By Marie Brown
I attended the recent NAACP banquet this past weekend and heard political hopeful Chris Lewis make some glaring comments about young people stepping up and getting involved. He suggested that it is time for older people to step aside. I strongly support the idea of young people becoming more involved. After all, statistics show that young people between the ages of 18-42 are less likely to participate in community service, especially in the voting arena.
However, the idea that older people need to step aside is ludicrous. The Bible emphasizes respect and honor for the elderly, recognizing their wisdom and experience. Older adults are wise. “Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old,” says Job 12:12, reminding us of the value of speaking with older adults. We have some of the brightest young people in Louisiana residing in our community. We honor them for their many accomplishments. I drive by local establishments during weekends and see extremely long lines of young people waiting to get into “clubs” with cover charges.
I often think how wonderful it would be to see similar long lines patiently waiting to vote on election days. Our elders paid a price a long time ago. We still have long lines, but there are no cover charges to give our vote. When you are courting us for our vote with candy, popcorn, and watermelon, we are so much more than that! As I honor our matriarchs and patriarchs of this movement Al Sharpton, age 70, Dr. Cornel West, age, 72, Maxine waters, age 86, T. D. Jakes, age 68, Angela Davis, age 81, Reve, Jesse Jackson, age, 83, Congressman James Clyburn, age 85, B. D. Robinson was a city council member at age, 90, Cleo Miller runs Miller companies in her late 80’s. I pay homage to them and look forward to their wise counsel and perseverance towards a new day.
I encourage our older people to stay involved and continue working to strengthen our local community. Drive around the South side of Monroe and see for yourself if you are pleased. I also encourage our young people to get involved and help make our community the best it can be. When that happens, we can love where we live and live where we love.
