March 21, 2013 by admin

"Who would have ever thought that a black man from the South side of Chicago, with no college degree, nor formal training in radio, TV, or writing, and the youngest son to a single 17 year-old teenaged mother with three children, would one day lead civil rights protest and help to elect the first black President. Life is truly amazing!" The constant buzzer from my cell phone about 5 a.m. this morning alerted me to the farewell message from Michael Baisden, one of most successful radio peronalities in the United States. He has been a champion for social justice, an inspiration to millions and he has done so with humility from the same platform that many have used to hurt and degrade others. Now there are many ways I can take this blog, such as standing up for principles, which was implied as to why he will no longer be hosting the show, or the true test of a character, but I am not. I am taking it to the start of a man determines his future. There is a popular misconception that being born into a single family household or by teenage parents is a death sentence. Now there will be many who will read this blog, including me, who was born to a teenage mom and will laugh at that misconception. The problem is there is such a person who is living that death sentence and won't experience the metamorphosis into the Michael Baisdens of this world, simply because he or she has become slave to the notion that the circumstances into which one entered this world determine his future. Let me take this moment to pop your bubble. Into what cirmcumstances were unabomber Ted Kaczynski, or those who took the lives of many at Columbine High born? I believe, based on research, that they were born into married households, or as some articles put it, "normal entry." Now don't get me wrong, there are also those born to teenage moms/single family households that turned out to be menaces to society and those who were born to married households that turn out to be America's sweethearts. My point is for the most part, you determine your future. Michael Baisden made a decision that being black was not going to hamper him; being from the "ghetto," was not going to define him; having no college degree was not going to marginalize him. What will your decision be? What will your legacy be? How will you be remembered? Whose life will be made better because you were here? Michael Walker, the antagonist in "Deadly Instincts," made a decision. I learned from him that if you don't make one, one will be made for you. As for Michael Baisden, and contrary to the title of this post, I don't bid him adieu, I will see him later in the many fights for justice still on the way.
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