Navigating Life's Obstacles

Navigating Life's Obstacles is the life story of author Dr. Jeffery A. Clements told in vignettes beginning with the strong, well-intentioned attempts of his parents to shield him and his brother from the knowing of the harsh upbringing they had suffered during the Jim Crow era.

Jeffery's parents never spoke about the harsh realities of racism that they had experienced and what they endured to get to where they were in life, perhaps out of shame or simply because they were too busy trying to make ends meet. This led to Jeffery's slight naiveté regarding racial issues on the West Coast during his upbringing. However, two major life-changing events catapulted Jeffery out of his sheltered existence-a black history class shock and a surprise improbable church speech-propelling him to become a more assertive person with deep insight. This instilled within him an unrelenting self-confidence, from which he achieved many pursuits later in life.