Putting Baltimore City Back Together Again

The Vision to Lead – Part II

Matthews W. Wright, M. Ed.

Earlier, we’ve reviewed the symptoms and culprit conditions that when unchecked for a period of time, feaster and erupt causing government, media, agencies, communities and individuals to display dysfunctional and irregular behavior. In comparison, it was also noted that in previous generations, under more stringent conditions we were able to discipline and assemble the community.  Neighbors collaborated to improve services, strengthen political unity and formulated cohesive plans for the protection and nurturing of children and elders.  The neighborhood was organized and contained all of the services needed to conduct your life and cultivate the strengths of the entire community.

Today, in some Baltimore neighborhoods those same variables remain in play. They have stood the tests of time and remain strong, vibrant and remarkably stable.  How is it that over time, some communities have decayed and fallen into impoverished conditions? Just those who live in the neighborhoods or those that own the property cannot be singled out for cause. Community leaders, clergy and government should not be held fully liable for the state of affairs either.  The reality is that each of us must be held accountable for the appalling condition of neighborhoods in the City of Baltimore.  If we drew a circle around the inner harbor including the neighborhood footprints, twelve blocks beyond that area in all directions would reveal undeniable abandonment and neglect!

Many theories can and have been be offered which I won’t belabor. We need to discover how to move from “victim to victor”!  To get there vision is required. My definition of vision is the uncommon ability to physically see, mentally understand, and spiritually trust those images, thoughts and forces that assist us through this stage of life.  The air needs to be totally cleared of preconceived notions, petty concerns and biases of all sorts to confront the real culprits that have caused this and other urban regions not to live up to their fullest potential.  How is it that we have perceived two or three separate Baltimore’s?  The city is less than 47 miles away from the Nation’s Capital, one of the largest regions on the east coast yet it seems as if the two were thousand of miles apart!  The myopic vision of our city needs to be corrected.  A means is needed to creatively join forces to truly, yes TRULY COLLABORATE and accelerate social impact. The creation of a 20-year breakout plan re-arranging thinking, capital planning, development and investment along with legislative enactment will execute and embrace a New Vision of Urbanism in the City of Baltimore!!!

To a great extent, this is similar to the template Atlanta leadership used more than 40 years ago in collaboration with Mayor Maynard Jackson to re-develop and design modern Atlanta, GA to become the model city of the formerly segregated south.  They used all of the criteria listed above and created a collaborative approach to develop Atlanta with the inclusion of its minority population!  Legislators, union leaders, the progressive private sector stakeholders and financial institutions collaborated to make it an “alpha” or “World City” ranked 8^th in the nation.  They coined themselves as “to busy to hate” aligning itself to become the city of the world’s busiest airport.

Charlotte, NC, another model, is one of the fastest growing city’s in the United States and the largest in the state of North Carolina.  It is the 2^nd largest city in the Southeast with a growing population of 792,862 diverse citizens.  The city has become a major financial center as the second largest banking center in the U.S. after New York.  Between 1970 and 2010 Charlotte increased its population base by 35.2%.  The composite breakdown of the diversity of residents is African Americans 35%, Non-Hispanic White 45.1%, Hispanic/Latino American 13.1%, Asian American 5%, Native American 0.5% and 2.7% other races.

Surely, the limited example of these two southern and formerly heavily segregated cities offer a hint to how change can enhance social impact and outcomes.  Another part of the solution to bring about change is a shift to correct the overall vision.  The following chart reflects the needed behavioral and attitudinal shift.

                                    REAL                                                                    VS                                                    Ideal

                                    Business                                                                                                                                Individuals

                                    Government                                                                                                                          Communities

                                    Institutions                                                                                                                            Society

                                    Society                                                                                                                                   Institutions

                                    Communities                                                                                                                        Government

                                    Individuals                                                                                                                            Business

The system approach entrenched in the American process of growth has primarily recognized the corporate business as the lead in capitalism.  While at the same time, this approach fails to fully recognize human capital as primary or significantly important in the general makeup and well being of the system. In the last 50 years and most recently, corporate growth has gone unabated and given legislative license to exacerbate the economy, infrastructure, health, homes and the lives of all Americans.  This economic approach must be reversed.  Corporate citizenship must recognize, embrace and promote attributes that strengthen all individuals, communities, society and institutions.  Our local, regional and national government have to apply reasonable restraints and protective legislation that balances and critically assesses the outcome for all factions.  These checks and balances will assist the alignment and train the public with a new development of skills in finance, human resource management, health services, data, information or cyber security in our now new technological world. Persons that may not have achieved a GED or post high school education would now be in a position to develop skills needed for full time employment and garner income and credentials to sustain themselves, their families and functional communities.

In a way, the required work for change is like a performance or life itself.  Some has to be done behind the scene out of the spotlights.  The greater work is usually done there where the team is strengthened and space is provided not only to gain a better perspective of things, but also to provide the room leaders require while performing their work.

The vision to lead requires the same and is similar to conducting the work of a theatrical play. The work requires financial backers willing to take the risks involved to conduct an award winning performance, legislative people establishing productive, instructive and inclusive law, out front at the microphone people updating the progress, behind the scenes setting appointments people responsible for results and timing, data mining people providing the updates of information, people honestly checking the people in the process of performing functions and people determined and willing to move through the process to transform themselves.  The end result of properly executed work is the fruition of that vision!