Improving the lives of black boys and men is not an impossible task.
When groups of concerned people gather to discuss black boys and men,
the conversation all too often degrades into a hopeless discussion of
problems and pathologies.
Yawn.
There’s nothing new to add to that tired trope, especially for anyone
with a passing awareness of the enduring history and the contemporary
plight of black males in our country. But what is being done about the
stacks of studies and statistics that point to a disproportionate number
of black boys and men trapped in the
school-to-prison pipeline?
Frankly, far more than most of us know. I was reminded of this at a
roundtable meeting convened earlier this week by the Center for Law and
Social Policy, or CLASP, a Washington-based group that advocates for the
interests of low-income Americans. About two dozen academics,
grassroots activists, community-based organizers, and policy experts
gathered in the CLASP conference room to talk about their work, offering
success strategies that are improving the lives of and outcomes for
black boys and men.
Describing the gathering as a “partnership circle meeting,” Linda
Harris, who directs youth policy for CLASP, set the tone for the
conversation by noting that everyone in attendance did valuable and
important work. But not everyone in the room knew about each other’s
work. Because people work in isolated silos, alone in their
laboratories, or one-off in think-tank cubicles, the potential for
synergy between their successful discoveries is often lost in the
soulless proliferation of book chapters and white papers.
Harris suggested each of us in the group imagine ourselves as
motorists on a vast and broad superhighway leading to an agreed-upon
destination. We all want to make it easier for black boys and men to
maintain good jobs, wages, and careers. But along this road, the various
groups and organizations assembled at the meeting—“partners in the
black men and boys’ journey,” to use Harris’s language—have different
on-ramps or entry points. Each of us moves along the route at varying
speeds with our heads down and our eyes trained on our specific tasks.
We are often clueless of what others are doing at different places on
our shared pathway.
As a result, when we do talk about what’s happening with black boys
and men, the common and default mode tends toward the recitation of
dismal statistics. Sure, the challenges are there in the numbers: 6.7
million—approximately one in six, or 16 percent—of all young people
(ages 16 to 24, both male and female) are disconnected from school and
work. But for young black males, the numbers are worse—almost double at
32 percent.
Supported by the Open Society Foundations’ Campaign for Black Male
Achievement, CLASP sought to give us something else to talk about, to
provide us an opportunity and space to share strategies about how to
make a positive impact on black boys and young men. It was a refreshing
conversation. I learned, for example, that:
- Sharon Davies, executive director of the Kirwan Institute at Ohio
State University, drafted and filed an amicus brief on behalf of her
institute in the Fisher v. University of Texas case—an
upcoming, affirmative action case before the Supreme Court to determine
whether race may be used in college admission policies. Oral arguments
in the case are planned next month. Davies said it’s critical that
colleges be allowed to use race-specific criteria in college admissions
to increase opportunities for black youth and especially for black
males, who are disproportionately absent on college campuses.
- Michael Lindsey, a professor and researcher in the University of
Maryland School of Social Work, is assessing the mental health and
social development needs for school-aged black boys. He explained how
recognizing and addressing their unique health needs, which tend to go
untreated in communities where these boys face high stress from racism,
poverty, and joblessness, can result in better educational outcomes for
black boys.
- Al Young Jr., a sociology professor at the University of Michigan,
is demonstrating how social forces such as racism, poverty, and
joblessness shape the attitudes of black boys and men toward education
and work. He noted how his research contradicts the common view that
black males don’t study hard because they doubt it will lead to improved
life outcomes. Rather, his research shows that when black males viewed
work in a productive fashion, their willingness to stay in school
increased.
- Ron Walker, executive director of the Boston-based Coalition of
Schools Educating Boys of Color—a network of public, private, and
charter single-sex schools that focus exclusively on improving
educational outcomes for young black males—is refocusing the narrative
about black males to “talk about solutions, not problems.” Walker said
that “black boys learn more from success than from failure.”
As these conversations bounced around the room, ideas flowed and new
alliances were formed. What once seemed an impossible task—improving the
lives of black boys and men—seemed less daunting. No doubt that’s
because those of us who traffic the less-traveled road of looking for
solutions to the problems facing black boys and men took a moment to
pause in our drive toward success and recognize a fellow traveler.
Knowing someone is on the road with you makes the journey a lot less
lonely.
This material was published by the Center for American Progress
(http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2012/09/25/39198/race-and-beyond-coming-together-to-help-black-boys-and-men/)
discarded in their neighborhoods.
