Television personality, activist, political commentator and motivational speaker Jeffrey “Jeff” Johnson will visit Indianapolis as part of this year’s series presented by Steward & Associates.
He will speak April 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Madame Walker Theatre, 617 Indiana Ave.
Currently, Johnson is best known as a commentator on the nationally syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show, tackling issues related to politics, entertainment, and social policy. He regularly contributes commentary for news broadcasts and publications such as MSNBC, CNN, Ebony and Jet.
Johnson has landed major interviews with figures such as President Barack Obama, Minister Louis Farrakhan and controversial Sudanese President Omar Bashir.
A native of Cleveland, Johnson first achieved notoriety as director of the NAACP’s Youth and College Division and vice president of the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network. He is also remembered as commentator Cousin Jeff on the BET program Rap City.
This week, the Recorder had a chance to speak with Johnson about Indianapolis and his thoughts on the issues facing the African-American community:
Recorder: Are you looking forward to coming to Indianapolis?
Johnson: I can’t even count the number of times I’ve been to Indianapolis. I grew up in Cleveland and I’m a Midwest boy, so I appreciate the grit, common sense and practicality of Midwesterners. Indianapolis, like Cleveland, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and other cities in the region have all those things. I’ve always appreciated the reception I receive in Indianapolis no matter what the event is, and look forward to coming back.
Are you familiar with Indy’s Jeffrey Johnson, the pastor of Eastern Star Church?
(Laughs) Yeah, we met during the last ramp to the Circle City Classic.
Can you give a sample of what you will share with Indianapolis?
We’re living in a time where our communities are in need of substantive and pragmatic leadership. As we engage young people and the community, so much of what we need to move away from is all the pontification of the problems that we’re facing, and really deal with strategic solutions and recommendations.
I’m hoping that as we engage, we can talk about what some of those potential solutions, and figure out who is already doing great work in Indianapolis and how those folks can be supported so that their capacity can be expanded. We can also create practical ways of involvement for people who are figuring how and what they can contribute.
What are the three most pressing issues facing the African-American community?
Well, we have to name the city. I think it’s a misnomer to think that the top priorities in Oakland and Cleveland, are also the top priorities in Philadelphia and Indianapolis. Still, we can’t have a jobs conversation disconnected from one about education and opportunity. We have a million high skilled jobs in America that can’t be filled because there are a large number of us that don’t have the education or technological expertise to fill. Somewhere we’ve missed the boat in how we are preparing our young people for viable work. We have to have to conversations built around education, opportunity, economic development, investment and wealth building. We as a community spend a trillion dollars annually, but there is only one African-American on Forbes list of billionaires. We’ve got the resources to be able to have a great deal of capital of impact, but we also have to develop the will and strategy to do so.
I get excited when I see people like Magic Johnson, who within the last month has gained a television network and a baseball team. That isn’t the result of being a good basketball player, that comes as the result of being a disciplined businessman. If we can look at him and others and figure strategies on how to more effectively use our dollars, we can have the infrastructure needed to fund solutions for the challenges in our community, instead of looking for President Obama to make milk and honey flow from Washington and Indianapolis.
What can the nation learn from the Trayvon Martin shooting?
This situation shows us there is still a racial schism in this country where Black men in particular are viewed as criminals before anything is known about them. We still have a great deal of work to do in addressing issues of justice all over the country. Our apparatus for addressing issues of justice needs to be uploaded and reloaded. For example, I’ve been talking to students who are preparing to mobilize in Florida over the weekend, but they are disconnected from traditional organizations like the NAACP and Urban League. That’s not an indictment against those organizations, but what it does say is that we need to figure out how to actively engage a new generation in developing their own movement for social justice and equality.
Also, this is not an issue of where you have only Black folks rallying for justice for Trayvon, you also have whites, Latinos and others. This incident provides us a real opportunity to be able to move beyond just Black and white issues to say that we live in incredibly diverse country that is a reflection of the broader global society. We as a community are more effective when we figure out how we fit in a global community, not just a Black and white one.
Why should we pay attention to this year’s election?
We can’t afford to sleep any election. The people on the ballot are the individuals who will ultimately decide what our communities will look like. It is important to remember that we have candidates running for Congress, state officers and local judges who we forget about sometimes, but have as much importance as who will be in the White House.
Can hip-hop still be used as a positive force to help youth?
There are young people all over the country who are using hip-hop to mobilize around social justice issues. Hip-hop communities are using art, for example, for conflict resolution, and using hip-hop to get people to the polls. Hip-hop is a language, and we have to understand that there’s a hip-hop community and a hip-hop industry. The hip-hop community has never relinquished the responsibility of using hip-hop as a positive tool to create a positive manifestation.
What do you enjoy in your spare time?
I enjoy traveling, spending time with my kids and my fiancé, and just enjoying life’s blessings and opportunities. I love the work I do and I’m blessed by it.
