Right at the corner of Oakhill Avenue and Lillian Avenue stood a pillar of the Adair Park community in Atlanta. There was no statue or plaque located here. It was simply Mrs. James' front porch. Every child in that neighborhood had to pass Mrs. James' front porch for some reason or another. Whether it was going to the park or the neighborhood store, the route you took led you past Mrs. James's porch.
Mrs. James' porch was significant in that this is where the mother of the neighborhood spent most of her time. She would sit on her front porch and watch what went on in the 'hood. She knew every child and she knew their parents. If you were out of line in the presence of Mrs. James, you may as well have been out of line in front of your own parents. She would chastise you as if she were your mother and make a phone call that would beat you home before you could tell your side of the story, which led to whipping number 2. As a matter of fact, just about any adult on the block would get you if you were in the streets disgracing your parents' good name.
What happened to the Mrs. James’s in our community?
I'll tell you what happened to them. A new breed of parent came about. This new breed of parent said things like, "You better not lay a finger on my child" and "That damn teacher gets on my nerves calling here"; all the while never addressing the behavior from the child that caused the phone call or the discipline from another adult. Then the kids just got out of control. No discipline at home and none in the streets. Now it appears that they are so out of control that people are afraid to say anything to them parents included.
Are we afraid of the next generation? Are we allowing them to throw their lives away out of fear for what they might do if we tried to talk to them? Is it their fault that they're lost or are we part of the problem for not showing them the way?
An African proverb says: "It takes a village to raise a child". Our village needs to come together and step up, so that we can start raising ALL of our children, not just the ones inside our own homes.
That's the Green Chimp's take on it, what's yours?
I think the problem with this generation is that the parents are getting younger and younger, no one taught them how to respect themselves or anyone else for that matter. Parents are trying too hard to be their children's friends instead of a parent. Everybody is so afraid of facs, but if you descipline your children in the right way there won't be any reason to call the police. As you said above parents are getting upset with the Mrs. James of our commuunities when they try to teach there kids something valuable. If we continue to let these children get away with the way they are behaving now they will turn into criminal in the future. we have to change our way of thinking as parents and mentors.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. Far too often especially when it comes to mothers and daughters, the parent is more content with having a friendship instead of a mother/daughter relationship. I've seen this with men as well, but it's been my experience that most men will draw a line with their sons and when that line is crossed the son gets checked. Either way, parents need to stick to being parents and not friends. There will be plenty of time for that when those children have been raised and are raising their own children.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Nicky. I will be honest with you... I am going to beat the sh*t out of my kids if they f*ck up!!! And I will also reward them with they do good things. I am 32 years old... And I am still afraid of my pops!!! Fastest BELT this side of the Mississippi!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm like Bernie Mac.. "I will f*ck a kid up. Don't get mad at me, I'm just saying what you can't say!!! See I'm from old school, I'll kick a kids ass!!!"