As I stood and watched the press conference for the up coming A Call To Action : 10,000 men event, I was a little proud to see all the elected officials who attended the event. Some wanted to make the news, some really wanted to make a difference. But as I stood by a proud Charlie Mack standing high near Kenny Gamble, a yell "It's A New Day" filled the room. Even though the crowd wasn't that big , the message was echoed from the Liacouras Center down Broad Street, its time for A New Day. But how long will this last and will 10,000 men be enough to save our streets from the crime and violence that have made Phila home?

I mean Council people , ministers , Deputy Police Commissioner and Charlie Mack yell all through the Halls " Its A New Day" in front of media and patrons that attended the event. It would have been nice to have seen Mayor Street, but his son came on his behalf to show support for this Oct. 21 event. I first thought about this event and gathering of maybe 10,000 men, dedicated men, to hit the streets would be a bad idea. But the message was clear from everyone of the speakers that its not a war against the streets, the streets are already at war! Its not a battle to win the streets back, they will be trying to motivate and educate those who think violence is the answer.

It was also a pleasure to finally meet Mr. Bilal Qayyum, founder of Men United For A Better Phila. This city hasn't been too cooperative when it comes to helping organizations that want to empower and educate black men. It's good to see strong men that are not afraid to walk the crime filled streets, some streets the cops dare to drive down. It's good to see that people actually care about the welfare of a society that's dying everyday on these streets. One speaker addressed that if we don't do it , it won't be done. We need more people to take back the streets, without violence or force! Education and a second chance will be the vehicle to drive some of these thugs from off the streets to jobs and homes to provide for their families. These streets are getting younger and younger with the continuous homicide from the hands of black people killing black people. And it can't just be 10,000 black men walking and talking to the streets, this isn't race issue. We need all men UNITED for a BETTER PHILADELPHIA!

Black, white, young, old, Christian, Muslim, Catholic, Jewish ,man, and woman all have to hit the streets to win back our children from this violence. How serious are you about saving your city? Are you one of the 10,000?

ARE YOU ONE OF THE 10,000????????????