Congress Should Create An Urban Civilian Conservation Corps Similar To The CCC's Of The 30/40's.... [View all]

[global1]

This is a seed of an idea here that I've been thinking of. This would be in concert with many of the suggestions I read in another thread here on DU as to how to deal with the police brutality.

What I heard as I watched the riots last night was a frustration about unemployment and the lack of jobs leaving a lot of people in the communities idle and with no way to better themselves or their communities. This leads kids in the communities to turn to gangs, drugs and to fend for themselves forcing them into a life of crime to survive.

Back in the 30's and early 40's before the war and after the depression - FDR created the CCC's or the Civilian Conservation Corp.

It was part of the New Deal. It was a way of bringing aimless young men of the depression into contact with wasting American resources (the land) - in an attempt to save both. It was this Corp that built State & National Parks; replanted forests and reclaimed farmland from the dust bowl.

Jobless youth of the depression era created an American crisis that the then Congress could no longer afford to ignore and FDR along with Congress brought together two wasted resources - "...the young (unemployed) men and the land in an attempt to save both."

A program similar to the CCC's should be updated and considered now by President Obama and be named the Urban Civilian Conservation Corps.

I envision a program where dollars would be allocated to communities around the country to provide jobs and supplies for the people of the communities to rebuild their communities. This would provide jobs, skills and a pride in the rebuilt communities that could stimulate growth in both the people and the economy.

When people are involved with building things with their own hands there is less of the chance for those same people to destroy what they themselves built.

A program like this would provide jobs skills in the trades like construction, electrical, plumbing, painting, etc. Think of the skills that people could develop with such a program. It could provide skills for management of the project itself; management of the supplies; management of the financial implications of such a project; management in human resources to employ people in the same businesses that would be created in such a program. Communities would thrive. People would start to develop some self-respect to better themselves.

This is just a seed of an idea right now that I've been thinking of. This country has had experience with such a program that was really successful back in the days of FDR. We have a President that understands the plight of the youth in such communities and what a better way to cement his legacy if he was able to pull something like this off.

Of course we would need support by a Congress that so far has been uncooperative with him because of his color. But I think if he summons the support of the American People they could put pressure on Congress to create such a program. I think he could get support from city and state governments to help put pressure on Congress to pull this off as well because the Mayors and Governors are looking for some help out of the mounting problems that they have to face in dealing with their local problems.

We could enlist the support by the leaders and churches in such communities to help nurture such a program.

I'm putting this out as an idea here. I'm curious if others here think this is a possible way of solving many of the contemporary problems faced in urban communities and am looking for DU'ers here to add their comments and ideas to make such a program viable.