With the election of Barack Obama to the presidency, a great push is under way to hold up his achievement as one which will inspire African-Americans and other minorities to realize that America is indeed a place where even the disadvantaged can strive and attain their goals within society. Though such a message has been the basis of many worthy social programs for decades, they now have a catalyst for inspiration which is unequalled in American history.
Project Thunder, a mentoring parogram for middle school students in Dutchess County which emphasizes preparing for college while focusing on academic, leadership, personal and social development, is one such program. For three years it has been “Teaching Kids To Dream,” most recently in conjunction with Vassar College, where its sessions now take place.
And it was in Rockefeller Hall on campus that a message of hope combined with the great caution that students must exercise to realize their dreams was delivered on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 22 by Harry Corbitt, the distinguished African-American Superintendent of the New York State Police to about 25 participants in Project Thunder.
In his introductory remarks to the kids, Randall Johnson, Project Thunder coordinator, held up Corbitt as one who is “no stranger to the issues of contemporary young people.” Citing his decades of service to his country, first in military intelligence in the Vietnam War and post-conflict Korea, which earned Corbitt a Bronze Star, and then during his steady rise through the ranks to the top of the State Troopers, Johnson promised a talk which would be “thunder, lightning and sunshine combined.”
And Corbitt did not disappoint.
“I’m really here to talk about you,” Corbitt told his listeners, who ranged in age from 9 to 16. “For starters, what do you think about America? How do you feel about it?”
One young girl answered that she felt “proud,” and when pressed as to why, answered “Because it’s a free country.”
“That’s true,” Corbitt said. “But America is a great country not just because it’s free, but because it offers opportunities. When I was growing up, if you had told me that an African-American was going to be President of the United States, I would have said ‘What kind of drugs are you on?’ But you have to understand that if you want to become involved in public life like President-elect Obama or myself, you have to have a clean bill of health, a clean record. And drugs are something that can permanently impair your career and life prospects.”
“For instance, if you have ever tried heroin, even once, you can never become a State Trooper. Your resume begins in kindergarten. The decisions you make now will affect you the rest of your life.”
Stressing freedom
Talking a bit about his own job, he explained how he oversees 6,000 people, not just the well-known uniformed troopers with their distinctive hats, but more than 1,000 scientists, communications specialists and mechanics. And while he stressed how he and his colleagues are there to protect the public, he pointed out that the flip side of that is going after those who would do harm to society, a category he urged his listeners never to become part of.
“What do police officers do?” Corbitt asked rhetorically. “They arrest people, they take their freedom away. And jail is no joke. In order to last in jail, you have to affiliate with someone, and you become their property. It’s like going back to slavery. Jail truly is slavery, and personally, I can’t think of anything worse than losing your freedom.”
In his effort to impress upon the kids how essential it is to maintain their freedom so that they could take advantage of opportunities, Corbitt took them on a tour of potential dangers, always starting by asking about his listeners’ experience with them, and then expanding on the topic.
And the place he began with was the place where most dangers begin for kids, the street.
“The street is an interesting place,” he said. “Many innocent people are killed there.” He then cited the story of a 10-year-old girl recently killed in Albany while sitting on a stoop, the victim of a 15-year-old who was shooting at someone else on account of a minor “beef.”
“Her sister, who watched her die, is psychologically damaged forever,” Corbitt said grimly. “What do you think should happen to this kid who shot her?”
“He should be tried as an adult,” said one girl.
Corbitt then explained to the kids what they should do in order to never be tried at all.
“How many of you have street names?” he asked.
One young man admitted he did.
“When people have street names,” Corbitt explained, “it means they have a connection to the street. When you have a street name, police officers wonder why you have one. They also wonder about who you hang out with. They employ something called ‘peripheral association’. If you’ve done something, people associated with you have probably done something too.”
Corbitt stressed not only the importance of not associating with offenders, but of not causing police officers to think you might be one because of your attitude.
He asked one 15-year-old boy directly, “How many times have you been in trouble with the police?”
And to avoidance of the street and drugs, Corbitt added alcohol.
“Boozers are losers,” he told the kids. “How many of you have known people who died in alcohol-related car accidents?”
One girl told of a friend who drank and drove, hitting a pole and being killed instantly when she was hurled through the windshield. She was 17.
“Do not drink and drive, do not get into a vehicle with someone who has been drinking,” Corbitt concluded. “What I am trying to impress upon you is that you need to stay safe. Life is precious. And no matter how bad things might seem, things are going to get better.”
“And the only thing that can stop things from getting better, that can stop you from taking advantage of your opportunities, is losing your freedom to drink, drugs, and the street. What I want to impress upon you is that you can be a visionary without being afraid.”