On February 4, 2006 Bloomsburg University held its 12th Annual Sankofa Conference. Having enjoyed it in 2004, but then missing it in 2005 due to a schedule conflict, it was refreshing to see what had come of the conference in two short years. The event was marked by extremely positive and professional workshops, inspiring speakers and a sense of community, despite cultural differences.

Audra and I arrived early, registered, and received our information packets. The conference packet included evaluations for each workshop (but not the overall conference), an agenda, bio information on Roger Jackson (the keynote speaker), a Black History bookmark and notepad, and a Sankofa keychain and pen.

At 10:00 everyone gathered in the Kehr Ballroom for the keynote address by Roger Jackson, an educator, author and public speaker from the Philadelphia area. To get everyone perked up, he started his presentation with a series of music clips from hip-hop songs, old and new. What was interesting for me was that I even recognized a few of the older songs from the days when I listened to Philadelphia’s Power 99 FM (a rap/dance station that used to come in up on the mountain in Hazleton).

Jackson was animated and sincere, and presented a great introduction to what would turn out to be a very cohesive day of purpose and exposure to leadership qualities. The theme of the conference was “Empowerment.” Jackson’s speech embodied that theme by focusing on the road map that one must have to get through life, and the realization that everyone is interconnected. Mr. Jackson’s presentation was geared toward encouraging students to continue their education and gain as much knowledge as possible. In his description of power, he broke it down into two fundamental areas: Economic power, and Knowledge power. (He ruled out physical power since, in a civilized society, such power doesn’t tend to have as much impact.)

Economic and Knowledge Power are intertwined. One is a reflection of the other. To show this, Jackson ran through a list of statistics, some of which were known to me, while others were not.

Unemployment rates / Median Income
African American 13 % / 30,000
Latin American 9% / 35,900
Caucasian 6% / 47,500

Per Capita / Poverty Rates
African American 16,000 / 23%
Latin American 14,000 / 20%
Caucasian 26,200 / 7.5%

Married Couples/ Single mothers/ Out of wedlock births
African American 7.8% / 38% / 62%
Latin American 14% / 38% / 33%
Caucasian 4% / 24% / 20%

Less than Highschool / Bachelor
African American 20% / 11%
Latin American 40% / 9%
Caucasian 14% / 18%

High School / Graduate degree or more
African American 33% / 6%
Latin American 26% / 4%
Caucasian 30% / 10%

Source: 2004 Census

I’m not a big fan of statistics, since they can be used in a number of ways to support a number of viewpoints. Jackson himself noted this in his criticism of No Child Left Behind. But this was one time where the statistics, and the sensibility of the argument, seemed to make a lot of sense. The overarching question that I have about all of this is: Why?

The reasons appear to be many and varied, and thus the purpose of such conferences. Jackson commented on having an “unwavering commitment” to be a leader and share your positive experiences and guidance with others coming up in younger generations.

Now, the audience that day was primarily African-American, with some Latin American representation. The message that Jackson delivered may have been crafted for such an audience. However, there were so many aspects of his talk that applied to any person, regardless of color. Sankofa is an Akan word that means, "We must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward; so we understand why and how we came to be who we are today." (from Sankofa.com) We would all do well to look at our history.

After a brief introduction to the workshop presenters by Marvin Worthy (president of Worthy Consulting & Associates) we took a break and then reconvened in the ballroom for a “Male and Female” workshop. The workshop leaders consisted of Wanda Anderson, Julie Williams, Michael Williams and Lawrence Ryan.

Everyone was asked to line up in a row by birth month, but without talking. At the signal to start, most everyone’s hands went up in the air with a finger count to show the month. I’m August, so that was easy – I’m not sure what the November and December folks did. After lining up we counted off by fours, and were then asked to split up into four groups. Each group was given a name: iPod, Cellphone, Home Phone, and Pager. Each group was provided with markers and a large Post-It board. Each group designated a person to write, and a person to speak for the group (following the “one mike, one voice” concept).

The groups were asked to come up with a list of 10 qualities that were similar between the namesake of their group (in my case iPod) and a relationship. For example, an iPod needs to be recharged, and offers you choices – not unlike a relationship. After a period of discussion we moved on to creating lists of the top 10 most important things to have in a relationship, as well as the top 10 things reasons to be in a relationship. After some more discussion, we were asked to rate a series of qualities that had been pre-selected (Honesty, Beauty, Tight Body, Intelligence). The basic question was: from a grant total of 1 million, how much would we bid on each of the qualities? For the most part this exercise revealed that what the media and entertainment outlets consider to be important (beauty, tight body) are actually less important when considered against other qualities (honesty, trust, etc).

The final exercise involved splitting the entire group up into men and women, and asking each what three things they hated most about the opposite sex. Then we were asked to note 10 things that we liked most about each other. This exercise clearly showed there were good and bad traits on both sides.

This series of relationship exercises took about an hour and a half. You might think that was too long. Yet, the presenters kept up the energy level throughout, and I didn’t even notice the time passing. You could tell that they had some experience with this sort of thing, and their professionalism was commendable.

Lunch was in the Commons building, the usual buffet that Audra and I sometimes take in on our cheap date night when we don’t want to cook or go out anywhere. The first sessions after lunch were separate sessions for men (Man up! It’s time to put up or shut up!) and women (He said! She said! What?).

The male workshop was presented by Marvin Worthy and Michael Williams. After introductions which called attention to the need to have a mentor relationship with someone (Marvin being Michael’s mentor while in school), we were broken up into two groups. We were then shown a series of 10 pictures of mostly African-American or Latino men and asked to pair them up with a list of job descriptions. The list included lawyer, janitor, coach, dead-beat dad, pastor, entrepreneur, policeman, man on work release, street pharmacist and counselor. Our group debated and matched the descriptions with the pictures as best we could, knowing we’d probably be wrong. I half expected all of the categories to be wrong. The second group was asked to evaluate our choices, and make changes where they saw fit. They changed a few of our original choices, but kept others.

Of course the purpose of this exercise was to demonstrate that 1) we all prejudge others, and that 2) you can’t assume your judgments are correct. I think we had two or three correct answers, which just showed how inappropriate prejudging can be. This portion of the discussion wrapped up with a look at the way men of color have been portrayed in film and television over the years. This “perception continuum” clearly shows two trends: negative role models have always been portrayed by men of color, whereas positive role models are only recently (within the last 10-20 years) portrayed by men of color.

The rest of the workshop was largely a continued discussion about mentorship, making positive choices, and how to function in a “bicultural” world. Since many of the students at the conference were going to schools in small, primarily Caucasian areas, the ability to respect and adapt to the environment was a key idea. During our discussion, Marvin and I came at the subject from a couple different angles. I expressed my experience in small towns that have experienced an influx of Latin American and African-American people, and how small towns basically don’t know how to act toward these new citizens. Surprisingly, even Marvin agreed that, while identity is a major factor, it is necessary for African Americans to keep in mind the stereotypes that are spread by certain forms of dress and language. It’s not necessary to give up all of one’s identify, but there is no reason for sloppy language or sloppy dress (regardless of what color you are) and it certainly helps when you make an effort to fit in. As Marvin says “Pull your pants up and increase your opportunities.”

There was a handout for this workshop, but for whatever reason we didn’t do much with it. It looks like there were some good exercises about perceptions of men. In a round about way, we touched on a lot of the subjects in the handouts, just not in a structured way.

For the second afternoon time slot, attendees had their choice between a Leadership Workshop and one entitled “Around the Way.” Since Audra and I are both in positions of leadership in our jobs and within our communities, and since I have been studying leadership and social influence, we both chose the leadership workshop in the Hideaway (a small club in the Union building).

The presenter was Wenda Anderson, an associate of Worthy Consulting. The collaborative, group-oriented approach was used here as well, with four groups counting off and then each coming up with a list of leadership qualities. Our group came up with the following:

Communicator, Ambitious, Visionary, Servant
Good listener, Responsible, Risk Taker, Fearless
Decisive, Open, Direct, Delegate
Team player, Organizer, Integrity, Self-confident, Determined

After discussing these qualities and noting that there is no hard and fast rule about leadership, Wenda asked for volunteers to participate in a demonstration where one group of people formed a circle and were told not to let anyone in. Another group tried to get into the circle, without knowing what the first group’s orders were. No one managed to enter the circle, and after the exercise, Wenda asked each group how they felt about the experience. Opinions varied, but overall those who were trying to get into the circle felt frustrated, while those who were blocking them felt that they were just following orders

The exercise was used as a transition into a discussion of three ways people are called to leadership: by reason (which could last indefinitely), by season (elected, hired) or by the moment (brief). Leadership under these circumstances is considered “transformational.” Due to these circumstances, future leaders need to always be ready. The majority of people that find themselves in leadership roles due to a transformational experience are not trained as leaders.

After further discussion and another exercise, Wenda ended the workshop with a thought provoking story about a lady in a village who had a dream. The dream told her to store as much water as she could – in jars, bottles, etc. After a few days the people in the village started to go insane, apparently from the drinking water. Since the woman had her own supply, she was immune, but she had to suffer through seeing everyone’s insanity. Leadership is sometimes like that – being surrounded by insanity, being the only one who knows what is right. So aside from highlighting leadership qualities, this workshop was really geared toward helping people think for themselves and identify those circumstances when they may be called into a leadership role.

For the last workshop, we had our choice between a Networking Workshop, or a second Leadership Development workshop, so we chose the later to stick with our theme for the day.

The presenter was Thom Nixon, a 15-year veteran with leadership roles in a number of educational institutions, and one of the founders of Sankofa at Bloomsburg University. He started with introductions and asked each person to identify one thing about their school, community or surroundings that they want to change. Many people said they wanted to see more activities for minorities, more events on the weekends, and more cooperation among certain groups. My suggestion was that the college and the community need to collaborate, network and communicate more to make events possible, and to increase attendance.

Thom used a definition of leadership by John Kotter of Harvard Business School which says a leader is someone who develops a vision, aligns their constituents, motivates people, and inspires them in order to create significant, dramatic change.

With that in mind, Thom noted that people learn to lead and that leadership looks different on different people. After breaking off into groups, ewe were asked to come up with the names of three effective leaders we knew personally, and list what they’ve done. Many chose professors, conference planners such as Maddy Rodriquez or family role models.

In most cases, all of the people mentioned did the following:

Challenged a process
Inspired a vision
Enabled others to act
Modeled the way
Encouraged the heart

The most energetic exercises of the day involved a little physical activity. First we were asked to pair up with another person and take notice to what they were wearing, their hair, etc. Then we had to turn away and change 5 things about ourselves (taking off jewelry, removing a shoe, etc.) then face our partner again and see if they could see what had changed. The first time this was fairly easy, but after the third consecutive time, it was quite difficult and amusing.

Then Thom brought out some different sized loops of rope and gave us some specific instructions whereby all 30 of us were supposed to fit our feet inside of one loop of rope. After several tries, we eventually got it using a simple, yet collaborative, solution to the problem. This was meant to demonstrate that “grabbing for a piece of the pie” was not going to create the unity needed to solve the problem – a fitting end to this conference.

Conclusion

About 70 people attended this year. When Audra and I first experienced Sankofa in 2004, we were two of the only three or four Caucasians at the conference. 2006 wasn’t much different. This time felt less awkward, and I felt I could focus more on the material. So part of the reason I am writing this review is to show folks that there is value in attending this event, regardless of your race. We learn about ourselves through other people. The more diverse the other person is, the more you are likely to learn. I am not Black, and to my knowledge I don’t have any African blood in me (at least not within several generations). However, that doesn’t stop my appreciation for music and culture from Africa (and yes, I mean Africa as in Mali, Senegal, The Gambia, Morocco – not just modern African-American music). I genuinely want to know more – and come half way on important issues to understand more.

Sankofa 2006 showed marked improvement over 2004. It was more organized, and much more professional. There was a cohesive message throughout the day.

How was I empowered by Sankofa? Some would argue that as a Caucasian, I don’t need empowerment. I disagree because by attending events like this, I am empowered to see African American issues from the other side of the table. I think I can actually understand poverty, low graduation rates, family breakdown (of any color) more than I would if I didn’t attend conferences like Sankofa. Basing judgments on media or pop culture (even through good films, books, etc) doesn’t give you the depth of feeling that you have when you attend a conference with real people and inspiring speakers. I attend to say "Hey, I'm here - I'm not Black, and I can't know what it is to be Black, but I can listen."

Then there’s a part of me that wonders if the very fact that we must have conferences like this isn’t a conundrum. I think it is great to encourage positive leadership skills, self esteem, respect and encourage education. I think that everyone – not just men and women of color – should be striving toward these goals. But the separation that continues as a result of this self-imposed divide (and I really think it is self-imposed sometimes) threatens to encourage further division between the educated/uneducated, have/have nots – the selfish and the self-aware. Still, overall I think more events like this are needed to learn more.

As enjoyable as Mr. Jackson’s presentation was, and as much as I’m looking forward to reading his book, I was not very pleased with his answer to my question. It’s a question I carry around with me everywhere - what level of responsibility should artists (in this case – hip-hop artists) be expected to have toward the image they project? Mr. Jackson felt that such entertainers are just meeting the demands of the market, and their job is to sell. Artists who have tried to be positive (like Will Smith) have not found enough of a market, and therefore their message is heard much less. While I agree that market forces are a concern, I think once artists achieve a certain level of fame, they have to realize they are the ones in a position of power and influence – the very topic that made up the majority of the workshops we attended at this conference.

Marvin Worthy and I had a brief exchange about the need to bring more people from various cultures together with events like this. If I had any pet peeve it was that the event was still poorly advertised and didn’t seem inclusive to people of non-color. Or perhaps we’re just not brave enough to go for fear of rejection. I’m sure it will take a long time, but I’m glad that we have events like Sankofa – even once a year – to share ideas in such an open and professional way. I look forward to next year.