The Magic Of Magic

November 7, 1991 was one of the worst days of my childhood as I then knew it. I remember walking in the house from school and my mother telling me Magic Johnson was about to retire because he had HIV. At that very instant I ran into the bathroom, burst into tears and cried like a baby. Not because Magic was retiring, but because of the death sentence that came along with the diagnosis of HIV at that day and time. In 1991 HIV simply meant you were going to die of aids, sooner rather than later. As a fourth grader I didn’t know much about HIV/AIDS or how you caught it; all I knew was that it was bad and that it would make you really sick really fast and that you would die, looking like a shell of your old self. That was all that I could think of; my basketball idol, Mr. Showtime, Magic Johnson was going to die. As we watched the press conference all I could think was that Magic is going to die. In life everybody will die, but to a kid heroes don’t die, they are invincible. This harsh reality was something that in 1991 was unavoidable. Magic reiterated during his press conference that he would fight this disease with the same winning attitude and determination that he had on the basketball court. He made it be known that he would still be here for years and that he was not going anywhere. Although he was extremely optimistic about his future battling the illness, the consensus was that we would witness the death of a beloved superstar before our very eyes. Fast-forward 20 years later and everything that Magic Johnson said has not only came to pass, but he has exceeded the expectations of everybody except himself. Two returns back to the NBA Courts (1992 &1996), and 1992 Olympic Gold Medal with the Dream Team and a stint as part owner of the Los Angeles Lakers are just a few of the many things Magic Johnson has done since he was diagnosed with HIV in 1991. He has become a spearhead for urban development across the country. From movie theaters, restaurants and coffee shops to fitness facilities Magic has used his platform to inject life and money into neglected areas of the black community. As an advocate for HIV and AIDS awareness, he has been a strong voice in the fight against HIV/AIDS and the educating of people (the black community in particular) about the causes of AIDS and the reality which is AIDS. The fact that Magic Johnson has HIV has been a driving point for the fact that anybody can get this disease. Magic realizes that his positive status drives home the seriousness of this disease, yet his status also serves as a wakeup call for people to become educated about this disease and take safety measures to prevent themselves from acquiring this disease. The past 20 years has allowed Magic Johnson the opportunity to not only be an educator and an advocate for the fight against HIV/AIDS, but this time has also enabled him to be an inspiration for those living with this disease. The fact that he has overcome HIV with the same vigor that he overcame foes on the basketball court is Magic in itself.

Jacqueline Smith’s Dream: Her Stand

There are two sides to every story; whether they are seen or unseen. Many times things are thrust into our eyes, yet we have the option of viewing or turning an oblivious eye to the source or sources being placed in front of us. Mulberry Street is the where the curtain closed on one of the dreamers of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On April 4th 1968 an assassin’s bullet killed King on the 2nd floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel, the place where he was staying during his stay here in Memphis to help with the sanitation strike. An important voice of the movement died that day, but there was another voice within the same building which would be heard years later, that of Jacqueline Smith.
Jacqueline Smith made national headlines on March 2, 1988, as she was forcefully withdrawn from the Motel as a tenant, in preparation for the overturn of the Lorraine Motel into what was to become the National Civil Rights Museum. The fact that the Lorraine Motel has been turned into a tourist attraction rather than an entity that can refurbish the community and uplift the community is something that Jacqueline Smith has protested peacefully for the last 23 years. The gentrification of Mulberry Street and the surrounding neighborhoods has been based solely on the establishment of the National Civil Rights Museum. Gentrification is the act of the wealthy coming into an impoverished, low income area, renovate the area, move the current residents out and raise the prices and standard of living to where the poorer people that previously lived there cannot live or return because they are financially unable to live in the “gentrified” area. Smith has seen this happen to Mulberry Street. An area that once thrived off of the black dollar is now not able to entertain the black dollar. King was in Memphis during his “Poor People’s Campaign,” a campaign to make sure that the needs of the poor and oppressed of the US were met and addressed. This fact is one of the foundations for Smith’s protest. Gentrification is not about spreading money, but it is about making money and many times when is it comes to making money, extreme measures are taken. The National Civil Rights Museum generates millions of dollars a year, yet if one were to look around the neighboring community, this would not seem factual. Smith shares the same dream that MLK had in the fact that everybody should be equal and that nobody should suffer inequalities at the hands of others. The former residents of Mulberry Street and the surrounding areas have suffered the consequences of gentrification. Would Dr. Martin Luther King Jr want a community dispersed and disregarded for the reward of monetary gain and historical gratification? The King family objected the idea of building the Civil Rights Museum as did Jacqueline Smith. Her protest is that of peace, humility and knowledge. She doesn’t impose her protest on anybody, yet if you are wanting and willing to listen and engage in a conversation with her, she will enlighten you on her stance. The fact that she has maintained a peaceful protest with the same profile and location for nearly 25 years is extremely admirable. If you understand what Dr. King truly fought for then you will definitely understand Jacqueline Smith and her stand.

To Learn More About Jacqueline Smith And Help Her Fulfill The Dream In Any Way Visit Her Website At http://www.fulfillthedream.net/