Am I Invited?

Springfield, MO- Where Dreams Come True… I have a shirt at home from a local company that has these very words imprinted. Movements from this city also include taglines such as Enjoy the Life You Want from liveinspringfield.com and Jeff Houghton’s Make Something Where You Are. Additionally, I would argue that perhaps Springfield’s greatest assets include the people in the city and the accessibility to those individuals. What undertones are included in these hopeful sentiments though?

I recall an iconic legend’s famous I Have a Dream Speech that envisioned a nation where diversity and inclusion were no longer a hot-button issue because equity, access, equal rights, respect, and mutual understanding would be so easily achieved. The sad reality is that many people still struggle to grasp onto the practicality of this dream- whether from 1963 or 2020. Who do I look up to? How can I (a young, black man) dream to be a CEO when I struggle to name very many black CEOs? Or politicians? Or frankly anything that is not an athlete, rapper/musician, fast-food employee, or front-line worker… now D&I practitioner? On top of that, most knowledge and perceptions that are stigmatized for people of color come from the news and other media outlets. Do you see some of the problem?

The good news is I have found Springfield to be an awesome place to live and grow a family… for some. For others, it is a reiteration of the notion that “we” don’t belong. When I began my journey of community involvement, people would ask me, “Do you know Wes Pratt? Samuel Knox? Lyle Foster?” Later, I discovered that these were well-respected, successful Black leaders in this community. While I appreciate the well-meaning gesture of others that were interested in connecting me with people that looked like me, it made me wonder- “Is this all I’m good for? Is this all that they are good for?” I drew this conclusion on a couple of different facts: 1) Basically, the ONLY time I saw a person of color in the community was if invited to talk about diversity and inclusion and 2) The only ones being called were the aforementioned names and a few others. I firmly believe that I stand on the shoulders of these respected persons of color that have dedicated their lives to fighting for equal justice for the community. I also believe that this community has a way of completely exhausting people of color and dictating their dreams for them.

Not only have I been able to build relationships and mentorships with my predecessors, I have gotten to know other persons of color that are in my generation. These friends of mine DESPERATELY want to be involved in and connected to their community. Unfortunately, it is extremely disheartening when you are the only person of color in almost EVERY room you walk in; it is extremely disheartening when you have less than 5 years of work history and your employer expects you to fix their diversity issues; it is extremely disheartening when it is almost automatically assumed that you want to be on the Diversity and Inclusion committee/taskforce; it is extremely disheartening when you have to question whether or not you have been recruited for employment or volunteer work to be the “token.” So, I started a social support group for young professionals of color.

Thankfully, I have been blessed enough to be involved in many conversations and have the ambition {and naivety} to continue to pursue my own dreams. However, not all my peers have experienced that same fortune. I discovered that given the opportunity, people will perform tasks and support initiatives IF they feel welcomed to do so. So, the need was identified, and I accepted the internal compulsion to do something about it. Without very much permission, I texted about 25 of my friends that fit these demographics about the idea to gauge their availability and interest. We settled on the First Friday of every month at 7:30 AM with the goal of building a sense of community and belonging amongst ourselves. We have also added an extra social component for individuals to attend in the afternoon/evening along with their families. It is awesome to see the magic of people connecting; being able to talk freely and comfortably about various topics including where to get appropriate hair care, the struggle with feeling isolated or uninvited in the community, the frustration with the obligatory diversity and inclusion mantle, suggestions in dealing with discomfort in the workplace, and other social networks made for personal and professional growth.

Let me tell you what this group is not. It is not an opportunity to make others feel not young enough, not brown enough, not involved enough. On the contrary, we try to provide a space where people are excited to attend because they can call the group theirs without fear of being misunderstood or reduced to a number/box. Our group is not slated to overtake The Network, Minorities in Business, NAACP, or any other similar groups. Instead, it is our goal to help facilitate community involvement, connections, and development of those that engage.

Thus far, we have had close to 30+ different individuals attend since the inception, averaging about 10-15 people per meetup. My hope is that natural friendships and contacts are birthed from this group and we encourage members to become involved with community causes of personal passion; you know, sort of an ombudsman for involvement, middle-man group, welcoming committee, you catch my drift... Since many [I] refer to me as the “Networking Wingman,” I enjoy helping people explore and discover their passions and bridging pathways to be involved. I don’t know where this group will go, but I do know that it is our goal to make Springfield the place where EVERYONE can experience their dreams!

Published in the Unite Publication Jan 2020: https://issuu.com/unitenewsonline/docs/2020_jan_unite/6