What does it mean to be black? This a question that many black children seem to ask themselves as they are growing up. There is a popularization of black culture in America. From the music that people listen to, to television shows, movies, dances and various other things, the black culture is entertaining for all. African American children who grow up in a predominantly suburban area with many different races are always searching for their racial identity. They may have family members or friends that live in a more urban or “hood” area who influence their lives. They may be stereotyped by their peers at school and in their neighborhood to be a certain way because they are black. The paper will discuss all of these factors and find out what …show more content…
Starting from youth African American children are brought up living two different lives. One where they go visit family who may not live in the best neighborhoods or areas and living in their own community at home. At times when they visit the old neighborhood that their family may be from they are faced with teasing from either older cousins or family members. They are teased because they may not have the latest Jordan’s or the current clothing that is worn. Typically, those who live in these conditions have a lot of name branded clothing yet for some reason continue to live there. The child who is growing up in the suburbs may feel the need to impress their family that lives in the urban area. They want to be able to fit in with them, by dressing and acting like …show more content…
Not just the safe ones such as Will Smith but all of the tough thug rappers. Kids see these images all the time and may begin to dress like them or speak like them. They glamorize the lifestyles but do not truly understand what they may be saying or doing. Sometimes they may try to act tougher than they really are in the presence of others to gain their own confidence. For the most part this can be controlled. It can be dangerous however if the child goes too far with their actions to prove themselves to others. This could lead to some type of disciplinary action up to jail time or even worse it could lead to their deaths if they are involved with the wrong people. On TV, the actions of some never have any serious consequences. Once the episode is over it is done with. “In the United States, 57 percent of TV programs between 6 A.M. and 11 P.M. contain violent scenes, often portraying repeated aggressive acts that go unpunished. Victims of TV violence are rarely shown experiencing serious harm, and few programs condemn violence or depict other ways of solving problems (Center for Communication and Social Policy, 1998) (Berk 2006). It is imperative to keep up with children of all races during their development because they are sponges. Positive role models within their community can help with this. “Growing concerns about the experience and achievement of Black pupils (especially Black males)
There are many open wounds in the African-American community that have not healed what so ever. Disintegration of family structures in the African-American community has been a persistent problem for far too long. High out of wedlock birth rates, absent fathers, and the lack of a family support network for many young African-Americans have led to serious problems in America's urban areas. The persistence of serious social problems in inner-city areas has led to a tragic perpetuation of racial prejudice as well. African Americans still face a litany of problems in the 21st century today.
The book "Black in White Spaces" by Elijah Anderson is a perceptive investigation of the experiences of Black people navigating primarily White spaces. The effects of these experiences on Black people's sense of self and interactions with others are discussed in detail in Chapters 1-4. In the first chapter, Anderson sets the stage by describing his own experiences growing up in a predominantly white neighborhood and the impact it had on his sense of identity. He argues that these experiences are common among African Americans who live in predominantly white spaces, and that they face unique challenges in navigating these environments (Anderson 5).
When given the task to watch and understand the documentary "Suburban American: Problems and Promises" I was genuinely interested. Due to my interests in property development and real estate, I wanted to know the reasoning for why certain areas and region were considered appropriate locations for building a suburban neighborhood. Therefore, I started to realized that the audience that the movie was directed towards was people who are interested in the development of the Urban and Suburban areas of our previous and present generations. Also, this documentary should spark the interest in any American history fans, construction management and even people that are interested in civil rights movement. This documentary touches on all the reasons
The documentary that we needed to watch for this essay is titled "Suburban America: Problems & Promise. " The movie is produced and directed by Ron Rudaitis, and its intended audience are students, community leaders, educators, as well as anyone who is interested in learning about the challenges that suburbs face, their history, as well as the role that they played in shaping the American society. The primary purpose of the documentary is to inform its audience about suburbia. The film briefly focuses on informing the viewer about the history of suburbs.
The book focuses on the Great Migration of Blacks in the 20th century to the West or North. Similar to other migrations, there was a catalyst. For this period of history from 1915 to 1975, it was deep racism. The South, while maybe not individually, had a penchant for expressing its belief in the inferiority of Blacks. It ascribed a level of worth that was even lower than that of animals to Blacks.
Growing up in a Colored Home Back in the 1960s The social, political, and economic conditions of the 1960s influenced the difficulties of growing up in a colored home. African Americans were faced with a society that was unfriendly towards their existence as individuals because racism and discrimination were common during this time. Black families in the 1960s were strong and resilient, as they relied on each other and their community to survive and succeed despite the numerous obstacles they faced.
At the beginning of this assignment, I choose inner city culture because I was under the impression that I knew at least a little about it. I live in the suburbs of Chicago, and my parents have often worked in the inner city, and so I have heard many stories. However, completing this project has shown me how little I know about other cultures, and how important it is to research before meeting a client. To begin, I have often been told that violence and poverty in the inner city are partially caused by bad parenting and drugs. While those can be a cause of problems in the inner city, just like they can be anywhere, none of my research identified those aspects as ultimate causes.
Elijah Anderson, a Yale professor, developed the concept or theory entitled the “code of the street” which explains the reasoning for high rates of street violence among African-American juveniles in a Philadelphia community. The “code of the street” is the way of life for many living in poverty-stricken communities which attempt to regulate behaviors. Anderson observed that juveniles in inner-city neighborhoods who are exposed to racial discrimination, economic disadvantages and alienation from mainstream society may lead violent behavior. The strain, social learning, and labeling theories are all directly related to Anderson’s work.
Children grow up using the people surrounding them as guides. If they are surrounded by people who tend to make bad decisions, they will in return will most likely make those choices. During the 1900s parents taught their children to think that they are better than African Americans. Even after slavery was gone, discrimination still existed. As children grow, they learn things about the world and go through many changes.
The street affected every African American in Harlem. • Further, to what extent are African American children’s life chances today, especially in urban areas, better than Bub’s? According to Joanna Penn, Journalists Resource- Harvard Study Resource, “children from high-and low-income families tended to be worse growing up in urban areas, particularly those with concentrated poverty, compared with those in suburban or rural areas.
The source of the difference is no secret. African Americans have been subject to a long history of social and economic oppression and disadvantage; they have experienced higher levels of poverty and lower levels of education than white Americans. After the Brown decision in 1954, the federal government and many states adopted policies to redress the past inequities, but those systems were insufficient to overcome generations of racism, which limited access to jobs and education. Despite significant progress in expanding educational access, education attainment, and economic opportunities for black citizens in the past half century, blacks continue to agonize. African Americans face many trials such as being disproportionately poor and attending racially isolated communities, where children are likely to be exposed to violence, gangs, and drug
Children will always find ways to watch these kind of shows with the type of technology that is available now. Children can watch these type of shows on all type of devices now such as cell phones, I-pads and etc. These children can also view these shows outside the home without the parent’s knowledge. Parents can control the amount of violent television shows by monitoring the programs that their children watch at home and by removing the television out of the child’s room. Also, with today’s technology, televisions now come with parental control and so does other devices.
As previously mentioned, many inner-city youths feel a lack of hope due to the stigma of race and lack of high paying jobs causing violence to break out amongst them. This causes a confirmation of the negative feelings many on the outside feel towards those in the urban communities. Furthering the “oppositional culture” of between the affluent and the poor. Anderson believes that unless this cycle is broken, violence will only escalate (Anderson
Inner-city schools, located in poorer and violent parts of town, generally have a lower level of income than suburban schools. Inner city schools consist of schools in poorer areas. These schools often lack the necessary means to help their students achieve. Inner city schools, portray how wealth divides in America, leaving many African American children to go to school in old beaten down buildings. Inner city schools, which show years of wear, provide children with an unfair opportunity against suburban schools.
Media violence has become a controversial topic in the world today. Owing to the rising technology, children are beginning to show increasing violent behaviors. The debates on the effects of media ranging from screen media, video games, and books have a long history. Due to this, there is a speculation over what is the leading cause of the increasing violence in children. Some people argue that there is a relationship between media violence and real-life violence.