Drumbeats impact lawman’s life
by Maria Carter, reporter

    Playing the drums is something everyone can do; it takes only desire and a little rhythm, a representative from the Sheriff’s Department said in a speech to NW Campus students last week.

    Lt. Leon Flowers, who is a drug and gang prevention specialist, spoke as part of the NW Campus celebration of Black History Month.

    Flowers grew up in an environment of drugs and gangs in Chicago. His parents wanted him to play piano, but by age 12 he knew he wanted to play the drums and has been playing for 38 years.

    “To elementary school kids, I was cool because I had a uniform, but to older kids, the uniform was a turn off and an authority figure,” he said.

    When the children found out he was a drummer, he went from being a not-so-cool police officer to a cool cop who plays the drums. Students then became very receptive to what he had to say.   

    Over the years, Flowers has worked diligently on a program that works to reach school age children and give them a positive alternative to drugs and gangs.

    "To reach youth today, you have to give them an alternative,” he said.

    “The two things that helped me stay away from drugs and out of gangs were drumming and martial arts,” he said.

    Flowers, who has been in law enforcement for 32 years, explained what drumming has done for him.

    “Playing the drums worked for me in the environment I grew up in, and just maybe it will work elsewhere,” he said.

    Flowers said drumming has enriched his life. He said the rewards are almost instant because it is a hands-on activity that takes every part of one’s body.

    “If you can excel in drumming, you can excel in life because life takes discipline, especially if you want to be successful,” he said.

    As an example of his success in reaching young people, Flowers told about a young man who recognized him from a previous program.

    The young man approached him and said, “You’re that cool cop that plays the drums.”

    For Flowers that moment gave him a great sense of accomplishment.

    “I knew then that I had a good thing,” he said.

    Flowers is a member of the Mondo Drummers. He also is an instructor of drumming. Students of his group range from age 6 to 70. The Mondo Drummers recently lost four members who left to attend college.

    “We want the students to play with us, but we also want them to do positive things with their lives,” he said.

    Another member of the group is dyslexic.

    “When he plays, it is with great confidence. The young man carries that confidence over into his studies,” he said.

    “This is what we stress to our students: to excel and apply that achievement in all areas of their lives,” he said.

    Flowers said people often think they do not have the rhythm to play the drums.

    “Everything we do is in rhythm. When we talk, walk, breathe, it’s in a rhythm. Drumming is for everyone of all ages. Everybody has rhythm. What you may lack is coordination,” he said.

    In his Saturday drum classes, Flowers has taught a diverse clientele, from doctors and lawyers to mothers.

    Flowers said people take drum lessons for a variety of reasons.

    “Sometimes people play drums just because it is cool to do,” he said.

    In explaining the history of drums, Flowers said the instrument has been around forever, since the caveman was able to take a stick and hit on an object.

    In African culture and African society, Flowers said the drum was a focal instrument or key element of society. They would use the drums to announce a birth, a death or a gathering in the village.

    “Drums are a tool for people to communicate,” he said.

    Flowers said some cultures still communicate with drums and pass that practice on from generation to generation.

    Flowers spoke of how slaves who spoke different languages discovered they could communicate with the drums.

    Slave owners thought the slaves would conjure up a rebellion, so they banned drums.

    “If a slave got caught with a drum, he would get his hands cut off,” he said.

    Flowers said slaves came up with an ingenious way to disguise the drums. One way was a caja, a drum in the shape of a box.

    Flowers had several types of drums on hand: djembe, ashiko, conja and the caja. Each drum has its own design and sound.

    The drums originated in the Northwest coastal region of the African Ivory Coast, Flowers said.