African American Socialization

Socialization is the process of learning in which an individual in trained to think and behave appropriately within society (Newman 2017). Socialization is an involuntary process; once an individual is born, they undergo the process of socialization and are taught how to be a male, female, or member of their ethnic group. Through socialization an individual is able to develop a sense of self, the unique set of traits, behaviors, and attitudes, that distinguish them from another person (Newman 2017). This author hopes to describe the socialization process through which the lens she did as a female African-American, belonging to the middle class of the United States of America. Growing up in Connecticut, one of the richest states in America,

One of the biggest factors that are involved with being raised a an African-American person is the inclusion of church into one’s life. Ever since slavery where many African-Americans were coerced into the religion of Christianity (Weisenfeld 2015), many still belong to the faith. In fact, African-Americans, not including the younger generations of African-Americans, are the most devoutly religious group of people in the United States (Briggs 2015). So, at a young age, respect for religion was taught in the household. The church being a part of the lives of many African-Americans has caused the group to develop a patriarchal view of society (Lindsey 2011). Many African-Americans, and other ethnic minorities, are socialized on how to deal with their status as a minority in American society (Newman 2017). Thus, because there are major race cleavages in the United States, this author was socialized to be very cautious of the police, authority, or any Caucasian-American. There is a script that is taught in almost every African-American family on how to deal with the police, or any figure of authority, to avoid punishment and repercussions. Another lesson that is taught to young African-Americans is how to be prepared for the way you may be treated by Caucasian-Americans. One such lesson is on expect to be watched and followed in department stores,

As being part of being socialized as a woman, this author was mostly taught the dangers of being at places alone, especially at night, and what to do in such a dangerous situation. There were also warnings given on what constituted as dangerous situations and how they came about. Some of the norms and behavior that are associated with being a female, alone, in an unfamiliar place are having the keys ready to be used to get in the house or car before reaching them to outpace a possible attacker, always being aware of one’s surroundings, and not dressing in provocative clothes because society believes wearing such clothes invite rapists and molesters to attack. A major part of the female socialization process revolves around the education of sexual assault and rape. About one out of every five women will be raped at some point in their lives (National Sexual Violence Resource Center 2015), and about 91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female (National Sexual Violence Resource Center 2015), so education in this area is paramount to anything else. Women are also socialized to believe that they must always put on a performance so that they look their best/be pretty, as determined mostly by the mass media (Wade et. al. 2015). Many women resort to make-up, cosmetic surgery, and eating disorders in order to conform to the body images and beauty