Different paths to success

Over the years, young black men have been seen on college campuses, from HBCUs to predominantly white institutions, in pursuit of the American dream. They come from diverse backgrounds and have studied a wide range of subjects, from education to engineering, before returning to their communities to make a difference. Their ancestors hoped that they would get a quality education after being denied one during slavery. 

However, today, the number of black men in higher education has dropped to an all-time low, and the reasons may be self-evident.

Young black men account for nearly 43 percent of students enrolled in vocational or trade school, according to most studies. It represents a sharp increase in recent years, due to the rising cost of higher education, job prospects after college, and a renewed interest in skilled trades, such as plumbing, wiring, and construction, which can afford a young person a comfortable life. These jobs not only provide stability but also benefits and competitive pay to help start a family, which many men desire.

These men have dispelled the myth that everyone must attend college, as it is not for everyone, not because they lack the intelligence or endurance to earn a degree, but because they have chosen a different path in life. They aren't saying college is not important or hasn't played a significant role in building the black middle class, but what about starting a business, on-the-job training, or taking advantage of the internet? A career in the military is also an option, and investing in the Stock Market. They also recognize the importance of financial literacy, such as building credit and spending wisely. Thus, pushing the narrative that college is the only way to succeed may be counterproductive for men in general, as a world of opportunities awaits them.

Although scores of young black men have achieved their goals without attending college, the dramatic decline in the number of African American men enrolling in higher education still must be addressed for obvious reasons.  For instance, there is a severe shortage of black male teachers to serve as role models for black boys and help put them on the right track. There is also a critical need for African American doctors and nurses, particularly in urban and rural areas, which medical schools like Morehouse College are desperately trying to address. Reaching out to black boys by visiting schools, Boys Clubs, and inviting them to campuses to experience college life could help turn the tide. 

Meanwhile, panic is not the answer; these young men are carefully weighing their options for what they would like to do with their lives.

1968: From then to now. (August 2024)

Fifty-six years ago, another U.S president announced that he would not seek or accept his party's nomination for a second term in office. Lyndon B. Johnson, the 35th president of the United States, withdrew during the bitterness of the Vietnam War and protests at home, which tested the office of the presidency.  Six months later, at the Democratic National Convention, the torch was passed to his vice president, a man deserving of the honor.  

Although Vice President Hubert Humphrey had not competed in the Democratic primaries during the contentious 1968 election, he was the darling of the party bosses, who believed he was best suited to take on the Republican nominee. Humphrey, however, was a talented leader who had dreamed of big things long before being thrust into the national spotlight. 

Hubert Horatio Humphrey, born in the small prairie town of Wallace, South Dakota, entered politics in the 1940s while a professor of Political Science at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota.  After an unsuccessful run for mayor of Minneapolis, MN., in 1943, he played a major role in the 1944 merger of the Democratic and Farmer-Labor Parties of Minnesota to form the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) for hardworking Minnesotans. (1) He also joined Roosevelt's 1944 reelection campaign, which took place at the height of War II. This effort resulted in a successful bid for mayor of Minneapolis in 1945, with Humphrey securing sixty percent of the vote. 

As mayor, Humphrey focused on crime and labor issues, while also promoting civil rights. He appointed a long-time ally to reform the police department and crack down on lawlessness in the streets of Minneapolis, which were steeped in anti-semitism and bias against African Americans. He also aided the city's small but significant black population by setting up the Fair Employment Committee to "prohibit racial discrimination in the workforce" among other anti-discrimination and pro-labor initiatives. (2) In 1947, Humphrey won reelection "by the largest margin in the city's history up to that time." (3)

During the final year of his term as mayor, Humphrey attended the historic 1948 Democratic National Convention. Racial discrimination grabbed center stage as Democrats struggled to include a pro-civil Rights plank in their platform. When President Harry Truman and his advisors "shelved" the idea for fear of antagonizing Southern segregationists, Humphrey delivered an impassioned plea for his party to be on the right side of history: "To those who say, my friends, to those who say that we are rushing this issue of Civil Rights, I tell them we are 172 years (too) late! To those who say this Civil Rights program is an infringement on states' rights, I say this: the time has arrived in America for the Democratic Party to get out of the shadow of states' rights and walk forth right into the bright sunshine of human rights." (4)

As a result of Humphrey's powerful message, Democrats adopted a pro-Civil Rights platform with Truman's backing,  as Southern segregationists walked out, and ultimately nominated their own candidate for president.

Following his appearance at the 1948 Democratic National Convention, Humphrey was elected to the United States Senate from Minnesota on the Democratic ticket, where his fight for Civil Rights and other important issues continued. He served as the "lead author of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and introduced the first initiative to create the Peace Corps." (5) He also chaired the Select Committee on Disarmament during the Cold War Years. 

Senator Humphrey, who had run for president in 1952 and 1960, was chosen by President Lyndon B. Johnson as his running mate in the 1964 election. Upon accepting the nomination for vice president at the historic 1964 Democratic National Convention, which involved Civil Rights, he was pressured by the president to encourage the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, led by Fannie Lou Hamer, and whose delegates were democratically elected, compared to the statewide segregationist Democratic Party, to accept an at-large seat with no voting privileges against his better judgment. Not surprisingly, the MFDP refused the offer and returned to their home state to continue fighting for social and economic justice. 

After he was elected as Johnson's vice president,  Humphrey's problems escalated.  He was reportedly excluded from official White House business, not awarded any special assignments, and often ridiculed by an overpowering Johnson, much like a running back who fumbled the ball on first and goal, a treatment viewed by historians as a carbon copy of the way Johnson was allegedly treated as Kennedy's vice president. In addition to being ostracized by the president, Humphrey was compelled to back the unpopular Vietnam War, antagonizing his liberal base. 

As the war raged on in March 1968, President Johnson shocked the nation when he announced that he would not run for a second term in office.  With a chance at redemption, Humphrey declared his candidacy. However, he opted not to run in the primaries and set his sights on the convention, which proved to be a winning strategy.

At the convention, the party was fractured among supporters of the late Senator Robert Kennedy, who had been assassinated two months earlier, Senator Eugene McCarthy, who led in the delegate count, and those loyal to the president. However, the party establishment brokered a deal that gave the sitting vice president the nomination. In a crowded hall, Humphrey called for unity and laid out his hopes and dreams for America as protesters clashed with police outside over the Vietnam War and a loss of confidence in government. 

When the Fall campaign started, Humphrey lagged far behind former Vice President Nixon in the polls, who had lost a close election to President Kennedy eight years earlier.  Humphrey gradually broke with the administration's policy on the war in Vietnam over the objections of the White House and supported social reforms, which bridged the gap considerably.  Unfortunately, it was not enough as Nixon cruised to victory in the Electoral College to become the first president elected since the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

After losing a third try for the Whitehouse, Humphrey returned to the United States Senate in 1970 from his beloved Minnesota. He even ran in the 1972 Democratic Primaries but lost to South Dakota Senator George McGovern. He remained in the U.S. Senate until 1978, when he passed away from bladder cancer, leaving behind a rich legacy on human rights. 

References: 

1. Wikipedia 

2. Wikipedia

3. Wikipedia

4. Wikipedia

5. Wikipedia