Kevin P. Chavous: College Readiness Is More Than Academics
Julious Threatts (pictured) is 21 years old, but for some reason, he thinks he can create his own fountain of youth. Threatts was caught trying to impersonate a 14-year-old, so he could play in a youth football league.
Threatts used the alias "Chad Jordan" to register for Webb Middle School. The school is located in Tampa, Fla. Threatts told school administrators that he was homeless on the day of his arrival to the school.
After trying to enroll, the Department of Child and Families was called to assist in the situation. That's when Threatts was taken to the cafeteria and even given a snack. When the principal saw him, he immediately noticed that he was too old to be in middle school. He was eventually arrested on trespassing charges.
In addition to his trespassing charge, Threatts is being accused of violating the terms of his probation on an earlier burglary charge. He was kicked off the football team, when coaches from other teams recognized him. He allegedly played in the same youth league a year earlier.
"I brought him into this room with seven of our board members and coaches and said, Come on now, tell us the truth, who are you?" Ray McCloud, one of the youth coaches, told MSNBC. "He looked me right in the eye and said, 'I swear I am who I say I am. I'm Chad Jordan.'
"This guy had us all fooled. I mean this guy acted just like a little kid. Everything about him was a little kid. He's a total scam artist."
Not only did Threatts' story include his own acting ability, it came with documentation. According to media reports, Threatts had a falsified birth certificate as well as a detailed scouting report from a high school recruiting scout alleged to be from Rivals.com. The report analyzed Chad Jordan and said that he is "a very special prospect" who "hasn't signed" but has "offers from USC (University of Southern California), Texas and Florida."
It seems that Julious Threatts doesn't need prison as much as he needs a good psychologist. Some people will go to dramatic lengths to re-create their youth, and I am curious as to whether or not Threatts truly accepts or realizes that he is no longer a 14-year-old.
I once recall speaking to a young black male who was 20 years old and still in high school. He was dropping out soon, since he'd failed so many grades that the school no longer desired his presence on campus. He was completely illiterate and unemployed. I asked the young man what he wanted to do with his life, and he said, "I want to be a football player."
The answer made me sad, because not only was he not going to graduate from high school anytime soon, he'd also never played organized football before. He wasn't very big and didn't seem to have any form of extraordinary athletic ability. All he had was the dream of playing sports that he obtained from watching football every Sunday. He never lived out his dream of being a football player, but was instead sent to prison just two years after our conversation.
This story, as well as the one of Julious Threatts, makes me think of the infantilization of the black male in America. Through sports and hip-hop, black men are in a peculiar partnership with the educational, economic and criminal justice system to keep themselves uneducated, marginalized and perpetually immature.
We have 35-year-old men running around with their pants sagging, hats cocked to the side and imitating hip-hop artists who have far more money than they will ever see in their lives. There are also former athletes with few professional skills in their late 30s, hoping for another tryout with a team who will accept an aging journeyman. It's incredibly sad to watch, and it's time that we all enforce codes of educational effort among African-American men. It doesn't matter if you're not the brightest bulb on the tree, but no one should try their best to remain ignorant.
For us as black men, sports becomes our beacon of hope in a world that has become virtually hopeless. Perhaps by embracing education and simultaneously requesting accountability on the part of school systems that refuse to educate us, we can allow ourselves to become men. How this relates to Julious Threatts, I can't say with complete certainty, but I am convinced that there is a connection.
Watch Threatts recite his "God" poem below:
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here. 
Comments: (57)
Add a comment
By: MrAnderson on 9/01/2010 5:53AM
Five Mike you are full of sh.t placing the blame on black males being denied an opportunity to get a good education totally on the schools. People like you never mention the failure of the parent and the environment they live in. This lost man is an example of this in this article because no one told him the number 1 thing a black man must have is a good education. Instead they are pushed into athletics and now being a rapper. They are being raised that they are not responsible for their actions its all the white mans fault that they are dumb losers stuck on stupid a living in an unreal world that they will be million dollar pros and rappers.
Even though there are schools that fall short on educating black children, I say go visit the schools and you would be shocked at how the students act and how threatening gangs run the schools who deny blacks the opportunity to come to them and feel safe and learn. As a teacher I place the blame on the parents/ family/care giver. If education isn't the number one priority in the home the children come to school totally unprepared to begin to do basic work. I teacher at a public elementary school in one of the worst ghettos and I along with the total staff have done everything possible to motivate black children and the majority are just not interested in getting an education.
At an early age all they want to be is a rapper, in some form of show business or a pro athlete. They come to school totally unprepared for the learning process out of control and see it as just a place to play and hang out. The only time a parent shows up is when the child has committed a terrible act and has to be removed from the school or requires psychiatric help. They threaten the teachers and some have attacked the staff members who tried to help. Their children do everything possible to interrupt the learning process of the students that want to learn with bullying and physical attacks and tell them they are trying to act white and no longer welcome in the black ghetto. The problem starts in the home and the schools try to do it best but the parents don't place a value on education. Many place emphasis on their sons being an athlete’s or now the big thing a rapper. It’s BS that schools are purposely failing to teach blacks, it blacks who just refuse to do what it takes to learn.
Schools in the same area with many Korean students, some who can barely speak English are busting their butts to learn and are passing the black children by because their parents made education their number one priority. Now blacks are trying to get their children into the overcrowded schools with a large group of Koreans because they are excelling in education and refused to be bullied and stopped from learning by jealous blame the teachers/school blacks. It’s something to see how they use every opportunity to learn while blacks are hanging out trying to out rap one another.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Kalynn on 9/01/2010 9:45AM
Boyce, that's three in a row where I agree with you. Fantasia story, this one and can't remember the other. There is something going on in the background of this young man's life. The poem points to lack of family, lack of a support system, lack of a father...but God.
Interesting conclusions you drew of how blacke males, "some" are stuck on stupid. Don't want to dress it up. Pull up your pants, turn off the TV; cartoons, and video games, and be responsible. There are some GOOD, balanced black men out here who know who they are, but there are so many more who are totally clueless and stuck in a time warp.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Gladys on 9/01/2010 9:47AM
Mr Anderson you have said what blacks don't want to hear. I live in Queens, New York and the Asians are going to the same so called bad teacher schools and because they are there to learn, the schools are now the most sort after schools by blacks and whites. They have proven that the worst schools can become magnates of a good education if you come to them to learn not hang out, disrupt the learning process and go home and do your home work.The teachers respond to those who want to learn not be disruptive and try to take over and instill fear as wanna be thugs and gang bangers. The Asians refuse to be pushed around especially the Koreans and its showing in their academic accomplishments. Blacks are still finding something to complain about rather than doing like wise. If its not about thuggin, raping and sexually harassing the girls they are lost boys. The Asian ignore them are becoming the majority and are being accepted in some of the top universities.Not one of the girls have gotten pregnant and the schools are no supper duper modern schools the Asian student are super hard working students that take full advantage of every opportunity to advance their education the same that's offered to black students.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: melody on 9/01/2010 10:20AM
this comment is for the young man seeking his youth ....you already know what to do to ready and understand the missing links in your life...look to GOD
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Dolly on 9/01/2010 5:58PM
Hello,
Was this young man hactched from an egg? Where is his parents he is mentally ill and need all kinds of help. Don't throw him in jail that would be taking the easy way out.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: clarke on 9/07/2010 9:31AM
HE WAS JUST DOING HIM. YALL STOP HATEIN.
Report This
By: Sixthirtythree on 9/12/2010 5:18PM
At some point in their education some black men need to be responsible for their own education especially when the schools are falling down on their responsibility to educate them. Their parents need to be involved as well, but sadly, I know that is not always possible. The plight of black men is bothersome.
You bring up a great point about the infantilization of black men I have not considered.
Reply to this Comment | Report This