With tear filled eyes I write this blog, in hopes that it
will penetrate someone’s soul with love. I am writing from a place of love and
passion, so I entitle this: THE FLINT I KNOW.
Before the #FlintWaterCrisis, Flint was just a town full of hardworking,
resilient and proud folk. And guess what? When the #FlintWaterCrisis hashtag is
no longer a trending topic and the Kardashians do something like save a bumble
bee, Flint will still be a town full of hardworking, resilient and proud folk.
The Flint I know is more than a statistic stating how
General Motors screwed us. The Flint I know is filled with my friends and their
parents who were “shop” workers or retired “shop” workers and proud of it. The
Flint I know is more than a violent city. The Flint I know is filled with extremely,
talented folks trying to make a difference in their community and the
world-at-large. The Flint I know is not full of despair. The Flint I know is
full of hope. The Flint I know is not all about slow singing and flower bringing.
The Flint I know is full of energy from that party DJ’d by Hype.
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| Photo Courtesy of Anthony "Hype" Carter via Facebook |
The Flint I
know is not unhealthy and lazy. The Flint I know is full of CRIM trainers and
CRIM runners.
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| Photo Credit: Flint Crim Foundation |
The Flint I know is not tacky. The Flint I know is styled by
Fannie Lucille and Tiffany Cole, and is as fashionable as a New York runway.
The Flint I know is not starved by the lack of adequate grocery stores. The
Flint I know is fed by Woods, the Flint Farmer’s Market, Big Al, Beverly, The
Red Wagon and Vehicle City Tacos.
The Flint I know is not filled with losers. The Flint I know breeds Champions like Mateen, Charlie and Mo, Claressa
Shields, The Dirrell brothers, Mark Ingram and so many more.
The Flint I know
isn’t going to back down like some punk. The Flint I know changed history with
sit-down strikes and birthed unions!
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| Photo Credit: www.workers.org |
The Flint I know is not filled with teen
pregnancies. The Flint I know was filled with teen parties hosted by Foxy
productions, DonQuay, Stacey Williams, DJ Scribble, and the General; at venues
like the Genesee Towers, Northwest Bowling Alley, The Genesis, Haskell, and
Berston.
The Flint I know was better than the NBA playoffs. The Flint I know
had double headers at the I.M.A. that would put the NBA All-Star weekend to
shame.
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| I.M.A. Sports Arena |
The Flint I know was better than the Oscars Red Carpet Pre-Show. The
Flint I know hosted proms at the University Center and that walk around the
circle had you feeling like you were about to accept an award.
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| Photo Credit: Bill Bamberger |
The Flint I know
doesn’t lack faith, churches, or church leaders. The Flint I know has some of the best preachers and community leaders this side of heaven including: The late Bishop Floyd, Pastor Kenneth Stewart, Urundi
Knox, Rev. Alfred Harris, Rev. Kim D. Yarber, Rev. Lewis Randolph, Rev. Flowers and the list goes on...
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| Photo Credit: mlive.com |
The Flint I know will not accept
your arsenic. The Flint I know will not go down without an all-out fight. The
Flint I know is the toughest town around since 1855!
The Flint I know is “The Valley”
The Flint I know is The Courtland
The Flint I know is Atwood
The Flint I know is Angelos
The Flint I know is Beans & Leaves
The Flint I know is Meijer on Pierson Road
The Flint I know is Kessel’s on Pierson Road
The Flint I know is CLC
The Flint I know is the Beavers, JB’s and the Palm Tree
The Flint I know is Autoworld
The Flint I know is family
What's the Flint that you know?
