07-20-2007, 05:52 PM
Growing up in an upper-middle class, predominately white neighborhood, I was never exposed to black culture. It wasn't until I attended a high school that participated in a desegregation program that I first had a taste of inner city culture and behavior. I feel like I got a great opportunity to see the culture first hand, while not having to fall into its negative effects. Over the four years being with city kids, who all happened to be black, I learned a lot about their culture, and have made my own theories about the problems with it.
Let me start by defending my statement that there are problems with the black culture. In 1998, one out of every three black men in their 20’s was either in prison or jail, or on probation or parole. Out of 100,000 people, 5 whites are victims of homicide, whereas the number is almost 40 for blacks, nearly 8 times that of whites. Nationwide, blacks commit violent crimes at nearly nine times the rate as whites. Now that I have demonstrated several problems with black culture, let me state some observations I have made that I believe directly cause these problems.
There is a tougher-than-thou attitude among the black culture that places value on never admitting you are wrong, never backing down, and solving things with violence instead of words. I heard a kid talking about how was beat up at school, and his mom came to the principle and made a big deal about school safety. Another kid we were with, who is a black kid from the city, commented, “If I woulda come home after gettin my ass whooped, my momma woulda told me to go back and whoop that nigga ass.”
Why is this attitude so prevalent? I believe it is because, growing up, kids in the city do not have father figures to look up to that tell them, “You stay out of trouble and in school,” and when they mess up, give them a spanking. Nearly 70% of black children are born out of wedlock. As one modern day poet wrote, “We come from a place where authority figures didn’t have no father figures.” The people who black youths look up to are people who have already been corrupted. Without a strong family structure to instill morals and values in you, it’s an easy decision to make – work for 6 dollars an hour at McDonalds, or make $1,000 a day selling drugs. With illegal activities come violence, and if you grow up amongst violence, you learn violence. You can’t afford not to learn how to fight and be tough in the city. These negative aspects are glorified in the “gangster” image pushed by rap artists. However, I am not blaming these rappers; they are merely reflecting what they see in their homes.
Lack of education is another thing that holds blacks back. They see being smart as a white characteristic, and therefore reject education and don’t take school seriously. I have seen kids get off the bus in the city and get bullied because they have their backpacks on from school. One black student who took his education seriously was constantly made fun of, being called “white”, “house nigga” and other demeaning names by other black kids. Over time, even though he wasn’t from the city, he identified with other blacks and pretended to be tough and “gangster” to fit in.
Now, what to do about these things? Many feel that pouring money into city schools will help. “Without computers,” they argue, “how can they be expected to excel in school?” My Grandfather is one of the smartest men I know, and it seems to me he didn’t have a computer to type his essays on. That isn’t to say that in today’s society it’s not important to use technology, and helpful too, but if the money is not there, students can still learn – IF they have the drive to learn. Moreover, studies have shown that increasing the money put into schools does not change the grades. It’s the attitude of the students that ultimately affects their grades. I constantly remind people that I went to the same high school as some kids from the city, and while I used my resources to get good grades and earn scholarships, the city kids mess around in school and thus, do poorly.
I often recant the story of an administrator at our school who grew up in the city. He was the leader of the gang from his block, and got into violence at an early age. In high school, he realized that with his friends going nowhere around him, and if he wanted to make something of himself, he would have to change his priorities. He didn’t have any running water at his house, so he played sports every season just to take showers. He kept himself busy with sports to stay off the streets, kept his head on right and studied hard. He went to college on scholarships and loans and paid them back after getting a job in administration.
There are plenty of programs out there that help black students achieve success, but the only way to take advantage of them is to let go of the gangster attitude, and embrace knowledge. This change cannot be forced on black kids, it must come from inside. Fathers must step up and take care of their kids, and kids must be educated, that they may realize that THEY can save the black culture, one person at a time. Instead of blaming white society and feeling victimized (which has clearly gotten them so far), they must take personal responsibility and stop making it okay to fail.
P.S. - Sorry if my thoughts are all over the place, I had a lot to say, but I tried my best to group them by common ideas.
http://www.prisons.org/racism.htm
http://www.eji.org/race%20crim%20just.pdf
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c9/Vrace.gif (Beareau of Justice)
http://www.amren.com/color.pdf
http://racerelations.about.com/od/parent...edlock.htm
Let me start by defending my statement that there are problems with the black culture. In 1998, one out of every three black men in their 20’s was either in prison or jail, or on probation or parole. Out of 100,000 people, 5 whites are victims of homicide, whereas the number is almost 40 for blacks, nearly 8 times that of whites. Nationwide, blacks commit violent crimes at nearly nine times the rate as whites. Now that I have demonstrated several problems with black culture, let me state some observations I have made that I believe directly cause these problems.
There is a tougher-than-thou attitude among the black culture that places value on never admitting you are wrong, never backing down, and solving things with violence instead of words. I heard a kid talking about how was beat up at school, and his mom came to the principle and made a big deal about school safety. Another kid we were with, who is a black kid from the city, commented, “If I woulda come home after gettin my ass whooped, my momma woulda told me to go back and whoop that nigga ass.”
Why is this attitude so prevalent? I believe it is because, growing up, kids in the city do not have father figures to look up to that tell them, “You stay out of trouble and in school,” and when they mess up, give them a spanking. Nearly 70% of black children are born out of wedlock. As one modern day poet wrote, “We come from a place where authority figures didn’t have no father figures.” The people who black youths look up to are people who have already been corrupted. Without a strong family structure to instill morals and values in you, it’s an easy decision to make – work for 6 dollars an hour at McDonalds, or make $1,000 a day selling drugs. With illegal activities come violence, and if you grow up amongst violence, you learn violence. You can’t afford not to learn how to fight and be tough in the city. These negative aspects are glorified in the “gangster” image pushed by rap artists. However, I am not blaming these rappers; they are merely reflecting what they see in their homes.
Lack of education is another thing that holds blacks back. They see being smart as a white characteristic, and therefore reject education and don’t take school seriously. I have seen kids get off the bus in the city and get bullied because they have their backpacks on from school. One black student who took his education seriously was constantly made fun of, being called “white”, “house nigga” and other demeaning names by other black kids. Over time, even though he wasn’t from the city, he identified with other blacks and pretended to be tough and “gangster” to fit in.
Now, what to do about these things? Many feel that pouring money into city schools will help. “Without computers,” they argue, “how can they be expected to excel in school?” My Grandfather is one of the smartest men I know, and it seems to me he didn’t have a computer to type his essays on. That isn’t to say that in today’s society it’s not important to use technology, and helpful too, but if the money is not there, students can still learn – IF they have the drive to learn. Moreover, studies have shown that increasing the money put into schools does not change the grades. It’s the attitude of the students that ultimately affects their grades. I constantly remind people that I went to the same high school as some kids from the city, and while I used my resources to get good grades and earn scholarships, the city kids mess around in school and thus, do poorly.
I often recant the story of an administrator at our school who grew up in the city. He was the leader of the gang from his block, and got into violence at an early age. In high school, he realized that with his friends going nowhere around him, and if he wanted to make something of himself, he would have to change his priorities. He didn’t have any running water at his house, so he played sports every season just to take showers. He kept himself busy with sports to stay off the streets, kept his head on right and studied hard. He went to college on scholarships and loans and paid them back after getting a job in administration.
There are plenty of programs out there that help black students achieve success, but the only way to take advantage of them is to let go of the gangster attitude, and embrace knowledge. This change cannot be forced on black kids, it must come from inside. Fathers must step up and take care of their kids, and kids must be educated, that they may realize that THEY can save the black culture, one person at a time. Instead of blaming white society and feeling victimized (which has clearly gotten them so far), they must take personal responsibility and stop making it okay to fail.
P.S. - Sorry if my thoughts are all over the place, I had a lot to say, but I tried my best to group them by common ideas.
http://www.prisons.org/racism.htm
http://www.eji.org/race%20crim%20just.pdf
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c9/Vrace.gif (Beareau of Justice)
http://www.amren.com/color.pdf
http://racerelations.about.com/od/parent...edlock.htm