Our Black Boys…

There is no longer a need for dire predictions, hand-wringing, or apprehension about losing a generation of Black boys. It is too late. In education, employment, economics, incarceration, health, housing, and parenting, we have lost a generation of young Black men. The question that remains is will we lose the next two or three generations, or possibly every generation of Black boys hereafter to the streets, negative media, gangs, drugs, poor education, unemployment, father absence, crime, violence and death.

This is an excerpt from Phillip Jackson’s article “America has lost a generation of black boys.”  He goes on about how the plight of young black males have been undergoing extreme stress.  In education he states that, “Only 35% of Black male students graduated from high school in Chicago and only 26% in New York City,” 

Phillip goes on to express that “Black men in prison in America have become as American as apple pie.”  What are we doing wrong?  When will we begin to take responsibility for our future leaders?  What more will it take till we get our generation in line?  We are already in a crisis and in desperate need of solutions.

Phillip gives us some solutions to start out with:

“Please consider these simple goals that can lead to solutions for fixing the problems of young Black men:

Short term

1) Teach all Black boys to read at grade level by the third grade and to embrace education.

2) Provide positive role models for Black boys.

3) Create a stable home environment for Black boys that includes contact with their fathers.

4) Ensure that Black boys have a strong spiritual base.

5) Control the negative media influences on Black boys.

6) Teach Black boys to respect all girls and women.

Long term

1) Invest as much money in educating Black boys as in locking up Black men.

2) Help connect Black boys to a positive vision of themselves in the future.

3) Create high expectations and help Black boys live into those high expectations.

4) Build a positive peer culture for Black boys.

5) Teach Black boys self-discipline, culture and history.

6) Teach Black boys and the communities in which they live to embrace education and life-long learning.”

 

Something to consider.

Learn more about this information at www.blackstarproject.org