If I Only Had 1,887 Words

Picture it: Tallahassee, Florida. October 3rd, 1887.

When two professors and 15 students assembled for classes on the first day of school at the State Normal College for Colored Students. The doors opened at one of the first institutions of higher education in the deep south marked a pivotal moment in our nation’s history. We — the collective, magical force that is Black America — had only been granted the privilege of reading and writing less than 20 years earlier. Now here we were, poised to begin training Black children to learn at the highest levels. Who would have known that 130 years after that fateful October Monday morning, that Florida Agriculture & Mechanical University would be the force of nature that it is today? Who could have ever imagined that 130 years later, the same year that gave the world Marcus Garvey would be the same year that birthed Rattler Nation? Who would have ever thought that Florida A&M would have positioned Herself to take Her rightful place as the real Black Mecca of this nation — the place where Black Gods, trained in the science of everything from Black psychology to the study of plants — could come together and communally move the world forward and make it a better place for us all? Who could have thought? If I only had 1,887 words, could I truly capture the essence, magic, and wonder that is Florida A&M?

Who Run The World? Rattlers: Top Row: L-R: Angelia Robinson, Will Packer, Andrew GIllum, Woody “The Great” McCain,” 2nd row: news anchor Kumasi Aaron, Georgia Dawkins, Raymond Alexander. 3rd row: Melissa Mitchell, Amir Windom, Sidney Wright IV, Anika Noni Rose, Kamau Murray, Kyle Washington, and Cirilo Manego III.

Gettin’ Some Straightening If I only had 1,887 words, I could write about the other Black Mecca and all you have done #ForTheCulture and how, that is truly something to admire — from where you stand. But from where We stand, Florida A&M is a Black institution founded and operated by Black people from the very first day our doors opened. At the deepest end of the deep south, in a state whose past is as treacherous as any other state in the confederacy, and in a city whose streets run with just as much Black and Brown blood as Charleston and Birmingham, Florida A&M survived, thrived, and changed Black lives.

You are a HellUva school. Your alumni have contributed to film, law, politics and social movements in a way that gives you every right and every reason to crown yourselves a Mecca for Black people. Your Homecoming is legendary. Your alumni include Stokely Carmichael, Claire Huxtable, and Toni Morrison — the three of them alone have done more #ForTheCulture than the collective Black alumni of every PWI combined. We do not deny this because it would be impractical. But, to crown yourselves The Black Mecca would be disrespectful to what it is that We do, because We do it so damn well. Indeed, you are a Black Mecca, but you are not the only Black Mecca.

But, if I only had 1,887 words, would I waste anymore of them on another school than I already have?

Of course I wouldn’t.

FAMU alumnus Woody “The Great” did it #ForTheCulture as Bobby Brown in “The New Edition Story”

Florida A&M: Our Past If I only had 1,887 words, I could go on and on (and on) about how Our history is built on the very foundation of what it means to make a way out of no way. I could espouse the fact that Florida A&M was never meant to flourish — let alone produce the levels of Black Excellence We currently see today. If I had the time, I could expound on Our illustrious heritage and the Sierra Leone royal venom that coarse through Our veins. I could use my 1,887 words to discuss the presidency of Nathan B. Young and how, despite every effort by the state legislature to underfund and undercut, We prevailed. I could write a think piece on the state of Florida refusing to pay Nathan B. Young the same $4,000 a year salary as the other state university presidents because “no negro was worth $4,000.” I could write about how Dr. Young advocated for a curriculum that trained Black children in the south in both the liberal arts and industrial education in a time where Black colleges were expected to train Black students to milk cows and plow fields.

I could use the self-imposed limit to write about the distinguished presidency of Robert E. Lee, a man so great in statue, that students wrote a song about him and would literally sing his praises. I could tell the story of how, during the Great Depression, when other colleges were struggling to stay alive, Florida A&M continued to thrive and grow because instead of sending students home, We shared food, clothes, and resources and leaned on one another to get through one of the darkest and most difficult times in Our school’s history.

FAMU’s Dream Girl: Anika Noni Rose pictured with Jennifer Hudson and Queen Bey at the 2007 Oscars.

I could write about Florida A&M’s involvement in World War II and how We accelerated all of Our programs from four-year programs to three-year programs to keep up with the demand of producing qualified Black men and women to serve Their country. I could write about the nearly 70 FAMU women who were trained in stenography and sent to Washington DC to serve Their country when They were needed most. If I so chose to, I could use my words –just 1,887 of them — to talk about the great recruiting class of 1946, a staff that included Sybil C. Mobley, the founder of the School of Business and Industry and Dr. William P. Foster, the father and founder of the Baddest band in all the land. I could use all 1,887 words on the Marching 100 alone. After all, do you know another band who has performed at more Super Bowls than us? Alongside Prince? Or with Kanye on the Grammy stage? Do you know another band who has received a greater international reputation and is the only HBCU band to be awarded the highest award given to marching bands? Do you?

No, you do not.

If I had the time, I could write on the women of FAMU. From Nanny Mcguinn, to Lua S. Barley, a bad sister who turned a piece of chicken wire and a bag of sand into the university’s first sport — tennis. I could spend my allotted words preaching the graces of The House Athena Built and Ms. Gibson herself.

Could I use my self-allotted limit to write about Florida A&M’s athletic program? Could I capture the magnitude of the impact of a program that has given the world Bob “The Bullet” Hayes, the world’s first and only Super Bowl winner and Olympian gold medalist? If I had just enough words to lay it all out in plain English, could I write about Jubee Bragg and the ‘agile, mobile, and hostile” boys of Jake Gaither?

Rattlers in Education: From L-R, Derrick McFadden was recently recognized by his school as a “Top Performing Teacher.” Center: Tallahassee Principal and Marching 100 alum Star Swain went viral (again) in 2016 with her soul-stirring perfomrance of the National Anthem at the Lincoln Memorial. Right: Michael Jefferson is a 2015 Marshall County Teacher of The Year

I could tell you about the Homecomings that were headlined by Stevie Wonder, and Ray Charles, James Brown, and The Temptations. I could write 1,887 words on the Golden Age of FAMU, a time that saw higher education’s most charismatic leader, Dr. Frederick S. Humphries leading Us straight to 1997 College of The Year.

I could waste your time and my word limit on the past, going over a history so rich in legacy, so becoming of a glorious tale, that you would swear a Hollywood producer wrote the script himself. I could keep going on and about our history. But, in the prophetic words of the Prophetess Damita Jo:

Florida A&M Today I could write about Will Packer and the $100 Million dollar Girls Trip. Or the $200 Million dollar Straight Outta Compton. I could write about Amir Windom, the man behind Pharell and Bruno Mars. I could write about our #ForTheCulture contributions to Empire, Being Mary Jane and Sister Circle. I could talk about our Emmy-winning alumni you know, because our alumni be winning Emmys. If I only had 1,887 words, I could write about FAMU’s own Dream Girl; only a FAMUan could stand between Jennifer Hudson and Beyonce and still command your attention.

From L-R: Rachel Shackelford is 2014 Emmy Award Winner; C: Sidney Wright is an associate producer with CNN and former has ben honored by the National Asociation of Black Journalist for his contributions to student media. Right: Georgia Dawkins is a producer with TVOne’s new talk show for Black women, “Sister Circle.”

Would 1,887 words be enough to capture the prominence of the School of Journalism and Graphic Communications? A school that has given us everything from CNN producers to primetime anchors, and NFL sideline reporters? If I thought that 1,887 words would be enough to capture the magic of FAMU, could I write about the School of Pharmacy and how an alum created a pharmacy and launched it on FAMU’s birthday because, why the hell not?

FAMU Pharmacy School graduate Dr. Martez Prince celebrates 2 years of owning and operating his very own clinic, the Premiere Pharmacy and Wellness Center. Happy Anniversary, Rattler!

If I only had just 1,887 words, could I describe for you a campus so beautiful, so majestic in nature, that when you walk Her hills, you can literally feel Her legacy pulsating under each footstep? Could I could write about each and every dorm, each building bearing the name of a Black History titan — Phyllis Wheatley, Sojourner Truth, Johnathan Gibbs. General Paddyfoote, and Nannie McGuinn?

Rattlers Running Sh*t: L-R: Will Packer, producer behind Girls Trip, Ride Along, Think Like A Man, and Straight Outta Compton. Center: John Thompson, Chariman of Microsoft. R: Amir Windom is a grammy award winning producer whose credits include Pharrell’s smash hit, “Happy.”

Florida A&M & The Future Florida A&M is more than an institution of higher education. It is more than just a college, or a place where one comes to socialize. Florida A&M was Hillman before Hillman was Hillman; We are the Original Kings and Queens of the Hill. Florida A&M has been providing the world with a Black Arrogance that the other far less qualified have been attempting to duplicate since their inception but it simply just isn’t so. We are adulated by the facsimiles of what it is we do. After all Bethune-Cookman, imitation has and will always be the highest form of flattery. (Happy Founders Day, Little sister!)

From L-R: State Resentative (District 8) Ramon Alexander. Center: Cirilo Manego, community organizer, healthcare advocate, campaign associate at the The Hub Project. R: Andrew Gillum, Mayor of Tallahassee.

When I call myself a Rattler, it is not to boast, but if I aim to Bragg a little differently, I have that right.

At Florida A&M, We are a FAMUly. We are a Nation. We are a Fortress. We are a force of nature. We are industry leaders and trendsetters. We are best -selling authors, and entertainment power moguls. We are running Our own companies and signing Our own checks. We are running your company and signing your checks. We are Microsoft. We are Hollywood. We are the football field and the golf course. We are the example of what it means to be young, gifted, and Black — when Lorraine conceived that timeless phrase, who do you think she had in mind when she wrote those words as fact, jack? We are the quintessential definition of what it means to reach for the stars with the sun in our back pocket. When We walk into the room, you know who We are because Our reputation arrived before We did. We are the ones who beam with pride every time We hear, “Yep…he/she must have gone to FAMU.” We are survivors and We are warriors. We are American History. We Are World History. We are Black History. We do it #ForTheCulture.

Hell, Florida A&M is the culture.

If I gave myself 1,887 words to tell you how Bad & Black & Black & Bad Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University is, could I do it?

Of course I could.

Say what you want, Because it really doesn’t matter, All of my friends are running the world, Because all of my friends are Rattlers.

Just another product of the greatest universitive on earth! Happy Birthday, FAMU!

#Inspiration #BlackWomen #Hbcu #BlackLivesMatter #Writing