These words were spoken by Marcus Tullius Cicero, a Roman philosopher, over two thousand years ago. What meanings do they carry over to the American people today? The United States of America has been called the melting pot of the world. A more accurate description, in my opinion, is a large jar of mixed marbles.

The American citizen of African descent has been in America longer and has done more for America than most other ethnic groups. Yet we are attacked, lambasted, demonized, inhumanely abused, reviled, lied to, and lied about, more than all other ethnic groups combined. We have been subjugated to eating the guts of animals that the other ethnic groups throw away and the "greens," roots, and dandelions that grew wild in the fields. This, along with being assailed with rules, regulations, laws, and practices are designed to keep us down and deprived. Yet, we continue to prevail.

Today, as a people, we are at a crossroad in our lives. In order to make the best decisions for our prosperity, we must uncover our gloried past that was systematically kept from us. This will better enable us to better understand and answer the "why" questions of today, thereby being able to come up with more appropriate directions for our tomorrows. This is why I pause to write

Young people you are our hope. We cannot go forward without you. Search your past, share your stories (in writing), bring out the commonalities we share, and encourage each other with a singleness of purpose as you take us forward.