As an African American male growing up in an inner city community, one is considered by many as an endangered species. One can find it difficult and at times a struggle to stay out of the conflicts brought about by the surroundings. When faced with such conflicts and adversity, one must focus to stay a float and on course in a society where one bad move can forever change one's world. The most important thing to keep in mind in these situations is surrounding oneself with positive and highly motivated people.
Few teens are fortune enough to have a place where they can go to escape their surroundings and interact with other highly motivated teens. I am member of a service organization named Jack & Jill, and as a teen in this organization I am able to interact with teens, who share my same dreams and aspirations. In this organization we perform community service such as gift wrapping, working soup kitchens, volunteering at community centers and cleaning up parks. During these service projects we not only have fun but we get the joy of helping our community and here the special words "thank you." It is through this community service that I realized what I want to do with my life.
As a child I watched my community once proud and beautiful absolutely devastated by the withdrawal of banks and businesses. There was no economic growth or stability in our community. I mean there wasn't even a grocery store. One could say that there was no hope or inspiration for the growing youth. How can one expect the average youth to aspire to be more than what is in their grasp. Lets be real for second, its not by chance that youth that grow up in higher income communities where they have parents who are professionals grow up and follow suit. Where on the other side of the coin youth that grow up in a community full drug dealers, drug addicts, unemployment and where death glorified end up the same the way.