The State of Black America in One Word ~ Crisis! When I survey the landscape in black America, it does not take long for me to recognize the massive impression of a vehement struggle of a collective group of people to simply keep their head above water. The problem in the black community is that it is where every ill of this nation is felt first. It is the place in which much of the economic devastation is felt and absorbed in order to relieve some of the pressure off of this nation’s more affluent citizens. There are multitudinous signs that are highly indicative of the poor condition of blacks in America, and there does not seem to be any immediate relief in sight. If I had the responsibility of summing up the current condition in Black America in one word, that word would be “Crisis.” The term crisis is expressive of a pivotal point in which an already dire situation will either turn for the better or turn for the worse. The black collective is in crisis in almost every aspect of its existence — creating a situation in which proactive and strategic measures are in order. There is no shortage of layman debates and emotional activity; however, there is very little in the way of strategic engagement of the enigmatic issues that are incessantly pressing against the peace and livelihood of blacks across this country. On a national level, in 2014, the nation experienced significant struggles in the area of education, income, employment and socioeconomic advancement, and the
In his article “Body Count”, Kelefa Sanneh makes a few key claims to support his main argument that many African Americans are contesting the same system that many of their community members helped to create in the first place. Sanneh opens with a
The African-American community is comprised of 34 million people, and makes up approximately 12.8 percent of the American population (Barker, Jones, Tate 1999: 3). As such, it is the largest minority group in the United States. Yet, politically, the black community has never been able to sufficiently capitalize on that status in order to receive the full benefits of life in America. Today, African-Americans, hold less than 2 percent of the total number of elected positions in this country (Tate, 1994: 3) and the number of members within the community that actually partake in voting continues to drop. In spite of these statistics, as of 1984, a telephone survey found that 70
The black race has faced many hardships throughout American history. The harsh treatment is apparent through the brutal slavery era, the Civil Rights movement, or even now where sparks of racial separation emerge in urbanized areas of Baltimore, Chicago, and Detroit. Black Americans must do something to defend their right as an equal American. “I Am Not Your Negro” argues that the black race will not thrive unless society stands up against the conventional racism that still appears in modern America. “The Other Wes Moore” argues an inspiring message that proves success is a product of one’s choices instead of one’s environment or expectations.
“For much of black America life seems suspended. In the bleakness of filth and of the inner cities our people go through motions of living. On the street corners jobless men still wait, among the garbage and rats children still play. There are some features to the scene City blocks are ravaged by the riot, the bums and blocked buildings, the empty lots still stand like silent witnesses to their futile anger”(Lusane C ,1994, p.135).
African American Studies is a very complex subject. To confuse African American studies with black history is a common occurrence. African American studies is much deeper and more profound than just Black history alone. There are many unanswered and unasked questions among the Black American culture which causes confusion and misunderstanding in modern day society. In unit one there were many themes, concepts, and significant issues in the discipline of Africana studies. Both W.E.B Du Bois and Vivian V. Gordan touched on many concerns.
“ The future of African American political, economic, and socio cultural incorporation in America requires the continued expansion of rights, law, and public policy designed to bring balance to, and hopefully eradicate the historical barriers that limited, Black interests to begin with.”
Ignorance and hate are killing America! While the black man blames the white man, and the white man points back at the black man, America trembles under racial siege on the brink of self-inflicted collapse as a nation. As a people, we appear helpless to turn the tide, but if America is to survive someone must be willing step forward and initiate the healing process. Someone with courage must take that first leap of faith to right our great nation.
In recent years and over the course of the past fifty year history dating back to the civil rights movement of the 1960’s, the city of Chicago has been a center stage for violence, protest, racial clash, and inevitably segregation. Since the days that Martin Luther King Jr. led marches in some of Chicago’s most historic moments, the city’s sizable black population has hardly witnessed an upturn in their quest for equality. In fact, many studies have identified a pattern of poverty, violence, bias, and pre-mature mortality. All of which have led to the systematic oppression of an entire population in one of the nation’s largest cities. As a result, over the course of the past fifty years in Chicago, poverty has expanded, neighborhoods have become
What’s it like to be Black in America? Well firstly you’d have to understand that being Black doesn’t only describe a skin tone. To be Black “describes a behavior or a perspective of a group of people” (Anderson, 2001), and this perspective is the result of this group’s past and continuing struggles. But I don’t believe I can say I have the answer for that, because Blacks are in almost every category of class as other ethnic groups, and I’ve never been the most privileged or the lowliest of the group. However, I can say that as a group we all feel economically deprived and that overall being Black is to be confused. What are we confused about? Now the answers to that are little bit simpler; we won’t to know why we’re here or how can we make our lives better? You know the typical average person’s concerns. But, in this country and maybe even worldwide, Black people as a group are limited by others as to what they can achieve, before facing resistance, and have to ask themselves why is it that the more things change the more they stay the same?
As a young African- American, looking around in this early 21st century, there are lots of issues that are of great concern. Do we see black Americans losing their life because of race alone? Or, are the issues of crime, violence and disturbed people nothing new under the sun? The amount of violence seen on both the nightly news and being reported on the internet tell us that violence is a commonplace thing in our society. Are the stresses of these times responsible for this rise in people acting in irresponsible ways? Have other people in other time periods ever had to endure this level of confusion in their communities? The purpose of this investigation is to explore these issues and attempt to offer the reader both the
Hope. When Black people were forced into America, all they had was hope. They didn’t have a pot to piss in (the expression used to describe how poor someone is) nor the freedom to learn and establish generational wealth for future generations to come. However, hope didn’t just stop in 1863 when the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by Abraham Lincoln. Hope didn’t stop on June 19, 1865 when slavery completely ended, a day known as Juneteenth. Hope didn’t leave the Black community when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation. Hope was still alive in 2008 and 2012 when the first African-American president of the United States of America, Barak Hussain Obama, ran on the platform of hope. For generations,
As overt discrimination was becoming less commonplace, the seedlings of covert, institutionalized racism were being planted. George Lipsitz identifies this maintenance of subtle hegemonic power that unfairly withholds political, economic, and social advantages from people of color as the “possessive investment in whiteness” (2-3). This process of domination is precisely what occurred in the post-Civil Rights Era. Despite the alleged progress believed to have been made, by the mid-1970s “the overall conditions of the African American population were worse than before the movement,” precisely because of the hegemonic power structure’s effort to restore power (Morant 75). The result was an economic, social, and political maelstrom that marginalized African Americans and benefited whites. Phenomena such as the White Flight resulted in the economic and political disenfranchisement of black communities; simultaneously, job discrimination and a biased legal system left many African Americans unemployed or in prison. Housing discrimination and astronomically high rent increased homelessness and made starkly visible the effects of poverty. Infrastructure was left to crumble as the government put taxpayer money and resources away from black communities and towards white ones. Because of the lack of economic opportunity and education, poverty, crime and violence skyrocketed. Contrasting heavily
The life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination… the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land (qtd. in W.T.L. 235).
For the past 30 years the “gap” in income received by the rich and everyone else has continuously continued to increase, showing no signs of decrease anytime soon. This gap has mostly affected the middle class, which is made up of mostly African Americans and Hispanics, making America less determined to correct such an issue. Given the circumstances African American’s are the focus of this issue. It is known that modern racism exist within today’s society in various ways, one which happen to be within the economy. For decades the economy has has its downfalls, however, it’s been facing a issue that it has been hiding from the rest of the nation. The gap that everyone has been speaking of is only becoming more of issue, however, what many do not know is that African American’s are the ones who are feeling it the most. Given their history and place in society racial inequality. Modern racism has kept many blacks from receiving jobs and has kept them from many opportunities. Income inequality is an issue and it has been pushed aside for long enough it is now too big to avoid and it is time to therefore address it. It is due to such an act that the need for government assistance has increased, poverty levels are at an alltime high as are unemployment rates; and education levels are continuing to drop. The racial inequality African American face has come to affect their income earnings, which has affected education systems and poverty levels it is time such a issue is put to
Before a White person can even consider joining the fight for the liberation of Black people or any other racial or ethnic minority, that individual must acknowledge that because our society is rooted in White Supremacy and the belief that people of color are inferior, being White is a distinct and tangible advantage.