better reflect the times. But it’s important to not lose sight of the common good so that social/civic interactions don’t devolve into a situation where things get funky.

Party Conventions have become a way to make ‘politics as the star’. But back in the day when parties didn’t exist, the founders were about making ‘civics as the star’. In a few months we’ll be choosing the direction for our country, which will drive the course we take. With that in mind, noted philosopher Reinold Niebuhr one said, “man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.” We gotta have the courage to guard democracy, affirm the republic and save the union. To continue as a beacon of hope, land of the free, home of the brave, we gotta be on the worthy side of history. So, let’s meet the moment of America’s great expectations.

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Tracks: Pharrell Williams – Freedom – https://youtu.be/LlY90lG_Fuw?si=60X3tOqB4FVISmYc

Sara Bareilles – Brave – https://youtu.be/QUQsqBqxoR4?si=Bqs0TenSajKxVaab