Thesis Statement: To examine societies contribution to the destruction of the urban African-American male, one must further explain the educational system, racism toward the African-American male, and male role models in society; in doing so it will interpret the meaning to Jawanza Kunjufu first volume: Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys (2004). I. Educational System a. Lack of Information/ Dropouts b. Fourth Grade Syndrome c. Black Male Teachers II. Racism for males a. In the Environment b. Economically c. Rights as a Citizen III. Male Role Models a. Past b. Present c. Division between Male Leaders The motive for the twenty-first century, which is stated by Hillary Clinton, is “It takes a village to raise a child”, but does the village consist of a mother and a father figure to help raise a child (Granacher, Robert. P. “How to Raise a Moral Child”. http://www.2preslex.org/GRANACH1.HTM)? ‘Sixty-two percent of African-American children are reared by single parents, but very few families received no input from male figures, e.g., grandfather, father, brother, uncle, nephew, cousin, neighbor, lover or friend’ (Kunjufu, Jawanza. Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys. 59). The researcher questions how can one promote a phrase that society fails to abide by? Some of the failure comes from societies involvement with African-American males. To examine societies contribution to the destruction of the urban African-American male, one must further explain the educational system, racism toward the African-American male, and male role models in society; in doing so it will interpret the meaning to Jawanza Kunjufu first volume: Countering th... ... middle of paper ... ...h Room EdChange Multicultural Pavilion. , 1 of 2. Jackson, Phillip. “The Massive Failure of Black Males in the American Education System”. Baltimore Chronicle and Sentinel..1 of 2. “King Encyclopedia”. The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute. 1 0f 4. Kunjufu, Jawanza. Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys. Chicago, Illinois: African American Images. 2004. Shepard, Jon M. and Robert W, Greene. Sociology and You. Columbus, Ohio: the McGraw- Hill Companies, Inc, 2003. Walker, Nathaniel. Personal Interview. 2, May 2008. Reverend, Pfleger, Michael, L. “No Need for us to Choose between Obama, Wright”. The Chicago Sun-Times. 4, May 2008.
Ghettos, low-riders, hip-hop, rap, drugs and crime, it has got to be a Black man right? Saggy pants, unintelligible language, lazy, and the lists continue to both stereotype and describe Blacks. Do Black Americans perpetuate their own discrimination? Are Black Americans creating their own low status in society? Black people around the world have been hypnotized into believing all their failures in life are due to discrimination, but are they correct? Blacks are often their own worst enemies, often the cause of their own disasters, and many don’t see that until it’s too late, if ever. Discrimination and prejudice are imposed upon Blacks, often because the culture they live in is not “acceptable” to the dominant society. On the other hand, an understandable reason for Blacks actions is often due to unattainable opportunities towards the American Dream.
Robert Staples in Sociocultural Factors in Black Family Transformation: Toward a Redefinition of Family Functions goes on to further analysis and critique Moynihan’s report. Staples identify several flaws within his argument, including that the fact that African Americans are not a monolithic unit (19), the numerous reasons for fatherhood absence, and the socioeconomic factors that shape the structure of African American families (21). Staples main critique of the Moynihan report is that marginalization of the Black community is not due to the dysfunction of Black families, rather the economic basis is the fundamental cause that needs to be considered (23). For the most part, I would agree with Staples in saying that economic oppression is the cause of dysfunction within families. While reading Part One of The Black Family, the notion of respectability politics came to mind and how the role of hegemony plays in sociocultural relations. The influence of hegemony has shifted many of us into considering one-singular truth and Western ideologies have led to the shaping of ideas, mindsets, and cultures, all the way to family to dating and sexual patterns, African American culture is compared to European American
The main theme of the three writings is labeling within an Imperialist Patriarchy. Toby S. Jenkins in his piece “Mr. Nigger” is concerned with the social, political, economic, psychological and educational issues that face the Black man today. Hooks piece examines how a patriarchal society has led to the black male being stereotyped and how these myths have...
According to Crenshaw, even though the White House, through their signature gender-and-race targeted initiatives address racism, they still tend to undermine and ignore black girls. Okazawa-Rey and Kirk define racism as racial prejudice and discrimination that are supported by institutional power and authority, where there is an existence of the ideology of white superiority and is used to the advantages of white people and the disadvantages of people of color (Okazawa-Rey and Kirk G-5). This leads Crenshaw, to use the next theory, sexism, as a base to elaborate her article, thus naming it, ‘Black Girls Matter.’ Sexism can be defined as the “attitudes, actions, and institutional practices that subordinate individuals because of their gender” (Okazawa-Rey and Kirk
For example, the essay discusses the problem of there not being enough eligible Black men attending college (Henry, West, & Jackson 245). The definition of eligible could be interpreted as attending college and on a path to some sort of success. Because there is a shortage of eligible young men “Black females believe that they must succumb to the whims and pleasures of men in order to find a mate” because this is the image being shown to them when young ladies in hip hop videos do seductive things in order to gain the attention of the a male (Henry, West, & Jackson 245). One of the most terrible effects is that the music destroys black women 's self perception making it hard for young Black women to “ exhibit personal pride” (Henry, West, & Jackson 245).
Richardson, Riche. Black Masculinity and the U.S. South: From Uncle Tom to Gangsta. University of Georgia Press, 2010. Print.
Daniel Patrick Moynihan, an American politician and sociologist, states in his report, The Negro Family: The Case for National Action (1965), that matriarchy is the main contributor to problems within the Black family. He argues that the matriarch prevents the African American family from achieving equality since it exists in a family system that does include a strong presence of a father-figure. Moynihan contends that “the Negro community has been forced into a matriarchal structure which … seriously retards the progress of the group as a whole” (Moynihan 21)....
Summers, Martin. The Black Middle Class and the Transformation of Masculinity. Chapel Hill: University of Carolina Press, 2004.
In the reading, Patricia Hill Collins quotes, “Racial domination and economic exploitation profoundly shape the mothering context, not only for racial ethnic women in the U.S., but for all women,” (Collins Intro). She acknowledges that racial domination is used as a system of oppression meaning motherhood could be greatly affected based on racial division. Collins states “The way we conceive fundamental institutions are specific to race, class, and gender”, so these institutions will be a different to different people because they have different experiences (Collins Intro). Moreover, just as U.S. Black women’s work and family experiences varied during the transition from slavery to the post–World War II political economy, how Black women define, value, and shape Black motherhood as an institution shows comparable diversity”; motherhood experiences differ based on race and class therefore making African American motherhood dissimilar (Collins
To understand the congruence of disconnect being an African American male and Queer, in the Black community, one must view how their societal stance is typically disconnected within the community and how it’s disconnect pose as problematic to the archetypical construct of the Black Man. The perception of Black men amongst the Black community stems from the perception of Hyper-masculinity, “Hypermasculinity [amongst men] is...
Wilson created the atmosphere of not only binding black race with economical and social issues when there are other contributing factors as well. The plight of low-skilled inner city black males explains the other variables. He argues “Americans may not fully understand the dreadful social and economic circumstances that have moved these bla...
What is personality? How does it relate to Blacks? These are just a few of the questions that might surface when researching human personality. According to Webster's Dictionary, personality is the "totality of qualities and traits, as of character or behavior that are peculiar to a specific person." Personality is characterized by the collective character, behavioral, temperamental, emotional, and mental traits of a person. While personality relates to all persons, when studying Black personality, one must take into consideration the experiences of the African community as a whole.
THESIS → In the memoir Black Boy by Richard Wright, he depicts the notion of how conforming to society’s standards one to survive within a community, but will not bring freedom nor content.
In this narrative essay, Brent Staples provides a personal account of his experiences as a black man in modern society. “Black Men and Public Space” acts as a journey for the readers to follow as Staples discovers the many societal biases against him, simply because of his skin color. The essay begins when Staples was twenty-two years old, walking the streets of Chicago late in the evening, and a woman responds to his presence with fear. Being a larger black man, he learned that he would be stereotyped by others around him as a “mugger, rapist, or worse” (135).
Anderson’s theory examined African Americans living in America’s inner cities that are driven to follow the “street code” and work to maintain respect, loyalty, and their own self-image. The “street code” Anderson is referring to is “a cultural adaptation” which is the cause of violent crime in America’s inner cities (Anderson Article PDF, 3). Since these people are living in mainly impoverished neighborhoods with easy access to drugs and guns, as well as high rates of crime and violence, “everyone feels isolated and alienated from the rest of America” (Vold, 187). Anderson continues to distinguish between “decent” people and “street people.” Those who are “decent” families live in accordance with a “civil code” that upholds values in comparison with the rest of society such as maintaining a job, obtaining an education, protecting their children and following the law. Additionally, “street” families tend to fend for themselves, and when young, grow up without adult supervision and are often abused. This alone causes a dangerous environment because children then, “learn that to solve any kind of interpersonal problem one must quickly resort to hitting or other violent behavior” (Anderson Article PDF, 5). When brought up in an inner city “street” family, racism is a leading factor that causes the youth to construct a negative outlook on the rest of society. When these inner city, lo...