Hope, Audacity, Youth

I posted the links below elsewhere, during a somewhat angst-y discussion about Kevin Powell's Open Letter to Black America. But on second look they are worth keeping in mind and referring to as we wonder about our collective future. Over the long term, I am interested in how we can view these isolated success stories as NOT SO ISOLATED.

First black valedictorian at Notre Dame:
http://newsinfo.nd.edu/news/15161/

Homeless student is going to West Point:

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=7376157

12-year-old does TED talk:

http://www.ted.com/talks/adora_svitak.html