In two weeks voters will head to the polls in what may be a pivotal, community-changing vote on recreation.

On Nov. 3, Adams County voters will be asked to voice their support or opposition on pursuing a new recreation complex to be created by the city, county and school district.

The ballot referendum is “non-binding,” meaning it simply serves as a public show of support for the idea of building a complex. It does not commit the community to anything.

Recreation isn’t a city thing or a county thing, a black thing or a white thing. It’s not a young thing or and old thing.

It’s a necessary thing for our community.

Let’s face it, as nostalgic as it may be to say to a 10-year-old, “You know, your grandfather played on this very baseball field,” our current facilities are woefully subpar.

Many of the people promoting the passage of the referendum and the ultimate construction of a recreation complex are lobbying the issue almost solely on the possibility of great economic development.

The theory is a new recreation complex would attract lots of out-of-towners. That may be so, however, I’m much less concerned about how many dollars the complex attracts and more about how much its existence can help our community cast off some of its past and present divisions.

We know and admit Natchez and Adams County are at least 20 years behind the times in recreation facilities. But we’re further behind if you consider how our community plays together.

It’s almost 2010 and Natchez still has two youth baseball leagues, both of whose history stems from a time when little white boys and little black boys were not allowed by their parents to play together.

While both the Natchez Dixie Youth Baseball League and the T.M. Jennings Baseball League are theoretically integrated, the fact that our community still has two historically race-tied leagues is troubling in the subtle message it sends.

Two leagues are yet another small wall that separates our community, just a little.

Our children only know what we teach them.

And if we teach them it is OK to have what some people still regard as the “white league” and the “black league” then we should not be surprised when they grow up thinking skin color matters.

No one from either side should feel ashamed of being involved with either league; both have helped improve the lives of thousands of young players through the years.

But it’s time to make a fundamental change.

A new recreational complex could help end those long-standing separations by having one, unified league playing at a central state-of-the-art facility.

Consolidation of youth baseball will take both sides giving up some of their history and identity.

But a new league cannot be called “Dixie Youth” and it cannot be called “T.M. Jennings.” Those names hint to a past that should be retired to history.

Any hang-ups with such a consolidation will be from the adults, not the children — and the recreation issue should be about our children first and foremost. Only when our children — black, white and all shades in between — play together will our community truly become unified

Representatives from both leagues can work out the details together, further showing our children how unified we can be. What a great example for the youth to see adults come together for a common goal.

But the first step in that goal is voting “yes” on Nov. 3 to show our elected leaders that this community is serious about recreation — and its unified future.

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.