Barbara Ellington, Lifestyle Editor

Susan L. Taylor, editorial director, 'Essence' magazine. - CONTRIBUTED

Today the Women's Leadership Initiative (WLI) will host a fund-raising dinner at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel at 7:00 p.m. The occasion will be used to honour Hon. R. Danny Williams and Mrs. Beryl Ashley Steiner for their efforts in volunteerism. Highlight of the dinner will be the address by Susan L. Taylor, editorial director, Essence magazine.

Ms. Taylor who is from Trinidad, has moved up the ladder from a freelance beauty writer at Essence to her present position. This fourth-generation entrepreneur founded her own company - Nequai Cosmetics before starting at Essence. She is the author of three books, one co-authored with her husband Khehra Burns and she is also a greatly sought-after speaker who delivers messages of hope and encouragement to her audiences.

She spoke exclusively with The Gleaner's Lifestyle Editor Barbara Ellington about her work and ongoing projects.

BE: What do you love most about your job and what do you find most challenging?

SLT: I love all aspects of it and have grown in all the capacities having held many positions at Essence. The challenges have allowed me to serve our people all these 35 years. I have grown personally and seen how I can contribute to the cause of community, so I think through Essence is how I love our people.

As you have grown with the publication, you have been doing more to help people, more recently through ESSENCE CARES targeting schools and young people. Speak to that project.

That's my passion and my primary project right now along with the Essence Music Festival. It's more than helping schools; it's also mentoring. We are creating a model that can be replicated throughout the country and the world. Children, especially our young boys, are in crisis everywhere - here in the United States, throughout the Caribbean - and in places that many people have never heard of. Our boys are not doing well. So we are asking every able black person to stretch hand on a young person's shoulder to guide, to mentor and to listen to him.

I am also seeking to open wider the pathway to opportunity and healing for youth. My national committee advised that we create a template and build in one recognised city and we chose Atlanta where we will be launching it on Saturday, December 2. At a recent press conference with the Atlanta mayor we announced ESSENCE CARES. So we are building it in Atlanta and in six months we hope to have a sound programme that we can roll out at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans next July.

So this passion could also be part of why you teamed with actor Danny Glover to help South Africans with low-cost housing? How is that going so far?

It's not just houses that we are helping them with; we also raise funds in America and through South African banks we provide micro loans so that people can start small businesses. The initiative is called Shared Interest and I am proud that no one has ever defaulted on a loan

In many parts of the world, people need small amounts to start a business or farm. We want to help them to breathe life into their entrepreneurial ideas.

Recently, racially-charged incidents happened in your country: the New York cop killing of the prospective groom on the eve of his wedding; a grandmother was allegedly shot accidentally while cops searched for drug dealers and comedian Michael Richards made a racist outburst after being heckled onstage. Do you see in your lifetime, an end to racism in the United States or globally?

People in their pain will always find something to separate themselves from people they don't want to be like and who they need to feel better than. Sometimes it's religion, class, culture or race. But all over the world the darker-hued people are on the bottom of the economic ladder. I don't know if we are going to be able to save ourselves in time. That's my question. Is humanity going to understand that we are one in time to save ourselves? The carnage that's taking place all over the globe even with African people killing each other, events in the Middle East and Iraq - the many wars on this beautiful planet just speak to what people will do when they feel that there is a difference between them and the other.

Time to Speak up

It's time for women to step up, stand up and speak up. To link arms and aims with progressive men. Together both need to put in place visionary, bold ideas that begin to shift things, and heal. For example, I think a lot can happen to ameliorate racism through education. If the stories were told about the contributions that African Americans have made, the ways in which they have suffered and the ways in which native Americans have lost their land, our struggles would be more appreciated.

New Time

I feel that we are all culpable because to remain silent is to sanction it. It's a new time; a new world is on the way and God needs conscious, committed, brave and visionary people to give birth to this new world. Men and women must stand together; we can dream a world, we can feed hungry people, we can house homeless people - there's enough on the planet we just need to reorganise the resources.

After 35 years, how much longer do you see yourself in your present role at 'Essence' and what else do you have in mind as far as new initiatives go?

I don't know but I think Essence is doing beautifully; the team is well trained and know what they are doing. I am proud of their work but I also want to see through ESSENCE CARES a call to action to secure our young people. I will stay for the larger initiative as long as our children are struggling needlessly in the middle of abundance and I have the wherewithal and energy to see through my life's work.

You eliminate poverty through mentoring and education. Educated people are not poor (except artists). If we fix that, violence and poverty will begin to evaporate.

Will this be part of your message at tonight's dinner?

That is what I am about and Jamaica, the Caribbean and the world should be a part of the vision.

ESSENCE CARES is a call-to-action to every able African-American adult to put his or her hand on a vulnerable young person's shoulder. They've given us a legacy to live. Linking arms and aims to end the state of emergency millions of our young people are in. Together, let's declare that failing schools - the pipeline to prison - hopelessness and the carnage in our communities are history.

For more on Susan Taylor, see Monday's 'Flair magazine'