By Press Robinson
Author and longtime educator Press Robinson muses on the importance of being personally engaged in our local and larger communities.
Chancellor Robinson presides at the May 12, 2002, Southern University at New Orleans commencement. (Photo courtesy of the author)
Writing a book about my life was not something I thought I would ever do. Even when a friend told me that my life story was worth telling and writing about, I hesitated to do so. But realizing that Black people tend not to chronicle their activities and achievements, I decided that, important or not, living a life extending from no hope to dreaming deserves being told. Where your life begins isn’t nearly as important as where it ends and what you did in between. Please don’t concentrate on your destinations but on your journeys to reach them.
The story I tell in Pressing Forward: My Life as a Baton Rouge Community Pioneer combines my accomplishments, belief system, and perspectives on my body of work. The book attempts to deliver several life lessons, including the following:
- One should be willing to work to improve his/her community.
- Anyone can take the lead in the cause of an issue.
- Leaders are made and not born.
- One does not have to be someone special to be a leader.
- The value of one’s work in life is judged by others and not by us.
- One never knows what life will bring, so never say never.
- Never set out to do something because you think it might bring you fame.
- Take the time to write down accounts of your work.
- The keys to a productive life are hard work, honesty, character, and the blessings of God.
- Last but certainly not least: Pay attention to politics and vote, vote, and vote.
We live in times that are uncertain, complicated, divisive, and frightening. So, what do we do about this unsettled democracy in which we live? We become intimately involved at all levels, respect the rights of others, and work for the benefit of those who form our community. Not every person is destined to attend a college or university, but we must realize that knowledge is precious. Knowledge does not have to come from a college or university degree, but it is essential to the public’s welfare. Individuals often concentrate on knowledge that will help them earn a decent livelihood. While that is certainly a noble endeavor, we must also be knowledgeable and involved in local, state, and national politics. Ultimately, it is politics that determines the quality of life we experience. To say that your vote does not count is a denial of reality and is an abominable disregard for the sweat, tears, bloodshed, and lives lost fighting for the very right to vote.
But voting is only one piece of the civil rights struggle. Look around and observe the efforts to roll back the rights of various groups in our country, and you will quickly realize that the fight of the masses never ends. The same obstacles keep rearing their heads, only in a different way or via a different methodology. Unfortunately, the problems that persist among us are not limited to the young but seem to pervade our entire society. The behavior of the young, though, is the most critical, for they represent the future.
Sixty-one years after my adult journey began, my efforts continue in my local and extended communities’ educational, social, civil, and voting rights and political arenas. If you think there are no battles to fight, look around you. Then get involved.
Press L. Robinson Sr. began his career as an assistant professor of chemistry at Southern University Baton Rouge. He retired forty-one years later, having served as associate vice chancellor at Southern University Baton Rouge, chancellor at Southern University New Orleans, and vice president of the Southern University system.
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In this down-to-earth memoir, longtime educator and community leader Press L. Robinson Sr. recounts his hardscrabble childhood in South Carolina, his education at Morehouse College and Howard University, his career as a professor and administrator in the Southern University system, and his activities as a community leader in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The first elected Black member of the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board, Robinson consistently fought to level the playing fields for Black Americans and to better the social and physical environment of his adopted city.