If you listen to the volunteers who run the Project Manhood Program in East St. Louis, being a man – in particular, a black man in America – is serious business. It involves careful preparation, vigilance and grit.
Just listen to the mentors from the Nu Chi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, a historically black fraternity, as they instructed a group of 34 black male youth during a recent all-day session at the Clyde C. Jordan Center in East St. Louis.
“When you hit this world, nobody is going to care about yourself,” Will Robinson, Project Manhood chairman, told the youth. “You’ve got to care about yourself.”
“If you don’t take this leadership training,” Justin Jackson told them, “there are plenty of systems out there willing to have you do their bidding.”
“The world don’t care about your story,” Guy Johnson said. “They only care what you can produce for them.”
And Richard Hudlin (uncle of filmmaker Reginald Hudlin) told them point-blank, “There are people who do not want particularly us to be all that we can be.”
It’s tough love, to say the least – very tough. But also, very loving.
The session started with students sharing their recent accomplishments. Ahmed Fennoy reported that he was awarded “most improved” on his swim team and enjoyed applause as his trophy circulated around the room. Nico Perry discussed the challenges of being the only African American on an elite karate team, then passed around the medal he won.
The atmosphere of mutual support among the youth was overwhelming.
“Everybody here became brothers,” one youth, Deacon Mosquito, told a reporter.
“We had no choice,” Perry added. “We room together, eat together.”
Perry referred to their experiences on the road in Project Manhood’s annual Historically Black College & University (HBCU) tour. Mentees also travel and bond together on the Project Manhood Chess Team and Debate Team.
Currently, 80 youth from the East St. Louis area participate in Project Manhood, which has been active since 1995. The program has graduated more than 200 young men to higher education or military service, and volunteers continue to monitor their progress.
They are certainly being sent out into the world with their eyes wide open – or “woke,” as millennial activists like to say. And they are being alerted by African-American professionals from the region who show by example what black leadership looks like.
At the May session, they learned about professional etiquette. If that seems like a soft topic for a bunch of young males, consider that their teacher was Annalisa Melton, chief of Protocol for the U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base. She does not advise women on what color to wear for the season. She advises a four-star Air Force general on things like what gift to buy a visiting dignitary from a foreign country and unfamiliar culture.
“In some countries, a gift of a knife would imply you are severing ties,” she told the wide-eyed youth. “I have to do my research with the State Department before the general gives any gifts.”
She did offer more mundane advice on navigating table settings at formal dinners and the need to press your clothing – “don’t just throw it in the dryer for a minute” – before getting dressed for the day, but most of her advice had an edge.
She demonstrated a proper handshake and then explained what she did.
“I go in hard and make them look me right in the eye,” she said. “As an African-American female in a dominantly white male world, I start off by presenting myself as strong and confident.”
She reminded them how crucial that initial greeting is. “People get one time to make an impression of you,” she said. “One time.” That includes online interactions. “Social media will follow you,” she warned. “Things go out worldwide, and you can’t get it back. You don’t want to be posting everything.”
She tailored her wardrobe advice for a young, black male audience – again, with tough love.
“I have a hoodie and ripped jeans, but I think about it when I wear them,” she said. “It’s perception. When you have your hoodie pulled up, you’re giving someone an opportunity to be a jerk.”
Inevitably, in providing wardrobe etiquette for young black males, the question of sagging pants came up. She was decisive with advice that referred to the fictional character of Steve Urkel, the archetypal black nerd from Family Matters. “Pull your pants up!” she said. “I didn’t say to walk around like Urkel, but pull your pants up!”
Like several of the Omega Psi Phi brothers, she narrated her career arc, pointing out where it wasn’t a straight line and how she couldn’t always see where she was going. “Life, it takes time,” she said. “You work hard all your life, then one day you wake up in a job where you’re the person you want to be.”
Despite the challenges. With every lesson, Project Manhood reminded these youths of the challenges that face – especially – them.
The black history lesson in this session was devoted to Abraham Bolden, an East St. Louis native who became the first African American to work in the U.S. Secret Service. As he described in his book “The Echo from Dealey Plaza” (2008), Bolden claimed he was framed for a crime he did not commit to prevent him from testifying to the Warren Commission about misconduct on the part of Secret Service agents that may have left President John F. Kennedy vulnerable to assassination.
This is heavy-duty, high-wire stuff.
“He told the truth, and they turned a barrage against him. He’s still trying to clear his name. He was a whistle blower on the bad stuff,” Johnson told them.
“You don’t want to protect people who are doing wrong. But you need to understand what’s out there. As young, African-American males, you may get upset, but you need to understand how to deal with it.”
For more information on Project Manhood, email willie.robinson3870@yahoo.com.
