What if He had a green Job?
On Saturday May 17, 2008 Michael Asberry, an original gang leader and organizer of the Rollin’ 30s Crips of Denver, Colorado was shot down at his apartment building in the Denver suburb of Aurora. Asberry was credited with helping to expand the notorious Crip gang from California to Denver. He recently was released from prison and was hoping to change his life around for good. Unfortunately it was hard to overcome a background full of felonies. His untimely death has lead to an uproar of violence in the streets of Denver and neighboring suburb Aurora. My hometown is mourning and I am asking what if HE had a green job?
African- Americans make up 11 percent of the city and county of Denver Colorado and a mere 5 percent of the surrounding area population. However the community is divided by a strong affiliation to colors. The Crips run the East side and Five points and the Bloods run Park Hill and parts of Aurora. Since the early nineties this division has caused tension and bloodshed amongst the small black community.
Michael Asberry helped to create this situation. However, he paid his debt to society by serving a long prison term and was hoping to change his life around. Unfortunately the world around him was not ready to help him. Asberry was fired from a government job because of suspicion concerning his long criminal background. Unable to find work that could pay him a respectable wage, Asberry began to consider moving back into drug dealing. Rumors are that he was shot because of this ill fated decision.
After the death of Asberry, the Crips are rumored to have retaliated by setting the Holly St Strip Mall on fire. “The Holly” is a known hang out for the Bloods in the Park Hill neighborhood. The Bloods have continued the beef by allegedly fire-bombing and drive by shooting at local Crip hang-outs. The lives of people in my hood are under jeopardy because of this tragic thread of incidences. Again I wonder, What if America built an economy that truly rehabilitated and supported Asberry rather than driving him to crime, prison and death.
With the legion of respect Asberry had behind him, he could have become a great leader for my community. There is no doubt that he had hood respect and was able to lead hundreds of young people. If Asberry had the opportunity to be a part of a training program that was connected to a growing industry maybe he would have used his hustle mentality to create a new business. Or maybe his involvement would have led the legion of gangmembers behind him to invest in the green industry instead of the drug trade.
Who knows what could have been. All I know is that we could have stopped this and we still can. The Green movement is growing all around us and it is time that real people had the opportunity to benefit. Our economy and our communities are falling. Investing in a renewable energy economy means more jobs and opportunities and less independence on expensive and dirty oil . Ella Baker Center and Green For All Founder, Van Jones said “Give Pookie A Job!” Asberry was Pookie and this is just one example of the trickle down effect of Pookies with no job.
For more information please visit
or http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_9305149
www.westword.com/…/news/the-transformers/
