My First Week at the BCC

by Wesley Morris

Feb. 12, 2008

[Wesley Morris is the newest intern at the BCC. He comes from NC A&T and will be working with the SFLCA with particular attention to building Black-Brown alliances.]

The Beloved Community Center is a place where community service is neither a tagline, nor an airy sentiment. Service at the BCC is an ingrained ethic, strengthened everyday by collective effort and training.

I have just completed my undergraduate History program at North Carolina A&T State University. Towards the end of my undergraduate career I had become, “weary of theory” as I joked with a friend of mine. Theory, it seems, is only valid if substantiated with practice.

My first week of on the job experience has shown me the importance of active participation in the efforts to change the society we live in. The staff at the BCC have encouraged me to join them on trips to meetings with young people, clergy, labor union Chiefs as well as a historic march (NAACP HKonJ) in Raleigh North Carolina. I was present at school board, city council and city attorney meetings within Greensboro. The meetings with young people and school board caused me to think about the future and the tough pressures our young people face these days. The meeting with the city attorney taught me of the extremely difficult task of representing the community against opposing city government representatives, more specifically the minimum wage campaign effort here in Greensboro to raise the minimum wage to a living wage. I also have learned about the role of media. There was a reporter in every meeting place that I attended. I attended a meeting with FLOC organizers and clergy from the triad area. We were educated about migrant workers and the means by which we could overcome some of the injustices taking place. Further, we talked about the migrant workers conditions where clean running water is not always available. These meetings in my first week granted me the opportunity to be a part of real change, as well as broaden my approach to very serious issues.

My abilities to organize, research, and network are challenged each and every day. My skills in these areas were sharpened during my time at the university, but now they are being put to the test with real world experience.

I have learned to value my time as a resident of Greensboro as a result of learning the local history of nationally important events that transpired here in the city. These events are collectively compiled in the TRC (Truth and Reconciliation process). These positives underscore the need for relevant leadership in the community, as I have witnessed great injustice in this city. Without people like the ones that work here at the BCC and are affiliated with other community projects such as the Greensboro HIVE, this city and many of the citizens of this city would be hopeless.

As a young man, I want nothing more than to fight for what is right for those who do not have the strength to do so. Often times, it is not the lack of strength that holds people back, but it is the lack of means to use the strength that’s already there. I am happy to be a part of this community and participate in the inevitable change toward a society of justice. I say inevitable, because of my strong convictions of a righteous God that endows whosoever that comes, in good faith, a spirit of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Whenever a people rise to their own cognition, they are empowered with self-determination that will lead to an end greater than its beginning. Rev. Johnson made a comment to me during our first meeting concerning my feelings of wanting to be more involved in practice rather than theory, he said, “you must find the rhythm between work and rest.” The lesson learned is to respect both practice and theory, and to understand their relationship in building a better tomorrow, today.

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