Posted on 03/19/2006 9:12:59 PM PST by summer
BALTIMORE Black men in the United States face a far more dire situation than is portrayed by common employment and education statistics,...
Focusing more closely than ever on the life patterns of young black men, the new studies, by experts at Columbia, Princeton, Harvard and other institutions, show that the huge pool of poorly educated black men are becoming ever more disconnected from the mainstream society, and to a far greater degree than comparable white or Hispanic men.
...These were among the recent findings:
¶The share of young black men without jobs has climbed relentlessly...dropouts....
¶Incarceration rates climbed in the 1990's and reached historic highs in the past few years....
¶In the inner cities, more than half of all black men do not finish high school.
...According to census data, there are about five million black men ages 20 to 39 in the United States.
Terrible schools, absent parents, racism, the decline in blue collar jobs and a subculture that glorifies swagger over work have all been cited as causes of the deepening ruin of black youths. ..
Joseph T. Jones, director of the fatherhood and work skills center here, puts the breakdown of families at the core.
"Many of these men grew up fatherless, and they never had good role models," said Mr. Jones, who overcame addiction and prison time. "No one around them knows how to navigate the mainstream society."...
All the negative trends are associated with poor schooling...
...Among black dropouts in their late 20's, more are in prison on a given day 34 percent than are working 30 percent ......
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
"Stop blaming society"
I'm not blaming society.....merely pointing out that our current policy pits the lower wage earners who are Americans against illegals. I agree 100% that personal responsibility plays the biggest role in one's lot in life.
You're preaching to the choir. :)
We are in agreement.
It really is disgusting. The same thing happened during Katrina. Instead of helping the situation, many of the able-bodied men I saw were just whining like little biatches.
Hollywood's not hiring???
But seriously, this is a problem for black Americans. They continue to be unable to reproduce their numbers. Even with immigration from Africa, the number of black Americans continues to decline.
And horrible spending habits. From Detroit's Digital Voice Black Spending Habits
According to Target Market, a company that tracks black consumer spending, blacks spend a significant amount of their income on depreciable products.
In 2002, the year the economy nose-dived; we spent $22.9 billion on clothes, $3.2 billion on electronics and $11.6 billion on furniture to put into homes that, in many cases, were rented.
Among our favorite purchases are cars and liquor. Blacks make up only 12% of the U.S. population, yet account for 30% of the country's Scotch consumption. Detroit, which is 80% black, is the world's No. 1 market for Cognac.
(...snip...)
There's more to the article.
Brought to you by America's first black President!!!!!!!
So life is not easy, this situation does not nor can never excuse crime and moral stagnation within any ethnic group.
Chinese and Hispanic groups do not suffer the same maladies yet they are impacted by competition with illegal immigrants.
Public assistance programs need to be repealed and charter school/ school compitition needs to be enacted. Too bad that the political party that receives 90% of black votes works to block all of these reforms...
I have properties in gentrifying neighborhoods located near ghettos.
I remember the first thing I noticed when driving through a ghetto early in the morning; it was the lack of rush hour. Furthermore, most of the early-morning drivers were women.
It seems that the ghetto society has decided that women are supposed to work and go to church, while men are supposed to play and commit crimes.
I know that's a generalization, but that's the impression that an outsider will get if he has to live or work in a ghetto temporarily.
[Full disclosure. Those generalities only apply to California and Florida, where I've lived most of my life. In constrast, during my visits to Georgia, I've noticed many black middle-class men who were well educated, soft spoken, and hard working.]
....still no reason for our government to aid illegals at the detriment of fellow Americans. You simply can not argue that point.
I agree.
I live and work in Richmond Virginia, and my staff is 99% black.
They think they should be given a standing ovation if they show up for work.
They have an "entitlement" mentality, and NEVER let work get in the way of a party.
They have no initiative to better their lives. They just want more babies.
I'm so frustrated. But, I didn't create the problem, and I sure as hell can't fix it. Bill Cosby tried, and his career is over.
Favorite purchases are cars and liquor?
Better add lottery tickets to that list!!
I received my California general contractor license in 1979 and your observations match what I've seen there.
(I now live in Oregon of course)
Your observation is really not a generalization.
Come to Richmond Virginia, and you'll find your observations VERY accurate.
Some black men have it harder. They are the ones who make wrong choices. The Bleck men who make the right choices, to stay in school, act responsibily, marry, to pay bills, show up on time for work, etc., do as well as any average American.
Bad choices lead to bad consequences, you know it from your own life experiences. Stop feeling sorry for the losers. In most cases they bring it on themselves. They will always be with us, black and white.
Some black men have it harder. They are the ones who make wrong choices. Black men who make the right choices, to stay in school, act responsibily, marry, to pay bills, show up on time for work, etc., do as well as any average American.
Bad choices lead to bad consequences, you know it from your own life experiences. Stop feeling sorry for the losers. In most cases they bring it on themselves. They will always be with us, black and white.
Some black men have it harder. They are the ones who make wrong choices. Black men who make the right choices, to stay in school, act responsibily, marry, to pay bills, show up on time for work, etc., do as well as any average American.
Bad choices lead to bad consequences, you know it from your own life experiences. Stop feeling sorry for the losers. In most cases they bring it on themselves. They will always be with us, black and white.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.