in their words
THE AUTHO R WA S N AME D TH E B E ST
S E RIOUS CO LUMNIST OF 2 0 1 1 B Y T H E
N ORTH CA RO L INA
P RE S S AS S O C IAT IO N. HE IS THE CO -
P RODUCE R O F “ G O D
OF THE OPP RE SSE D,” AN UP COMING
DOCUME NTA RY F IL M
ON BLACK L IB E RAT IO N THE OLOGY A ND IS T H E
AUTHOR O F “ P RE AC H A’
‘It Takes a Village’
C
B Y CA RL W. K E NNEY II P HOTO B Y B RI A NA BR O UGH
MAN “ AN D T H E SE QUE L “BACK S LID E .” H E H A S
LE D CON G RE G AT IO NS IN MIS S OURI A ND
N ORTH CA RO L INA .
OMMUNITIES ARE OFTEN DEFINED BY the perception of bad news. People avoid places known for consuming, dark shadows and people unwilling or incapable of securing the American Dream. There’s also good news in those places.
More than a year has passed since Steve Chalmers talked about Men of Vision at the N.C. Mutual Life Insurance Company Building. Many of the men in the room nodded in agreement as Steve, who retired as Durham’s chief of police in 2007, shared his plan to resume the work he started in 2004. “Throughout my law enforcement career, I was always convinced crime and disorder could not be resolved through enforcement programs alone,” Chalmers says. “In fact, law enforcement agencies should be promoting, encouraging and implementing as many prevention and intervention programs as they are enforcement programs.” On November 6, 2004, more than 75 black men came together to create Men of Vision with a plan to mentor, support and encourage young people of color. It was Steve’s response to what law enforcement couldn’t do alone. “We sought to encourage those involved in gangs and with criminal records,” Steve says. “We sought to offer and provide jobs to these young men and women, and to support them through mentoring.” Men of Vision began as a collaboration with the 100 Black Men of America, Triangle East chapter. Men from across Durham volunteered time and other resources.
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durhammag.com
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April 2018