“Personally I feel like a shark swimming with fishes;
Seems like everyone wants money, but no one truly knows what ‘rich is’….”
Those lines are from a poem titled “Harsh Realities” written by Terence Johnson-Hart for a publication at his school, the “Harlequin.” The entire poem reflects his depth of perception of the world around him and his willingness to be a part of the solution. Writing is just one of the ways he seeks change.
Beneath his youthful demeanor, infectious smile and dapper appearance, he is bright, strategic and intensely focused on serious subjects. Like, the perilous situation facing Black males in his community. Terence, 17, impacts his surroundings by being a doer as well as a talker; working to be a catalyst for change—not just in support of his quest for personal excellence, but also for the benefit of those coming after him.
An 11th grader at Central Catholic High School in Oakland, Terence was selected several months ago to be a part of the Voices Project started by Leon Ford, 22. A victim of mistaken identity by the police, Ford was shot five times during a traffic stop and is now paralyzed. As a way of demonstrating that Black male voices matter, Ford creates videos of community members sharing their stories.
“He is phenomenal, ambitious and more,” Ford says of Terence. “He has taken my story and his voice and has become an activist at a very young age.
“Terence has a million questions about everything—and is not afraid to go beyond conversation. He is all about action—getting it done. A great example of this is that several months ago, he spoke about starting a Black Student Union at his high school and, last month, they had their first meeting.”
Currently an honor student, Terence plans to attend Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Ga., to pursue a double major in business administration and political science.
“I figure if I study business I can do whatever I want, and mostly what I want is to be a boss,” Terence shares. “I do not want to have a boss.”
His mature understanding of how individual excellence impacts the collective is significant.
“I am driven by the desire to make things better not just for me, but also for my children and for my people,” Terence says. “The better we make our accomplishments, the better our community will be. I want to be involved in work that increases the economic standing in our neighborhoods.”
Terence resides in Sheraden with his parents, Terri Johnson-Hart, an event planner with her own business, and DeWayne Hart, a City of Pittsburgh employee. His parents share that he has always shown himself to be advanced in various stages of his development.
Listening to him articulate in person and on the video, it is hard to believe Terence had a severe speech impediment as a young child and was in a variety of speech programs offered by Pittsburgh Public Schools.
“He was taking speech therapy class for two years of preschool, then kindergarten and first grade,” says Hart. “His speech was very rough. We finally ended up putting him into St. Benedict the Moor School. We thought he would have a great chance there—and he did.”
Terry Roberts, his eighth-grade teacher at St. Benedict, says, “Terence is a young man of character and great promise. He embodies what I believe is the impact of parents and family and what they contribute to the success of young men, and in particular young African American men.”
Terence overcame his speech impediment and has become an eloquent young man committed to excellence. When he first started at Central Catholic, he had some academic struggles and had to build himself up to become an honor student.
“I was challenged because I was in a fog, so to speak,” Terence recalls. “It was like I was driving down the road, but could not see it. It was after I found myself that things got clear. I knew an honor student was what I wanted to be. I began to focus on that, and it happened.”
His mother and father agree that Terence has been a blessing.
“He has been self-motivated from day one,” said his mother. “He is the real driving force behind what he wants to do. We felt our job was to let him know that, whatever he wanted to do, we had his back.”
***
Each month in New Pittsburgh Courier, McAuley Ministries will sponsor an article highlighting the positive contributions of an African American youth—male or female. We welcome community members to suggest a young person to feature in this monthly column.
Criteria include:
•Youth and young adults, ages 12-23
•Documented evidence of leadership or achievement in community service/volunteerism; leadership or achievement in their classroom/school; creativity as an artist, musician, dancer or filmmaker; success as an entrepreneur; leadership in advocating for social justice and equity; and/or achievement in corporate or nonprofit arenas
•A resident of Allegheny County.
Readers who would like to suggest a youth for this feature should email GENNEXT@pmhs.org.
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