Second At-Promise Summit set for April 9
April 1, 2009
Interactions involving the criminal justice system and young African-American men will be the focus of the next At Promise Community Summit on April 9.
The one-day program on the campus of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College will bring educators, prosecutors, public defenders, legal professionals, social workers, members of the faith community and other stakeholders to the table for what promises to be a spirited series of discussions.
“Addressing the disproportionate number of African American males ending up in our local criminal justice system requires a community-wide, coordinated effort to find, and then change, the roots of this disparity. The goal of the At Promise initiative is to begin this coordinated effort-first with community conversation, then with community action,” said Angelina N. Jackson, director of the Race and Justice Project for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center, a Cincinnati-based legal institute that is co-sponsoring the project.
Added Cincinnati State President John Henderson, “The reclamation of African American males continues to be one of the most important challenges for our society in the 21st century, as statistics still attest.’’
Among those statistics:
- While African men represent 14% of the population of young men in the United States, they represent over 40% of the prison population. (This figure does not include the number of young men on parole.)
- Fewer than 8% of young African American men have graduated from college.
- The unemployment rate for young African American men is over twice the rate for white, Hispanic and Asian men in the same age group.
“Knowing the positive impact education and training can have on these numbers, Cincinnati State is committed to making a difference by more aggressively recruiting and graduating African American males,’’ Henderson said. “But turning these statistics around will require more than what Cincinnati State can do alone.’’
The April 9 conference is the second in a planned series of such events. The underlying premise is that African American males represent a population that is “at-promise” rather than “at risk.” But summit organizers said it will take a community effort to realize that potential.
The April 9 conference will be held from 10 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. in the Conference Center at Cincinnati State. Among the topics on the agenda:
• Public defense, crisis and opportunity.
• Disproportionate minority confinement.
• Ex-offender employment and education.
• Perspectives from police, prosecutors, judges and legislators.
• Panel discussions involving law enforcement, the judiciary and the faith community.
A box lunch, at a cost of $5, will be provided to those who register in advance. To do so, or to obtain more information, please contact Gary Boyle at (513) 569-1545 or visit www.cincinnatistate.edu.
