Facts
Facts
Bill Cosby has received a lot of flak from many in the black community over his statements that a large proportion of African Americans are "betraying the legacy of civil rights victories." Apparently the truth hurts. There was a time when African Americans were taught to study hard, to work hard, and by all means make progress. If black children acted out in school, black mothers would make sure that these children would not act out again, unless they chose to have their pants warmed literally and not figuratively. Failure was not an option for a black child in school because the goal was to ensure that they would be able to land and maintain a well paying job. Once the job was landed, every black person knew that he/she had to work harder than their white counterparts. Then Affirmative Action Programs were initiated to "level the playing field." How do you level a climate of mistrust and hatred by merely passing laws that were supposed to right the wrongs of an enslaved people? Of course advances have been made on behalf of African Americans in the workplace, butAfrican Americans are shackled with, in many cases, the lie that they could ot have gotten this job without Affrimative Action. The changes that have occurred over the past twenty-five years; well paid black athletes, Condi Rice, Colin Powell, and of course Bill Cosby, has created a climate within the hearts and minds of liberal white Americas that enough has been done to right the wrongs suffered by African Americans due to racism. If the issue is raised by an African American, whites eyes roll up in their heads generally accompanied by an audible sigh. It's kind of like America's response to the plight of the people in the Sudan or the AIDS epidemic in Africa. We read it, but it's not really all that important to us.The truth is, Black Americans should turn the mirror around and take a look at themselves; a good hard look. The scar of poverty and hopelessness within the poorest areas of this country are populated by African Americans. The reason for the high number of blacks living in these areas is not always the result of racism. The Reverend Jesse Jackson warned that the drugs that proliferated in the black ghettos in the seventies would soon spread to the white suburbs. His prediction was right on target. White kids who get caught up in the justice system unlike black kids are more likely to have the economics to pay for rehabilitation or a good lawyer to avoid a stint in jail. And of course, the media has made it easier for everyone to think that all black people commit crimes and deserve to go to jail. To break this legacy of poverty, gang membership, and violence young black mothers need to be more interested in making sure their kids are in school, learning, rather than arguing with and threatening teachers who contact them to tell them how disruptive and/or destructive their kids are in class. Far too many African American parents, as well as their children confront the world with their anger, hostility, and a practiced inability to speak coherently. What will it take for poor black people to realize that there are few Kobe Bryant's, Shack's, or even fewer P. Diddy's that emerge from the hood?I have heard equal rights supporters talk about the negative effects of having black children educated in white schools. This point seemed to have been addressed in the fifties in Brown vs, Education but comes back to haunt us under the auspicies of educated, informed Black activists.
It seems only logical that if black children live in a predominately white society that they should learn and live in environments similar to the work world they will eventually enter. Anger, hostility, and an practiced inability to speak coherently, regardless of your color or race, is an accepted and sanctioned PC that has outlived its usefullness.Over the last twenty years the level of education for both black and white children has declined and the future doesn't look bright. Colleges across the nation offer remedial classes in english and math, not just to African American and Latino students, but also to white students. Parents, working parents, spend far too many hours trying to earn an income to support a lifestyle and children are visibly suffering. Poor children suffer because their parents or parent don't have enough time and/or money to spend timewith them to expose them to the world around them. Rich kids suffer because they're being raised by nannies or placed into toney boarding schools while their parents invent excuses not to spend time with them. Two different lifestyles that many times yield the same type of behavioral problems in the rich and poor, yet a greater proportion of black kids end up spending most of their lives behind bars while their rich counter- parts grow up to step into corporate boardrooms. The truth for anyone is generally a very hard pill to swallow and in this case, despite the bitter taste, the black community should applaud Bill Cosby's observations rather than attacking him for caring enoughabout the glaring problem to highlight the truth.
Bill Cosby has received a lot of flak from many in the black community over his statements that a large proportion of African Americans are "betraying the legacy of civil rights victories." Apparently the truth hurts. There was a time when African Americans were taught to study hard, to work hard, and by all means make progress. If black children acted out in school, black mothers would make sure that these children would not act out again, unless they chose to have their pants warmed literally and not figuratively. Failure was not an option for a black child in school because the goal was to ensure that they would be able to land and maintain a well paying job. Once the job was landed, every black person knew that he/she had to work harder than their white counterparts. Then Affirmative Action Programs were initiated to "level the playing field." How do you level a climate of mistrust and hatred by merely passing laws that were supposed to right the wrongs of an enslaved people? Of course advances have been made on behalf of African Americans in the workplace, butAfrican Americans are shackled with, in many cases, the lie that they could ot have gotten this job without Affrimative Action. The changes that have occurred over the past twenty-five years; well paid black athletes, Condi Rice, Colin Powell, and of course Bill Cosby, has created a climate within the hearts and minds of liberal white Americas that enough has been done to right the wrongs suffered by African Americans due to racism. If the issue is raised by an African American, whites eyes roll up in their heads generally accompanied by an audible sigh. It's kind of like America's response to the plight of the people in the Sudan or the AIDS epidemic in Africa. We read it, but it's not really all that important to us.The truth is, Black Americans should turn the mirror around and take a look at themselves; a good hard look. The scar of poverty and hopelessness within the poorest areas of this country are populated by African Americans. The reason for the high number of blacks living in these areas is not always the result of racism. The Reverend Jesse Jackson warned that the drugs that proliferated in the black ghettos in the seventies would soon spread to the white suburbs. His prediction was right on target. White kids who get caught up in the justice system unlike black kids are more likely to have the economics to pay for rehabilitation or a good lawyer to avoid a stint in jail. And of course, the media has made it easier for everyone to think that all black people commit crimes and deserve to go to jail. To break this legacy of poverty, gang membership, and violence young black mothers need to be more interested in making sure their kids are in school, learning, rather than arguing with and threatening teachers who contact them to tell them how disruptive and/or destructive their kids are in class. Far too many African American parents, as well as their children confront the world with their anger, hostility, and a practiced inability to speak coherently. What will it take for poor black people to realize that there are few Kobe Bryant's, Shack's, or even fewer P. Diddy's that emerge from the hood?I have heard equal rights supporters talk about the negative effects of having black children educated in white schools. This point seemed to have been addressed in the fifties in Brown vs, Education but comes back to haunt us under the auspicies of educated, informed Black activists.
It seems only logical that if black children live in a predominately white society that they should learn and live in environments similar to the work world they will eventually enter. Anger, hostility, and an practiced inability to speak coherently, regardless of your color or race, is an accepted and sanctioned PC that has outlived its usefullness.Over the last twenty years the level of education for both black and white children has declined and the future doesn't look bright. Colleges across the nation offer remedial classes in english and math, not just to African American and Latino students, but also to white students. Parents, working parents, spend far too many hours trying to earn an income to support a lifestyle and children are visibly suffering. Poor children suffer because their parents or parent don't have enough time and/or money to spend timewith them to expose them to the world around them. Rich kids suffer because they're being raised by nannies or placed into toney boarding schools while their parents invent excuses not to spend time with them. Two different lifestyles that many times yield the same type of behavioral problems in the rich and poor, yet a greater proportion of black kids end up spending most of their lives behind bars while their rich counter- parts grow up to step into corporate boardrooms. The truth for anyone is generally a very hard pill to swallow and in this case, despite the bitter taste, the black community should applaud Bill Cosby's observations rather than attacking him for caring enoughabout the glaring problem to highlight the truth.
posted by taylorlee at 11:25 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home