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VSU TRAINING THE NEXT GENERATION OF BLACK POLITICAL LEADERS BY YOLANDA McCUTCHEN
Dr. Bellamy. Offering political leadership training is a further extension of the VSU political science department’s focus on the state’s Black population. The department’s polling about Black Virginia voters has been well received, according to Dr. Bellamy. The JMLI intends to take a unique approach of educating Black Virginians to understand the political system and how to become involved. Regarding the significance of this center being housed at Virginia State, Dr. Bellamy says, “There are no institutes in Virginia that are specifically dedicated for developing Black political leadership. And that’s what we’re looking to do. There’s nothing wrong with us owning our politics. There’s nothing wrong with us taking care of ourselves, and there’s nothing wrong with us saying that we have to do this for Black people, because if we don’t no one else will.” Members of the cohort will participate in events throughout Virginia while learning about the commonwealth’s political landscape with a focus on African Americans from September through November, “The goal is to show how Black political leadership operates in these different spaces but also how you navigate these spaces as a Black politician in a wide variety of different fields.” Institutes at other universities can cost thousands of dollars to receive training. Dr.
T his fall on the campus of Virginia State University (VSU), the first cohort of the John Mercer Langston Institute (JMLI) for African American Political Leadership will begin training under the tutelage of Dr. Wes Bellamy, Chair of the VSU Department of Political Science and Director of the JMLI. The program will focus on preparing African American leaders to run for and serve in public office, public administration, protesting, and policy change/implementation. “What we’re trying to do with the institute is create a center that truly develops Black political leadership, not just develops a bench for people to run for office; but also we understand that being in politics is not just about the face or the individuals who are elected. It’s also about your county administrators. It’s also about the people who run the school board. The people who work for public works and parks and rec and your finance department and who work at the state capitol, who work on the hill. We’re taking a multifaceted approach of developing persons to fill all of those roles,” said
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