By Dr. Jean Kennedy
As a society, we tend to throw away stuff and sometimes even people. Yes, it’s easy to give up on individuals who have messed up their lives with drugs and the prison system. But there is a program in the Central Valley that sees clients not as statistics but as human beings. People who may have lost their way for a while get help and encouragement. The King of Kings Rehabilitation program helps turn around men and give them hope and a new perspective on life. King of Kings knows how to help individuals overcome their drug additions.
We congratulate our own Willo Green, who has been clean and sober for a few years now. When I first met Brother Willo, he was a guest on Keep It Real and he shared with us how drugs have plagued the Black community and taken many of our Black men out of their communities, either to the mortuary, the streets or the prison system.
Brother Willo shared that he too lost everything to the drug culture but recovered thanks to the King of Kings program, which is an African-American–led organization that focuses on the well-being and sober living of brothers with drugs and substance addictions. This program became a lifeline to many including our Brother Willo. These men have learned to face their demons, sober up and fly straight.
I recall when I first invited Brother Willo to co-host my show, and I would take Brother Willo back to his residence facility. Today, Brother Willo is a success story. He has his own place, has been employed with a leading TV station in Fresno and is starting his own company called Pax Regis Broadcasting Project. His vision is to create a radio and television station training program for media students. Visit Brother Willo’s Web site and see his plan.
Brother Willo certainly makes King of Kings proud of his accomplishments. King of Kings continues to do great work in the Central Valley. It continues to produce more “Willos” who successfully complete their program, and Keep It Real is proud to speak highly of one of its “heroes.”
So to honor Kings of Kings, Keep It Real featured a special show with our own co-host Brother Willo and another individual from the program (available at our archives Web site).
When I learned of Brother Willo’s story, I could not help reflecting on the strength that our Black men have in this country despite the obstacle course laid out before them. Let us not forget that African Americans are heavily invested in helping to build this America. Yet, when I think of the ongoing mistreatment from the slave master’s children toward our Black brothers even today, I have to wonder if real reconciliation will ever happen.
Let us not forget the history of drugs being brought into Black communities by our own government, turning a blind eye to the destruction of Black families throughout the United States. (My two biological brothers who were neither born nor raised in the United States fell victim to the drug culture—one a user and the other a dealer.) So every time you hear “Let’s get tough on drugs,” remember who castrated our Black men and introduced crack cocaine into Black communities, causing people like Brother Willo to be a “once upon a time” victim to the drug culture.
Today, Brother Willo stands tall and accomplished as a radio co-host on Keeping It Real with Dr. Jean Kennedy (Tuesdays, 9 p.m.–10 p.m., on KFCF 88.1 FM). So don’t count him out; instead, we say “big ups” and a job well done.
Now I have a challenge to the listening audience of KFCF; we only have four African-American–produced shows on KFCF and, of course, Keeping It Real with Dr. Jean Kennedy. Continue to tune in and support all our shows, so we can all stay on the KFCF airwaves. You know ratings are everything, even on KFCF. Don’t count us out.
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Dr. Jean Kennedy is a program host on KFCF. Contact her at KFCF/News Article, 1449 N. Wishon Ave., Fresno, CA 93744, Attn.: Dr. Jean Kennedy.
