Summary

In this compelling memoir, Samuel DeWitt Proctor invites us to share his lifetime of experiences and their lessons.  He chronicles his family’s journey " from his grandmother’s slavery through the monumental victories of the NAACP, to his own involvement in the King Oasis " to show the common thread in the lives of millions of African-Americans: pure, enduring faith.  This book passionately illustrates the author’s tenet  that lessons from the past can help create a more promising future.  Dr. Proctor affirms that faith is powerful enough to respond to the despair of alienated young blacks locked in a cycle of denial and defeat today.  Proctor believes faith can drive a national quest for a new kind of community " the first “genuine community” in which all African-Americans will participate fully and equally.

Recommended by Dr. Maya Angelou

“...Through the capable hands of Samuel Proctor, we have been given a book which is both prophecy and poetry.”

Author Biography

Samuel DeWitt Proctor is Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University and Pastor Emeritus of the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem.  Having earned a doctorate in theology at Boston University, he served as associate director of the Peace Corps and as president of two colleges, among his many appointments.  He lives in New Jersey.

Topics to Consider

“...the vast majority of slaves were denied any access to education as part of a well-documented conspiracy to forge a racial stereotype:  namely, that blacks were less intelligent than whites and fundamentally unable to learn.” (p. 3)  Can you think of other “conspiracies” to the same end?

From early childhood, Proctor recalls teachers who spoke to children “in the subjunctive mood " not what is, but what may be....”  Do you believe this same ideology to hold true in today’s classrooms?  Why or why not?

In the face of “white flight” to the suburbs, how can true integration be achieved and education standards be brought to an acceptable level in inner city schools today?

Dr. Proctor is repeatedly asked questions about his views of equal opportunity and affirmative action.  How would your answers to the questions posed on pages 94-95 compare or differ with his?

The author believes that all parents should be held accountable for their children to the fullest extent of their ability.  How does the need for both parents to work " sometimes more than one job " in order to provide for basic needs like food, clothing and shelter affect accountability?

Dr. Proctor states, “Believing that change is possible causes one to act in harmony with such faith.”  What are the greatest deterrents to believing that change is indeed possible?

“The most stubborn barrier to progress is the insistence that negative behavior stems from race, rather than from poverty and isolation.” (p. 175)  Do you agree?  What can be done to break down this barrier?

Reflecting on the experience of Native Americans, the author asks “What choices might they have made that would have changed the outcome?  What choices do they have now?”  If these same questions are asked about other minority groups, how might the answers be similar?  Different?

Even for the most impoverished, troubled youth, Dr. Proctor is adamant in his belief that “faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.”  What can be done to help young people discover such faith?  What obstacles and forces must be overcome?

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