STEVARIO "C. WIND" WINDHOM

The little guy in the picture above is Kameron, my nephew and the 1st Wind born of his generation.

 

Clutched in his hands and being used as a blanket is a shirt baring the Japanese kanji for "Wind". The very same one I wore while hanging out with George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. The same one I wore while partying with Janelle Monáe. The same shirt J. Wind aka J-Max and I wore when we drove overnight to NYC to let the staff at Violator and Chris Lighty know that "we didn't come to win your contest. We came to let you know Macon is out here, and Wind is EVERYWHERE."

 

Like the "S" on Superman's chest, that symbol spells "HOPE"......because despite my or his mother's best efforts, as he grows up, the media and his peers will indirectly and directly tell him he is not good enough.

 

He will be told what to wear.

 

He will be told who to love.

 

He will be told what to believe.

 

He will be told that he's a "thug" if he takes pride in his culture. Then, when he displays appreciation for other cultures, he will be told that he is not "Black enough".

 

He will be told that he doesn't possess the necessary skills or education for a job. Once he has a degree, he will be told that he is overqualified for the same job.

 

He will be told he is too sensitive. He will be told that he is too threatening. He will be told that he is too stubborn. He will be told that he doesn't try hard enough.

 

As much as we love him, we can't protect him from all of these things, because we can't physically be everywhere at once; and by the time he becomes an adult, the technological and generational gap between him and us will be so great that we may not even be able to communicate what we feel he needs to survive…

 

…but there is a choice…

 

We can choose to teach him early on that he has the right to CHOOSE what he believes.

 

We can teach him that any possibility--no matter how unusual or unorthodox--is still a possibility for his life.

 

We can teach him that there are more resources in this world to create his own way than just money, race, or privilege.

 

We can't be with him every second, but we can give him the tools he needs to transform his world and the world around him--tools that he can carry with him wherever he goes.

 

We can pass on to him a legacy that can transform his life, and lead him to transform the world...and it all started with kids with big dreams who believe that anything is possible.

 

The Book of Wind will provide possibilities for not only Kameron, but YOUR children by opening the conversations that lead to the transformations that make the world a better, safer place for them to live and grow.

 

--Stevario "C. Wind" Windhom