Type 1
Resilience Connor’s Story
Carvin Haggins
SPEAK OUT STAND UP:
The Rage Against the Ratchet
Ashley A. Love Fearless Poets Against Bullying
AAUYM.COM AUGUST 2014
Reflections of Your Crossroads Which Direction Are You Going?
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ur Mission—AAU Youth Magazine is to motivate our youth to define their vision and create greater opportunities to help them meet their destiny. The focus of the magazine is to help them establish a true relationship with their purpose and to encourage and nurture a loving relationship of “self” to allow them to explore and develop a greater respect for the person they are seeking to become.
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August contents
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Introducing...
All About Us 6 Reflections of Your Crossroads
Which Direction Are You Going?
7 Type 1 Resilience Connor’s Story
13 Speak Out Stand Up: The Rage Against The Ratchet
15 Ashley Love
Fearless Poets Against Bullying COVER CREDITS: Photography by Roger C. Johnson Jr.
Introducing...
All About Us Youth Magazine Written By Roger & Chevonna Johnson Sr.
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he Whitney E. Johnson Foundation, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) organization our goal is to empower, engage, encourage and educate our YOUTH. Since April 2011 we have given away more than $25,000 in scholarships and have formed many partners within the Long Island New York community. Our concern for this generation is to inspire our YOUTH to embrace their VISION to pursue their PASSION and choose LIFE to fulfill their DESTINY! It is imperative to reach out to teenagers and adults to help bridge communication gaps to continue a dialogue about sexual health, religion, education, and social media issues. Martin Luther King Jr. eloquently said “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see 4
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the whole staircase.” This is your opportunity to CLIMB to heights you never thought possible, DREAM of POSSIBLITIES you thought untouchable, ENVISION the unbelievable and when you turn around and breathe you will see your GREATEST potential REALIZED in the FAITH your exercised just TRUSTING THE UNKNOWN! This is an OPPORTUNITY you cannot DENY YOURSELF a chance to tap into the BELIEF of SELF to recognize the GIFTS and TALENTS and TREASURES that are hidden within the creation of YOU! You must understand that the PERSON that you are has been blinded by the denial of self-embodiment of psychological genocide. AAU
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Reflection of Your Crossroads! Which Direction Are You Going?
Written by Chevonna Johnson, CEO/CFO AAU Youth Magazine
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hey say when you look at your reflection you always ask yourself, “What legacy have you left behind?” “What life have you impacted and made a difference in?” We are facing some serious challenges in this decade and we have yet to make some serious solutions; only superficial resolutions that have escalated into death, jail, and an uneducated youth. We have come from an era where lives were lost, so that the civil rights of ALL human life could live in equality and uniformity to overcome their trials.
Today’s generation of YOUTH are at a junction and have come to a crossroad in trying to decide which road they want to travel. Youth have a high disregard of their passion, their purpose, and find it very challenging to pursue a direction, especially when they are not offered a destination. As adults, we feel complacent in our lives and have become distracted with the struggles of the economy and losing 6
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ourselves to the situations that we are in. Instead, we have to look deeper at the blessing within because the purpose is driving us to a deeper economic destination that already exists within us. WE must encourage our YOUTH to stay focused and prepare for their destiny, but also prepare them to engage in their VISION and pursue their PASSION which is the driving force to their PURPOSE.
We as adults have lost our VISION and made some mistakes, but you are where you are now because of your FAILURES, but you have reached your destination. It is URGENT that our youth understand and recognize their VISION and pursue their PASSION and to know their POSITION to continue moving forward so they will make the right connection at their CROSSROADS. Then to continue moving forward to overcome all CHALLENGES and hurdle over OBSTACLES that will
continue to take them on the detours of LIFE.
The gifts and talents that are growing inside of you are rather unique. DO NOT allow INDIVIDUALS surrounding you to steal your SPIRIT. Be aware of friends who always shadow and dampen your SPIRIT for their influence is not what it seems. I encourage you to be wiser, smarter, and to find a mentor to help you at your CROSSROAD. Before you choose your path I encourage you to write your VISION, set goals, and create strategic plans to get you to your DESTINATION. You may not hear this too often but YOU are loved, gifted and talented. The objective is for YOU to see your reflection and develop a deeper relationship with yourself. This is the KEY to unlocking YOUR successes and gaining insight to the unknown GREATNESS that lies within you to CHANGE THE WORLD! AAU
Type 1 Resilience Written by Debricka S. Taylor
Connor’s Story
Connor Dromerhauser is a walking, breathing, living example of resilience. Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 9, he has never let it control his life or define who he is. Instead, he embraced it and fought forward. He is a representation of hope; the light at the other end of the tunnel, allowing children diagnosed with Type 1 and their parents a brightened view of their futures. His contributions and willingness to support other children diagnosed with Type 1 is selfless. Above all else, Connor is a unique, vibrant, and curious-yet humble 16 year old young man interested in doing many different things during his life. One of those just happens to be the pursuit of giving back by helping others like him. All About Us: Thank you so much Connor for agreeing to allow All About Us Youth Magazine to speak with you. Can you start by sharing a little bit about yourself? Your interests, hobbies any interesting information you would like our readers to know about you.
Connor Dromerhauser: Well, I am very athletic and I have been playing sports my whole life. I’ve been playing basketball and volleyball throughout my time at St. John the Baptist High School. I’m now a junior at St. John’s and I have juvenile diabetes or Type 1 diabetes. I was diagnosed when I was nine years old. It was actually right around the time my great grandmother passed away. So all of my family was over the house and we were having a party and I was drinking so much water, so much Yoo-hoo because my blood sugar was so high. My sister told on me because I drank all of the Yoo-hoo. I just wasn’t feeling good and we thought it was the flu. I was urinating a lot. When I went to my doctor my blood sugar was over 300, and that is pretty high. So on July 5, I was officially diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
AAU: Can you explain what Type 1 diabetes is?
Connor: Your pancreas no longer produces insulin for your body to control your blood sugar so the more carbs you eat, the higher your blood sugar will go. Your body can’t level it out and if you drink a lot of water and do a lot of activities like I was doing
your blood sugar will go low. It cannot regulate your blood sugar. So just focusing on the amount of carbs you eat and the amount of insulin you give yourself, it’s not too difficult to control. AAU: What has your experiences at school been like? Did you hide your diabetes at all? Were you treated differently in any way AUGUST 2014 AAUYM.COM
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or has your experience been supportive?
Connor: It was actually great because I was diagnosed in the summer, so we had time to tell the school. At the time, I was going to St. Patrick Parochial School in Bayshore, NY. We had time to tell the school and inform them of what happened. The school nurse actually came over to the house and wanted me and my family to teach her about it so she would be as educated and as helpful as possible. On the first day of fourth grade, my teacher had a children’s book about diabetes. She read it to the class and told everyone what was going on. It was really great how they accepted me and how helpful everyone at school was.
Mary Dromerhauser: (Connor’s mother) He was good in math. On one test he did awful. When he went to the nurse, they found that his blood sugar was very low and he wasn’t able to focus. He didn’t know what he was doing and they let him retake the test. They were always so wonderful. The school nurse was just amazing and Connor took control. He is not really giving himself enough credit. On the day he was diagnosed he tested himself, gave himself injections until he went on to the pump. My husband and I supervised and he took charge. I gave him one needle, my husband gave him one needle, and that was it. He really took control and thank God because we weren’t very good at it. AAU: I can only imagine because I’m awful when it comes to anything medical.
Mary: The first time I’m asking him if he was ready. He’s like “Yeah.” Then I think; hold on maybe I’m not ready. After twelve times he’s says, “Mom, just give me the shot.” But it’s hard; you practice on that banana and then they send you off to do it to your child. It’s very hard so thank God he was a strong as he was. AAU: From your perspective, Connor what is it like growing up with diabetes– the negative and/or the positive?
Connor: There are some things you definitely miss out on. Like when I was first diagnosed my mom wasn’t too sure if I could handle it by myself. My friend had a birthday party in New York City and I had to miss out on that because we didn’t know how I would do by myself. Besides that and maybe if your blood
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sugar is low during sports–you have to take a little break. There aren’t many things you have to miss out on when you have diabetes. You’re really just as normal as everyone else. AAU: So, does your body tell you or can you feel when you blood sugar is too low or too high. Connor: Yes, with low blood sugar, like my mom said I get a little disoriented and a little light headed but that’s really it. It isn’t too bad to handle. Mary: A lot of people don’t feel their lows. We are very lucky. Now they have guide dogs that can even sense and feel the low for you. Thank God he feels his lows because it can be very dangerous. When he was diagnosed the first party he went to the father was a doctor. Even then, I kept calling to check on Connor and he’s like, “Mary stop calling me.” AAU: What is diabetes management? How do you manage your diabetes? Connor: It just means managing diabetes really, counting the carbs you eat and knowing exactly how much insulin is needed for the amount of carbs. Which actually the pump I have today, it figures out the amount of insulin you need for your blood sugar and the amount of carbs you eat. It figures it out for me. With technology today and just basic carb counting and testing your blood sugar, it’s really pretty simple to handle. The big thing is getting a number before you eat and when you’re not feeling well. AAU: So basically you need to be aware of your levels and getting the right amount of insulin in your system. Mary: Yes, he tests at least four times a day. He tests at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and before bedtime. And also changing his site (asks Connor if he would like to show it). Connor: (lifting his shirt) I have to change my little pod I have every three days. I usually just go from side to side. It’s not too bad. This has a little needle. It just has a basal rate which consistently gives me the amount of insulin I need. And a bolus; which is when I’m eating extra carbs I put it in and it gives me a bolus of how much insulin I need. So it acts kind of like a fake pancreas. Mary: (carrying Connor’s supplies) This
is how it comes delivered to the house.
Connor: You take the syringe and you fill that with insulin. You put it into here and this is where the little needle comes into you. It is very tiny actually. It comes in on a 45 degree angle. The last one I had would go straight down; that was bad and it was connected to a tube. This one is wireless. With the tube it would get caught on the door knob and it would just rip out. This is called OmniPod and it’s a lot better. And this is my Personal Diabetes Manager (PDM) and it shows the last bolus. Mary: A bolus is to cover what he eats and then he has a basal that is set by the doctor and it gives him insulin constantly throughout the day. And you bolus for whatever carbs you are going to have. Connor: And a BG which is a blood glucose and from 70-120 is normal, which is where you really want to be. But I’m trying to work for 70-150 in that area. I get 1.5 units per hour on this setting and it might change from 12:00 to 3:00. I might get more or I might get less. Mary: And that is all programmed by the doctor which he goes to every three months. Then he has his test kit. These are the test strips that go into the PDM and this is what he uses to prick his finger. AAU: Wow, they have come a long way. You are both teaching me so much. Mary: They sure have.
AAU: When did they begin this system to help manage diabetes?
Mary: He has been on a pump without the tubing for about four years I believe. This is amazing and he can shower with that, he can swim in the pool with that, play sports with it. Where the other one with the tubing he would have to disconnect, then reconnect.
Connor: Yea, and miss out on insulin deliveries. So my blood sugar could be high from the adrenaline and then when the adrenaline ends and I get the insulin, I would crash. This one is more steady. AAU: I’m learning so much because I wouldn’t know any of this.
Mary: (laughing) You’re getting a crash course. And you wouldn’t know. When we first told people Connor had Type 1 they were like, “Oh, but he’s not fat or he’s
not heavy, or but he doesn’t eat a lot of junk food.” People don’t understand the differences between Type 1 and Type 2. Connor: And that is why we started Pitch for a Cure to raise education and to teach the people who don’t know about it how serious it can be.
AAU: Yes, and people have their misconceptions so it’s great that you are working to help them gain a better understanding.
Mary: We didn’t know, Type 1. Juvenile diabetes is the old term. We didn’t know a thing about it until he was diagnosed. And people asked, “Is it in your family?” “No, he was the first one.” Like Connor said after I had been sick, a year later we went through this with him. We just decided that we needed something good to come out of something bad. We started Pitch for a Cure to help other people with Type 1. AAU: How does diabetes affect your teenage life? Are there any differences when you are hanging out with friends?
Connor: Yea, I definitely have to be more conscious of what is going on. I have to really feel what my bodies feeling, if I’m starting to feel low or starting to get a little lightheaded or something. Besides that, I can really do anything anyone else wants to do. I don’t miss out on too much. I like to have everything in control and be very independent.
AAU: So mom, you don’t have to worry about him too much when he goes off to college. Mary: laughs
AAU: Connor, are you going away or do you want to college or stay close to home? Connor: I will probably stay close to home, maybe New York Institute of Technology (NYIT). I want to study pre-med and become a pediatric endocrinologist, which is a child diabetes specialist. So I can basically give back.
AAU: It definitely gives you a deeper understanding what a person is going through when you have gone through the same thing. You are more connected to it because you are aware of what they are feeling and you are more in touch. Connor: It helps if you have someone
who has lived it basically their whole life. The nurse at Cohen Children’s Hospital in New Hyde Park, NY is Type 1. Mary: When he talks to her she will tell him she can relate. She tells Connor that the same things have happened to her. It’s wonderful and even in the beginning when you are kind of in a panic over everything, just to have her voice as someone who has walked in your shoes really helps. AAU: It helps to know that someone has had the experience and gone through what you are dealing with. It puts your mind at ease. That is really great. Connor: When I was first diagnosed there was a doctor that came in and he was covering for the doctor that was on vacation. He was awful. He comes in and he goes, “Connor, do you need water to live?” “Yea I need water to live.” “Do you need air to live?” “Yea, I need air to live.” “You need insulin to live or you are going to die.” To say this to a nine year old boy. Mary: And he looks at me and says, “Mom, I’m going to die? I looked at the doctor and I said get out. I told the nurses don’t let him near my son’s room. It was not a good first visit. AAU: But now you guys are there doing the work so other children don’t have to experience that. I’m sure they are very grateful to have you. AAU: Are there any foods you have to avoid? Connor: No, there aren’t any foods that I have to avoid. It’s funny because my teachers, when they hand out snacks in class their like, “No, you aren’t allowed to eat this.” When everyone gets it and then they tell me I can’t have it, but I can. As long as I cover with how many carbs I’m getting, I’m fine. I can pretty much eat anything. AAU: What impact has living with diabetes had on your outlook on life? Connor: My outlook on life is it can always be worse. I may have been hit with this and I struggle some days with it but I know there are plenty of people out there that have it way worse than I have it. It makes you feel very fortunate because it could always be worse. Mary: We see that when we go to
Cohen’s to visit and some people don’t have all the supplies Connor has. Connor: Yes, it is very expensive to afford all of this. Some people don’t have all the technology that I have and I’m just very fortunate to be where I am. AAU: What misconception do people have when it comes to you and your diabetes? Mary: I think as Connor mentioned that sleep over. It wasn’t just me, the mom on the other end of the phone- she was very nervous about having him also. In the beginning, we didn’t know if he was feeling his lows and his numbers were kind of all over until they kind of got him on a routine. I think it’s tough on the other people also and Connor is very good about sharing his knowledge and educating. When we went to Cohen’s to visit and into their playroom there was a father there. His daughter had just been diagnosed. She was probably four or five years old and the dad looked at Connor and said, “He has Type 1?” and he goes “No, no, no but you look so healthy.” Connor told him that he is healthy and he started crying and of course I started crying. He said when he heard the diagnosis and as a parent you think it’s a lot worse. With Connor and his little girl, they were both so young and ignorance is bliss. You have no idea what’s in front of them. The dad couldn’t thank us enough for coming and seeing someone who has Type 1 and is thriving and doing so well. He plays sports and you know when you asked Connor to list things about him I could list a hundred things before I get to Type 1. He has so many amazing qualities before you get to that he’s a Type 1. We met with someone and she wanted us to keep using the phrase someone living with Type 1. Connor kind of took offense to that. It doesn’t describe him. There is nothing that he can’t do. There is nothing that he doesn’t do. It’s never I would like to do this but... Other than his testing, his bolusing, and every three months a doctor’s visit, changing his site, or having to carry a snack it’s a very small part of who he is. AAU: Connor, you are a blessing for the parents and children to see. Connor: Thank you.
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Mary: There are so many people that have many things and I mean he gets out of bed every single day and does his life. There are so many people that don’t have that opportunity. AAU: Every day that you can just wake up you are fortunate. You can hear and see. Those basic things that can be taken for granted. Your health and just being alive is the best thing you can have. Mary: It does make you see life in a different way. You don’t worry about all the little meaningless things. AAU: What is the feeling you get when you visit with the kids in the hospital? Connor: I get a feeling that I just really want to help. Each time seems like a once in a lifetime experience. You really try to do as much as you can. You want to stay there with the kids and you want to give them more. I know when I was there it would’ve been great to have someone come in and stop by and to stay and talk to me about it. To help educate me and I want to do that for the kids at Good Samaritan Hospital and Cohen Children’s Hospital. When I spoke to the little girl and her father that was really a big experience in my life and it feels really good to help them. AAU: I know they feel good to have people who truly care. Mary: I know that we are doing something for them but what we get in return is so much more. Connor you hit the nail on the head. I would have loved to have a mom come into the hospital when I was there and say, “You know what everything is going to be okay. This is my child and look at how great my child is. You’ll get through this.” AAU: If you were asked to speak with a young person after they were told that they have Type 1 diabetes, what would you say to them? Connor: Not to focus on the here and now. Focus on how much better it is going to be when you understand what’s happened. At first, when I was diagnosed I was freaking out. We didn’t know, the education was not there, what it was, how we were going to treat it, how my life was going to be. I think every kid goes through that and every parent goes through that when you’re first diagnosed. But you have to focus on how it’s not the end of the world and it really does get better. When it regulates out, your life is
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just as normal as everybody else. AAU: And the work that you do and that one word that you say, some people will remember that forever. It’s so important, you think back and you realize how someone had a huge impact on you. Mary: I always said it’s amazing to me why he never said, “Why me?” Never. And that to me, just speaks volumes to who he is. He never had a woe is me attitude or pitied himself, or why me why not so and so. Never anything like that. It was a speed bump in his life that he went over. My husband was honored by American Diabetes Association and they asked who his hero was. He said Connor and that would be my hero too because he just takes it in stride and it doesn’t hold him back. It hasn’t changed him. He’s much taller than he was at nine years old but he is still the same kid and that’s a wonderful thing. When life hits you with something, there are a lot of paths you can take. There’s the bitter path. There’s the–this should have never happened me path, the angry path. There are so many paths and he chose the high road and the what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger path. And it could always be a worse path. We see that at the hospital and we count our blessings. AAU: Is there anything else you would like our readers to know? Connor: I think everyone needs to gain knowledge of Type 1 diabetes because it is becoming a really big thing. I know kids at St. John’s that have it but no one knows they have it. They like to pretend that they don’t have anything wrong. I think that is not how it should be because if anything God forbid does happen who knows? That is why I like everyone to know my situation and be educated to help out me and anyone else affected by this. Mary: He’s always been great with that. When he was diagnosed it was in the summer and he was going to go into 4th grade. We had a pool party with way too many boys. We had about 20 of them in the backyard. We had the party just so all of his friends could come and be on board. Of course when he tested his finger before eating his pizza, the boys saw the blood. The boys were like, “Whoa, that’s the coolest!” It helped and one thing I can say with Connor is that he has never hid it. I said to him there is nothing to hide and
this is a part of awareness and education. People wear glasses, people wear a hearing aide, and everybody has something. There is no one who is perfect. He even did a talk with the Suffolk County Reading Council and even the teachers were asking him questions. They wanted to know what to do if a child in their classroom had Type 1. He’s just great at it. He is our spokesperson for Pitch for a Cure and he’s spoken to kids on the phone that were just diagnosed and he really does a lot of good.
Parent Perspective: Type 1 Diabetes
AAU: What was your initial reaction when you found out Connor was diagnosed with diabetes?
Mary: My husband, Rob’s grandmother had passed away so we had a house full of people. We left our daughter in charge. She met us at the door with Connor. “He’s showing off drinking this and drinking that!” Of course he says he has a stomachache. When he didn’t want to go to my sister in law’s beach house I knew something was wrong. I took him to his pediatrician and he said take him to the hospital, he has Type 1 diabetes. I’m hysterical crying and I compose myself and call my husband who made it from the city to Good Samaritan Hospital in about 30 minutes. I’m hysterically crying because you can see the path in front of you. All the obstacles that are involved and Connor had no idea what any of it was. And the next thing, he starts rubbing my back from the back seat and he says, “Don’t cry mom, everything’s gonna be fine.” So then I started balling all over again. AAU: And he was right!
Mary: He was right. We went into the hospital and he stayed four days. Now that we know so much he was very fortunate. His blood sugar was only in the three hundreds and he did not go into intensive care. Most people will go into intensive care. We stayed in the hospital to meet with the nutritionist, to learn how to carb count and to learn how to give the injections. To learn everything that we needed to know before they released us and let us come home. My way of thinking was when you come home with a new born and everybody can tell you what to do–your mom, your aunt, your
grandma, everybody knows how to raise a baby. When you come home with a Type 1 there’s no one. You’re in charge of this child. I slept up in his room when he first came home. I felt like I couldn’t leave him. When you’re in the hospital you’re sleep deprived and you are emotional. They’re throwing so much at you. When you come home you are thinking, “I’m giving him how much insulin?” In the beginning they keep you on a very tight meal plan and that was hard also because we would give him one slice of pizza and if he was still hungry I had to tell him that he couldn’t have anymore because he already took his injection. The injections got old very fast. They like you to do a year of injections just in case something goes wrong with the technology you always know how to do injections. I think he went nine months and we ended up on our first pump. AAU: What valuable information should parents know about Type 1 diabetes?
Mary: Just do what needs to be done. If you’re diligent with your carb counting, your bolusing, your diet, doctor visits, and do your testing, you live a life like everyone else lives. I think the horror stories that we hear about are because the person didn’t take good care of themselves. I think it’s like anybody, if you’re eating unhealthy you can’t be a healthy person. You won’t be healthy if you don’t exercise, you don’t see the doctor, and if you don’t take care of yourself. I feel it’s the same with a Type 1.
tour and they are strictly about finding a cure. The tour was an eye opener. AAU: Knowing all that you know now, what advice can you offer parents? Mary: I think our advice would be to have an open line of communication. To understand what they are going through. When Connor has his highs he can be a bit irritable and when he has his lows we can see it on his face that he is having a low. Just to be aware and understand what they are going through and to just keep communicating with each other. The beginning is very hard because the parent is nervous, the child is nervous, and then there are the injections. There’s just so much but it does get better and just like anything it falls into place. Now it’s, “Okay Connor come to dinner, get a number. Did you bolus?” And that’s it. Another day he has to change his site. “Okay, go change your site.” Now it just fits into to our lives. AAU: What approach should parents take when communicating with their children? Mary: I think we learned a lot when we went to pump classes or were with other parents. I felt that it was so helpful. It is heart wrenching when kids don’t tell parents what their numbers are. It’s all about communication and I don’t know what their thinking is. We were eating out one night and there was a girl at another table that said she was a Type 1 but she never tests. Her parents were sitting there and I don’t know what you do in a situation like that because she was probably 17 years old. My reaction was, “You have to test because you have to have your number.”
Basal rate
AAU: What resources can parents to learn more about Type 1 diabetes? Are there certain websites or organizations that you’ve found helpful?
Mary: The endocrinologist is wonderful with giving you information and the hospital gives you plenty of reading material. We subscribe to the diabetes magazine, Diabetes Forecast. It tells you about the latest research and people who are living with it. I like the magazine; it’s very well written and positive. It tells you about the latest technology and the medical research. We went down to Diabetes Research Institute in Florida. We took a
AAU: You mentioned that you started a not for profit organization after Connor was diagnosed. What moved you to begin Pitch for a Cure? Mary: Connor. When he was first diagnosed, the education, the awareness, leaving the hospital and coming home and feeling so alone, the huge expense of the insulin and the test strips, and the PDM and the pump, the list is endless of the supplies. We wanted to take a negative and turn it into a positive. Connor was someone who embraced it and was so easy about speaking about it and taking claim of it. It was something we thought we could share. We try to help the families financially. We try to help families emotionally. We try to raise money to send them to DRI for research. Sam Fuld is a baseball player for the Minnesota Twins and he is a Type 1. He has a camp in Florida and we sent money down to the camp and we sent about 100 kids to camp. I remember a girl Connor went to elementary school with and she ended up being diagnosed and her mom and I were on the phone talking for hours. This is what Pitch for a Cure has become. We had a community service award dinner to raise money and a friend that my brother grew up with; we’ve known him for forty years. After the dinner he called us and told us his grandson was diagnosed. He told us there was a reason why he was at the dinner. We are always trying to raise awareness, to educate and help anybody that should need help. Whether it is just a friendly voice on the phone or money for their equipment, medical bills, whatever. We can do it. AAU A small base or background amount of insulin that is delivered, at a preset rate, continuously for a specified period of time.
Bolus
“How do you know your bolus?” She said, “No I’m not going to carry that stuff and I don’t test.” You want to say to her, you will be one of those statistics. I think communication is huge and just understanding that if his numbers are very high and he is irritable, just let it go. If you get a short answer, just let it go. Everything will be fine and you just have to let it be.
A dose of insulin taken to correct an elevated blood glucose level or to cover carbohydrates that you eat.
Glucose
A simple sugar used by the body for energy. Without insulin, the body cannot use glucose for energy.
Insulin
A hormone that helps the body use glucose for energy. The beta cells of a healthy pancreas make insulin.
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Speak Out Stand Up:
The Rage Against the Ratchet Written by Debricka S. Taylor
All About Us caught up with the multi-talented Carvin Haggins to talk about his Rage Against the Ratchet movement and campaign. The Philadelphian raised producer and songwriter, father, preacher, and philanthropist is on a mission to rid our air waves of the lyrical and melodic obscenities that pervade it. He shares how the music is tearing down our community and negatively influencing our youth. AAU: With many adolescents so deeply entrenched in music, can you explain what the role of the producer is? They hear the finished product from the artist but how is the producer involved? Carvin: Actually, most artists sound the way they sound because there was a producer guiding them on the way to perform the record. Certain parts they may have said without any emotion so the producer teaches the artist how to do it with emotion. Our job is really to make the artist sound better than who they are, making them dig deeper within themselves to bring out the greatness that dwells inside of them. AAU: What is the movement Rage Against the Ratchet all about? Carvin: Rage Against the Ratchet is about basically trying to hold radio accountable for the music that they’re playing or they’re choosing to play. Rage Against the Ratchet is a move to show and make radio aware of what they are playing. We don’t like it. We don’t accept it. So you guys need to raise your standards and you need to change what you are playing. AAU: How do you feel about the current state of rap and hip hop? Carvin: I think this cause is not just towards rap music. It is also R & B music
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as well. All of the music right now is very negative, it’s very derogatory, and it really demeans women. It is full of racial slurs, full of drugs and alcohol, and teaching our children how to date rape and to look forward to being a stoner. Even to the point where some records are saying live fast, die young. Some records are even teaching our kids how to commit suicide. AAU: Do you remember the defining moment when you said, enough is enough. I feel compelled to speak up publicly about the state of music regarding the violence and vulgarity?
Carvin: There are a couple of things that happened. Almost two years ago I went to a show here in Philadelphia, which was for the kids. It was a rap show and there were independent artists on stage performing and there were kids in the audience ages 10-21. There were also adults from 21 and up. There was so much vulgarity and the degradation, all of this was being played. When I left I said, “something has to be done.” Then two years later I was awakened on a Sunday morning and God told me I needed to speak up about this NOW. So that was the moment of saying, okay–it has to be done now. Following that I was working at a friend’s beauty salon, doing an affair for them. There was a little girl in there and she had to be between 4 and 6. She was dancing and singing Beyonce’s “Partition” song. I couldn’t believe this little girl was singing this record. This record is just not good, it’s so bad and the little girl knew it lyric for lyric. The record is taking about fellatio, talking about the guy being so horny he wants to *f and Monica Lewenskied on my dress and all of these things. I just said, “this little girl is singing this and it’s not cool.”
AAU: What do you think was different about rap and hip hop music of the past? Are there any differences that you see in today’s music? Carvin: Definitely, when you look at music back in the day there were very few records where rappers called women out of their names. When they were called out of their names it was because the woman had done something so outrageous, it was like okay, she is acting like this. We had some bad records but those records never made it to radio. First of all, in order to have those records you had to go buy them yourself and listen to it. It wasn’t given to you freely on radio. But we also had positive records. We had Public Enemy and KRS-One and Rakim. We had all of these rappers that when NWA and Easy E came out you had these records to combat it. What is funny is that even in our gangsta rap with NWA and Easy E, NWA had a song called “F the Police.” But the message was about the way the police treat the black youth. They were putting their fingers up because it was saying, you all treat us unfair. Then Easy E had a record called “Dopeman” and the record wasn’t glorifying being a dope man or on drugs. The record basically was defining: if these drugs kill my sister, dope man I’m coming to find you. Later on it did begin to get a little outrageous but again those records never made it to radio. AAU: I absolutely agree. When I was about 13 or 14 I listened to Snoop but you never would hear certain records played on the radio. You would have to go to Sam Goody and listen to it and then purchase it if you liked it. The “dirty” versions didn’t make it onto the radio and they always had the option of playing the “clean” version. I just don’t see that happening today at all. They just play the song as is or they bleep
out certain words but it’s pretty much played all the way through. Carvin: Right. Even when they bleep out the curse words the content is still there. It might say, “I put her on the bed, put her legs in the air, and put my bleep in her.” Well, you just told us everything. AAU: Do you see a change coming in the near future? Do you think people are going to get tired of hearing music being played this way? Carvin: I believe right now people are getting tired of it. We interview a lot of young kids in college. Talking to those kids, I found out that they don’t even listen to the radio because they only play ten songs. They told me that the songs are so crazy and they don’t want to listen to it. Some kids said they only listened to the radio because they were trying to be cool. Then I asked, “Would you listen to the radio with your mom and your grandmother in the car?” They were like, “Oh no, no man it is too disrespectful to play in front of my grandma.” So they know that there is something wrong and they know there’s an issue. But right now this is what is cool and you know kids. They have to deal with what’s cool. AAU: Now why do they play the same ten songs over and over again? I remember when there was more variety on the radio and now they play the same thing over and over again. Carvin: I definitely know when you look at the production of music everyone is making the same record. When it’s played it sounds like one long record. Or one long mind boggling chant that is trying to brainwash you into singing the chants over and over again. Of course with radio, you have to play to pay. But I guess some people are paying better than others. AAU: They need to pay to have their record played so they can stay in the rotation. Carvin: Right. Well, I’m sure radio will tell you different. You know–payola, it doesn’t exist. It is just a word I guess people made up. AAU: What do you hope to achieve with the Rage Against the Ratchet movement? Carvin: The overall goal is to get radio to raise their standards on what they are playing. Definitely to bring balance to radio
because when you look at the ratio from garbage to good music it’s like 20,000:1. We are just trying to get balance on the radio and we want them to be accountable for what they’re playing. To ensure that for any future records, you have someone who is really listening and says we can’t expose the public to this. The same way payola is a myth, these records should be a myth. AAU: I am a fan of Jill Scott and Raheem Devaughn and several different artists but they’re not played. Why aren’t their records not being played on the radio?
Carvin: They say the people aren’t requesting it but the truth is they aren’t giving it to the public so they know how to or what to request. If you are feeding them the same old thing over and over again– if you are feeding a kid candy, cakes, and cookies every day, all day long and then say what about vegetables? They’re going to say we don’t even know what that is. We have to develop a palette for that. AAU: Was Ethical Entertainment born from the ideal of bringing positivity and love back to the music?
Carvin: Ethical Entertainment is about taking a stance. First of all my partner and I produce good music and good clean music. We are saying we are ethical music. It isn’t gospel, it isn’t R & B. This is just good clean music with ethics and you can listen to this with your family. It is family friendly music and we just wanted to bring it back to when music was family friendly. AAU: I watched the debate on Fox. Is your focus primarily upon making the radio stations accountable for accepting and playing obscene music as is?
Carvin: The thing is this; we are starting with radio because radio is the gatekeeper. Radio is the distributor that freely gives the poison to our kids so we are trying to block the damn there and let the water back up so we can get up to the record labels. To start talking to them and let them know that what you are making, the radio is not going to play it. You have to make something better. Then from there we are going to the artist to say, “Hey, listen radio is not forcing you to write this stuff so you can stop writing it. The labels are not going to force you to write it and you can give the people something better to listen to. And eventually we can go into the internet and try to fix that as
well. We started with radio because out of the three it is the only one that doesn’t have a supervisor or guardian watching over it. AAU: The radio DJ mentioned that if they received other kinds of music they would play and pushed the blame onto the producers? Was that a valid argument or claim? Carvin: No, that is absolutely false. I have actually taken records to the record labels and I’ve produced records and given it to the labels. They tell me this is great but they need something that is more edgy, radio won’t play it because it’s not edgy. What that tells me is that the labels are saying that radio is the dictator. Radio tells the record labels what they need to play to the people and for the people. Then the record labels tell the producers we need you to create something like this to play on radio. AAU: During your debate on Fox News it was stated by the radio personality that parents aren’t being parents anymore. With that being said, do you think the adults in all communities, society as a whole, have the civil responsibility of helping the parentless children or those that doesn’t receive support at home? Carvin: I believe it is a community effort and that’s the reason why I am going to the radio because they’re the voice of the community. If the voice of the community is corrupt, the community is going to be corrupt. When you have a single parent taking care of a child or two children their focus is fighting to maintain the roof and food on the table. Let alone it’s hard to put a mandate on what they are watching and how they are watching television, especially if you’re working a 50 hour week just to make sure you can live where you live. This was me as a young child. My mother wasn’t there because she was working to support us. We had freedom to do whatever we wanted to do. It just so happened that there was someone in the community who said, “Yo, my dude what you are getting ready to do is not cool. Stop that.” We had a community that kept us together and then when we turned on the music, the music made us feel good. The music made us feel better about being black; it made us feel better about being ourselves. You had rappers that told a story of where they came from broken–homes.
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But they made it to success. They gave positive messages and it made you want to become that. Now radio doesn’t do that. If TV and radio are the babysitters then basically they are going to tell your children to get high, do drugs, commit suicide, have sex, and do whatever you want to do. Be as lawless as you can be and that will make you happy. AAU: Yes, because even when you look at reality TV, those are the most popular shows that the kids are watching and we all see how they behave on those showsfighting, cursing, and being disrespectful and not respecting themselves.
about this issue, I haven’t heard from them. I’ve definitely heard from the employees of the major corporations. I think that’s hilarious. AAU: To what do you attribute your success as a producer and songwriter? Carvin: My success comes from me standing my ground and standing up for what I believe in and not bending because of money and making and maintaining integrity in everything that I do. I just made a decision that when I started making music that I would not make anything derogatory. I’m not doing anything to tear
Carvin: Absolutely.
AAU: I saw the pictures of the protest you did outside of the Philly radio station and you had one in Chicago as well.
Carvin: We didn’t actually do one in Chicago but we teamed up with individuals that feel the same way we feel. They have been on this movement longer than I have been. Me being in the industry gives a bit more recognition. These guys reached out to me when they saw the video and we’ve been in communication ever since. We are working as a team. Chuck D saw what we did and he started responding to me as well on Twitter. A lot of people feel the same way we feel. AAU: What feedback have you received from parents regarding Rage Against the Ratchet? Carvin: It is funny that you ask that. Today, I met with a group here in Philadelphia called Mothers in Charge. Basically their organization is mothers who lost their children to gun violence in the city. I met with them and explained what I’m doing. They are all behind us 150 percent and we can call on them whenever we need them. They said they would be there to help move everything along and speak out, be a voice, and be able body standing.
AAU: Have you received any backlash from your colleagues or those in the music community?
Carvin: I haven’t heard much from the music community yet. You saw I heard a little bit back from radio. What is amazing is that the people that actually have the power to make change or do something
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“My success comes from me standing my ground and standing up for what I believe in...” my community down. It has to bring a positive message, a positive idea to uplift people. That is what I believed when I got started. That is what I believe now and that is what I will believe until my career ends. AAU: Can you share advice to our youth about being responsible listeners? Some kids are just going to listen to the negative music regardless. Carvin: For those kids who are going to listen, the one thing we know as human beings is whenever we are doing something wrong there is a little voice inside of us that tells us that what we are doing is wrong. There’s like a little warning that goes off that says, what is happening right now is not good. Being a responsible listener is
not ignoring that voice. When you hear that voice, make sure you acknowledge the command that it is telling you. You are getting that warning because what you are consuming is not good. Pay attention to that inner voice that lets you know what’s good and bad. AAU: What legacy would you like to leave behind? What do you want people to remember the most about you? Carvin: What I want people to remember about me is when it’s all said and done is that I lived and died for the right things. That I am willing to put my life on the line for those who are not able. I am willing to fight the bully for those that are afraid of the bully. I’m willing to go against the machine when everyone else says it’s too big to fight. And I don’t mind sacrificing myself to make sure everyone behind me gets in. AAU: What are your upcoming plans? Carvin: We are working on a protest right now and I think we are looking at the 27th of June. We are going to try to protest through this entire summer to make sure our voices are heard. We are going to keep on protesting until someone speaks out or someone hears us. We are going to do whatever we can to make people pay attention to know that what is happening is real. The greatest thing that I think could have happened with that interview on Fox is that it started communication in our community which I think is great. One of the main things that we don’t do and haven’t done in our community is communicating. It definitely opened up the lines of communication so each party can hear each other out and we can start fixing the issue. AAU: Please come to New York! Carvin: The protest will be coming to New York. Just keep following us on www.rageagainsttheratchet.com. We will be posting every single thing that happens. We will keep the people informed on what we are doing, how we are doing it, and how they can be a part of helping us move forward. All About Us thanks you and commends you for having the courage to speak up, do what’s right, fight for our kids, and take back our community. AAU
Ashley A. Love Founder of Charged Visions & Fearless Poets Author, Motivational Writer/Speaker, & Activist
Website: http://www.chargedvisions.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/chargedvisions Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleylovelye Twitter: https://twitter.com/writerashleyl
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writerashleyl Tainted Elegance: In The Key of Love (Inspirational Poetry eBook)
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/ view/349178
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tainted-EleganceThe-Key-Love-ebook/dp/B00IQO2Y74 AUGUST 2014 AAUYM.COM
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