Feature
Well-executed plan works for Expo 7.19.11
INDIANAPOLIS STAR
Indiana Black Expo will be a long time convincing many casual observers that its Summer Celebration is a multifaceted benefit to the community and not a reason to avoid Downtown on a certain weekend.
The unfairness of that stereotype aside, Expo's leaders nevertheless had to recognize the serious problems associated with its youth-oriented attractions and replace self-defense with taking the offensive. They did just that.
A festive and remarkably peaceful final weekend testified to concerted action by the organizers, along with the mayor's office, the police and a legion of volunteers.
The heavy presence of police officers and citizen monitors, coupled with the decision to concentrate activities -- and young people -- in one venue, served to curb the roaming and attendant friction that plagued nighttime Summer Celebration events in the past. There were arrests, as is to be expected with events that draw thousands; but no reports of gun violence, in bright contrast to last year when 10 youths were wounded in three shootings.
Regrettably, even the absence of gunplay dominates the news and conversation this year, when Expo and city officials would rather talk about the blessings of a nationally renowned institution that brings 200,000 people Downtown to promote black achievement and cultural diversity.
It's not as though unpleasant truths are shunted aside. As anyone who has taken the time to get to know Black Expo can attest, its agenda deals with the underlying challenges that necessitate armies of police at youth gatherings: alienation of young people, the lure of gangs, easy access to firearms, the brokenness of too many families. A sobering presentation titled "State of Our Black Youth" was just one of many relevant offerings for and about the coming generation during the 2011 program.
None of these ills is exclusive to African-Americans, and no critic of Expo has room for complacency. Heading off trouble, and tragedy, is not a matter of tactics for a weekend but rather a year-round obligation for every member of the greater community. Black Expo deserves credit for applying that lesson, in and out of the headlines.
I’m honored to serve as Mayor of our great city. Every day I work to represent all the citizens of Marion County . . .