Whatever It Takes / One-by-One

At the very beginning of the text it mentions how Canada had a man handing a rose to each woman as she walked in. '"These are for the moms," he said with a smile. "Welcome to the ceremony" (1). This already shows that Canada wanted to help out the families in the community. Showing that kind of respect for mothers is very important in the African American community. By this small gesture, Canada shows that he has respect for the hardships of the people there. When someone from an outside source attempts to help a community in poverty they are not always able to effectively understand what the people are actually going through. Since Canada came from the South Bronx he has lived the lives that these families are facing. He also knows what is most likely to happen to all the kids who don't get in.

In the interview on 60minutes, Canada mentions how the mothers who's children weren't picked in the lottery, were extremely upset because they knew that their children's chances of making it in society had just been cut in half. It seems like no matter how hard people try there is always going to be more to do. That's because it's true. No matter how much one person works for goodness and the well-being of humanity, it won't be enough. There are always more problem. Does this mean that people should give up? No. It means that people should work harder. More people need to be involved. The kids that go through the Promise Academy Charter School will without a doubt give back when they are able to. The sad part, is the kids who don't get in. Canada says, "sure, the five hundred children who were lucky enough to be participating in one of his programs were getting help, but why those five hundred and not the five hundred on the waiting list" (2). Later he goes on to say, "For that matter, why five hundred and not five thousand? If all he was doing was picking some kids to save and letting the rest fail, what was the point?" (2). The point is that without a start there's no hope for anything to ever change. It has to start with the five hundred kids before it can grow to help the rest. That's what a lot of people don't understand. They have the mentality of "oh my vote doesn't count" or "why should I do that, it's not gonna make a difference anyways." What people don't understand, is that without a start, then no change will ever happen. To quote Lao-Tzu "The journey of a thousand miles, begins with one step."