Our Purpose
TakeCharge is an organization committed to supporting the notion that the idea of America works for everyone regardless of race and station in life. We believe that we own our future by instilling the idea of taking charge of our lives, our families, and communities.
At TakeCharge we are committed to countering the prevailing narrative in popular culture that America is structured to undermine the lives of black Americans.
We acknowledge that racist people exist in the country, but explicitly reject the notion that the United States of America is a racist country. This is a subtle, but significant difference!
We also denounce the idea that the country is guilty of systemic racism, white privilege and abhor the concept of identity politics and the promotion of victimhood in minority communities – a notion supported by Critical Race Theory.
TakeCharge will build a coalition of community champions, academic professionals, and business leaders to ignite a transformation within the black community by embracing the core principles of America – not rejecting them. These principles are embedded in the belief of hard work, education, faith, family, and free enterprise in the personal pursuit of dreams that can be realized by anyone regardless of race or social standing.
Leadership
Kendall Qualls has a unique vantage point to convey the TakeCharge message and to plant the seeds of change desperately needed in the Twin Cities and across the country. During his childhood, Mr. Qualls lived with his divorced mother and siblings in public housing projects of Harlem, NY in the late 1960s. Before middle school, Mr. Qualls was separated from the other siblings and moved in with their father in a trailer park in Oklahoma. Neither of his parents finished high school. Despite the challenges and turmoil of his early life, Mr. Qualls worked full-time to pay his way through college, served as an officer in the U.S. Army, earned three graduate degrees. He worked his way up the ranks to become a vice president at several Fortune 100 healthcare companies.
Mr. Qualls champions the principle of meritocracy and supports the notion that free enterprise, and the private sector are the fastest and most equitable way to lift people from poverty to prosperity including black Americans. He also is a champion of religious freedoms, a core tenet of America’s foundation. Mr. Qualls has been married to his wife, Sheila for 35 years and they have five children together. He was a mentor at Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge. He serves on the Board for Lundstrum’s Performing Arts Center in North Minneapolis as well as Hope Farm School, a school for at-risk boys from Minneapolis.
Our Mission
Our mission is to inspire and educate black and other minority communities of their full rights and privileges as Americans granted to them by the Constitution. We desire to inspire them to take charge of their own lives, the lives of their children and not to rely on government and politicians for redemption and prosperity. We do not apologize for embracing America or its history. We believe that a well-grounded knowledge of American and world history strengthens our diverse country.
Core Principles
The promise of America is available to everyone regardless of skin color or social station.
We reject the concept of group identity and all its ancillary components including white privilege, systemic racism, equity, etc.
By rejecting group identity, we empower and celebrate the achievements made by an individual’s merit – hard work, creativity, personal investment, and risk taking.
The private sector and free enterprise are the fastest route from poverty to prosperity for all Americans.
Getting a job and earning a living brings dignity, respect, and value to a person’s life.
Private sector job creation is the cornerstone of prosperity for all Americans.
We reject socialism in all shapes because it deprives individuals of their personal value, robs them of their unique contributions, and values them only as a member of a special group.
It is through the private sector that Americans including black Americans can create wealth.
A quality education is the gateway to prosperity and parents deserve school choice to ensure their children have access to a quality education.
Over 50 percent of black students in Minneapolis public schools perform below state and national averages while black students from the same neighborhood that attend Ascension, Cristo Rey, and Hope Academy, private faith-based schools, perform above state and national averages of all students. These schools have waiting lists from desperate parents.
Government agencies should not hinder impoverished parents of their choice of schools when local public schools fail students academically. We believe that choice in education is a civil right.
Clear and concise options should be given to parents and students on the routes to prosperity through college education as well as certification via trade schools.
Restoring the traditional nuclear black family should be a priority both locally and nationally.
The nuclear family is the bedrock of any society and it has been decimated and ignored in the black community for five decades.
The problem is expanding beyond the black community. Today, over 50% of births occur outside of marriage for all women under the age of 30. This is the largest percentage of any country worldwide.
Raising children in a marriage is the best way to reduce poverty, combat inequality, and develop socially productive children.
Government agencies should incentivize marriage based on positive outcomes for children and society in general.
Ambassadors
Meaningful change comes from within communities, not from outside it. We believe that healing and restoration is possible for black Americans and that it must happen on a personal level. This is why we are creating a group composed of exemplary mothers and grandmothers to take charge of leading this transformation. Trust, community, and investing in people are the only way to truly revive a culture. Contact TakeCharge if you want to get involved!
Champions
Our Champions are a small group, composed of passionate believers inspired to create substantive change. They’re the doers and the go-getters and compose TakeCharge’s inner circle. Champions is exclusive to supporters who want to spread the TakeCharge message and take action. It’s about community-building and expanding our reach. Become a Champion today by contacting TakeCharge to get involved!
While forces attempt to divide the country by race, class and gender and assign people into groups, TakeCharge Minnesota forges a different path by empowering people to take charge of their lives and not to depend on a group, agency, or government for their well-being. TakeCharge Minnesota strives to unite Americans regardless of background toward a shared history and common set of beliefs. We celebrate the successes of all who have achieved the American dream while encouraging people still working to achieve it.
Contact Us
We would like to hear from you! Please send us a message with any questions or comments you have.