A Look at the Black Family

Living in a class apart: The separate world of America's Black elite”

Graham opens his article by saying that

                

“[He] grew up thinking that there were only two types of black people:  those who passed the ‘brown paper bag and ruler test’ – skin no darker than a paper bag, hair as straight as a ruler – and those who didn’t…those who were members of the black elite, and those who weren’t” (Graham 48).

For African Americans today, I would say that the same still holds true.  There are still unnecessary qualms between fair skinned and darker skinned African Americans.  Many of the African American women portrayed in the media exhibit similar archetypal features, long hair, fair, caramel color skin, and light eyes.  We find that traditionally, darker skinned African American women are not as glorified.  This presents a problem between black people as it creates an unnecessary feud between a group of people who should be able to stand together and tackle real issues.  Another important fact that Graham mentions is that the disparities he saw between African Americans was more than just an issue of pigmentation, citing “it was a color thing and a class thing.  And for generations of black people, color and class have been inexorably tied together” (Graham 49).  Today this is still true.  African Americans of the middle and upper class have greater access to resources and privilege than their brothers and sisters who live in lower socioeconomic strata.  I would honestly say that the divide is so great, that these two groups often live as if the other doesn’t exist.  They live in naiveté, exposed only to what they know.  They are often only looking out for the survival or advancement of their own, and don’t consider that the one needs the other. 

“What’s love got to do with it?: Disparity between black men and women”

The author presents many valid reasons that I had not even considered behind Black men’s lack of obtaining higher education such as the demonization of black men, the fact that men typically do not receive welfare, and the drug laws that are in place to prevent advancement after prison.  He also pointed out the effects of deindustrialization in the 60s and 70s that affected low-skilled Black men by creating loss of jobs and an inability to fill the new demand for specialized, skill-oriented labor.  Honestly I am not sure how much more I could add to Offner’s list of reasons why Black women are advancing beyond Black men.  One reason that I can think of in particular is something that I noticed just from growing up and observing some of my Black male peers is just an attitude of apathy when it comes to pursuing higher quality of life outside of drugs and crime, and even sports and music.  When you ask a young man what they want to be, the response one usually gets is an athlete or a rapper.  Our culture today is set up to where these career paths are given so much more prestige than other, more valid options.  In fact, the likelihood of making it as a rapper or athlete, is far less than the certainty of pursuing a specialized field and applying oneself.  I honestly feel that our culture has bred these feelings of education not being an option for people of color.  Honestly I feel like this is where the Black elite could play a significant part.  Not enough young men are being told of their lineage, and the endless possibilities of what they can become.  There are a shortage of Black male mentors and role models for these young men to look up to.  I would say it is up to those who have their stuff together to be an example for today’s young men, but not only that take a young man and SHOW him how to be a man, how it looks to be successful, be it through going to college or entrepreneurship. 

I think it is very unfortunate that as the article states that, “unless unforeseen social forces reverse current trends…the future is likely to bring one of the first cases in history where women have achieved superiority over men in the vital areas of education, occupation, and income” (Offner 2002:18) I don’t want to surpass my Black brother; I want him standing right there with me.  I want the Black man to be able to have the prestige I feel he deserves.  It is hard to know that many of the young men I grew up with will not be considered equal to myself as far as having cultural capital. 

     

“Successful women who are childless”

Raspberry states that “among [women between the ages of 28 to 55 who earn $55,000/year or more,] 60% of them are married and childless” (Raspberry); For the African American women who fall into this category, “only 29% are married” (Raspberry).  Cornel West states that when he was a Harvard student, the ratio black women to black men was about even; today he states that black women outnumber black men 9 to 1.  In the John Franklin article we see how the importance of the black family has changed over time.  Franklin points out that, “the strong family tradition among blacks thus survived the slave system, then legal segregation, discrimination, and enforced poverty” (Franklin 5).  However he notes that we have endured a shift in the black family to where most black families are headed by single parent households, consisting of mostly women head of households.  As With Franklin’s article, Raspberry’s editorial shows us that the likelihood of a strong black family continuing is decreasing, as educated black women who remain childless, are not able to contribute as equal partners in a strong black family, not solely because they are childless, but because they are having a hard time even finding a suitable (as in “equal in earning, education, power,age and prestige” (Raspberry)) black spouse.  This is even more affected by the of black women to black men.  Raspberry worries that people who do not have children, will not be as concerned with the black collective future.  A future, which may or may not include strong families.