Black Americans....?

Question

Do you kind of agree with Bill Cosby even if you don't want to admit it? I mean, I love black people, don't get me wrong.. I grew up with mostly black people. But I don't feel like black americans are going in the right direction. I'm not saying turn into "white people" or anything.. not at all. Black culture is great, nothing wrong with that. But not shooting each other and living life by the rules isn't going to make you "less black".

I'm tired of seeing so many black people involved in shootings, robberies and the whole 9 yards on the news every night.

I just want to know.. what would need to be done to get black americans on their feet?

Yes I know white people have problems too. But when you look at the stats, blacks are killing and being killed at the same rate as white people, but the black population is A LOT smaller. I'm not being politically correct.. just honest.

Well, about white americans. I don't think they are really going in a direction.. since they are already on their feet with jobs and all of that since they founded the country. Blacks were opressed, so they have directions to choose. Get what I'm saying? It might sound weird but it makes sense in my head lol.

I dont know if it should start with the government or the people. I think the government might need to show a little tough love to show people they aint playin. As far as housing, jobs, etc. goes. Maybe something like and individual with so many 'strikes' on their record can't live in public housing.. stuff like that.

to sam: I'm not generalizing. I know there is successful black people. But the amount of impoverished blacks out of the black population is HIGH compared to other races. Thats not an opinion.. it's a fact. Stop thinking I'm picking on blacks, cuz im not. And I dont get my information from just tv.. I'm from new orleans and grew up with mostly black people. I can't tell you how many just didn't care about school, did drugs, sold drugs, got shot, shot people, etc. And this wasn't even in the worst of parts like in the projects.. this was in a suburban neighborhood. A 'lower class' suburban neighborhood, yea, but what im saying is it wasn't even the worst of places. The black population really do have a problem.. and I'm trying to address it.

So some blacks are successful.. good for them. But look at the population as a whole and tell me the majority are living a good life. Quit being so defensive when people try to help..or you just prove the reason they aren't flourishng

Answer 1

I don't know if I agree with what Bill Cosby said or the spirit that he said it in but I do agree with you. I also appreciate the spirit in which you raise these issues. I don't think that you are coming from a position of hate. I, too, am tired of seeing my people doing the things that we do but unless and until we get to the root of the problem, we will never get back on our feet.

Reparations is what is needed.

Reparations is not simply giving every black person some money (but that is a whole topic in and of it's self).

The root word in "reparations" is repair. White America (and some Negroes too) denied that American Chattel Slavery has had any lasting effects on Black people. I have herd it said that it takes time for mainstream America to heal from her past so we must be patient. I have even herd black people say that it took 400 years to create our condition in America so it might take another 400 before we have true equality in America so just do you best to excel so that White people will see us differently.

I am trying not to be long.

We talk about how long it will take for America to accept us but we don't talk about how long it will take to be acceptable to ourselves.

The "Emancipation Proclamation" did not HEAL black people. The "Reconstruction Period" did not heal black people. "Welfare" and "Affirmative Action" and any other "Minority Based" programs did not heal us.

By the end of American Chattel Slavery, there were Four Million black people in Bondage. How many of them suffered from "Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome"?
Where was the healing??? Where was the therapy?
A Victim is a victim until they overcome the circumstances that have made them a victim. America doesn't like the word victim. We have not recovered from the condition that America have put us in.

I will close by giving you the name of three books you might be interested in reading if you are truly sincere.

"Black Labor / White Wealth" by Dr. Claud Anderson.
http://www.powernomics.com/

"Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome" by Dr Joy Leary.
http://www.joyleary.com/h_index.html

"Southern Slavery and the Law" by Thomas D. Morris.
http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showpdf.cgi?path=25544857318617

These books document the methods and Laws used to keep black people a permanent underclass in America.
There are many books out there but this is a good start.

Answer 2

Well, in my opinion, this all stems from the one thing that separates african-americans (those descendant from slaves) from any other category of people on earth. That they have no idea what the culture of their ancestors was like. White people can say they are a fourth scottish or half english and three-sixteenths italian. But those descendants of slaves had their nationality and culture taken away from them. Even further, the slave masters had taught them a degenerate form of english to decrease the chances of being literate and successful in life. They were also fed the worst parts of the animals, scraps the whites didn't want; the pig intestines. Why would anyone in their right mind eat that disgusting dish. Because there parents did and their parents before them. Black people are upset about not having an identity in the world. A connection to a country.

The second part is that the news doesn't display the true percentage of robberies or shootings equally by race. The news can tell you whatever race they want is committing the crimes and not report those of the others. Does your local news channel report every shooting and robbery? Of course not, there lies the place for bias. Would a majority white demographic like to see majority whites committing crimes? Of course not. That's why the news keeps that image in your head.

The third part is about BET. If black americans can't connect themselves to a country they probably feel they connect themselves to their culture in America which they think is BET. But BET is run by white people who put black people on the screen performing bad behaviors for the black audience to repeat in their own lives.

Answer 3

TENN GAL - you are worthless.

Besides that, does anyone not see WHY this situation has come about?! How about a little history lesson - blacks were forcefully moved to this country as slaves... when slavery ended they migrated to CITIES because those were the only places where they could find work and become self sufficient. Being forced into an urban culture fosters a difficult lifestyle - one which perpetuates itself through generations and is nearly impossible to break out of.

If you don't remember, the civil rights movement took place a mere 40 or so years ago. Blacks have made huge strides since then, and more and more of them are breaking out of that lifestyle they were forced into by whites. Why don't we commend the achievements that have taken place instead of diminishing an entire culture of people?
Sure, there will never come a day when all black people are rich doctors and lawyers.. but let us remind ourselves that this will never happen for ANY race of people. All races have their vices... for example, why are all child molesters (the WORST CRIME OF ALL) white men?!
Stop the hatred people. Learn to embrace all cultures of people and look past all of the negative stereotypes.

Answer 4

Are you for real? Seriously, are you for real? I just love your source for information for Black people good ole television! Pick up Black Enterprise, Ebony, or Jet magazine and tell me if we are going in the wrong direction! Stop generalizing please. You said you're trying what to help? We all know what the problem is but what measures have you taken personally to try to change it? I volunteer at the Youth Center in my neighborhood where we engaged our youth in extra curricular activities, we offer tutoring services for those who can not afford the price of a private tutor, we have a free Summer Youth program where Black children or any child, have constructive things to do when school is not in session, we have monthly summits on how to prepare Black, as well as any child, for college and job readiness, we offer parenting workshops for those who need help in getting themselves and their families on the right track, and once a month, we hold meetings on Stop the Violence in our neighborhoods. Also, I donate clothing and food to shelters for anyone who is need so don't assume that I am not trying to do anything to resolve the problem. I just don't talk about it, I take action. I know the problem but I am part of the solution. Talk is cheap and actions speak louder than words. I am glad that I got defensive because now I am seeing some kind of recognition of Black people who are successful in your question not only those who are committing crimes.

Answer 5

I'm a black male & I agree with what most of Cosby says. People wanted to attack him (using him being rich & extramartial affair as an excuse) instead of just listening to him. He stated his opinion out of concern. He wasn't just trying to be abusive, he made valid points! We as black people or African Americans have to reprogram our way of thinking. We still suffer from and propetuate culture that was passed down from slavery, regardless of how long ago it was. Many of us hate our hair, features, skin tones or put down others who look too "black". Our culture has regressed to the point where we look at too much progress educational-wise as trying to be "white". We owned more property in the 20's, yes the 20's than we do now!! Not all, but many black women won't respect a black guy who doesn't act like a thug. And I'm sure black women run into the same problems with many black men.

Answer 6

Very thrilling question because of the fact i don't understand lots approximately this. All I would desire to assert is that in the event that they'd't come across w/ human beings of a similar blood/ancestors because of the fact they are "embarrassed", is actual ridiculous. Do they think of they are extra advantageous than us? Is it extra of an "American" or "Black" element? that's the place i'm perplexed. and don't they understand that not all Black individuals are "ghetto", so they'd desire to placed off of judging us from what they see in Western media or uncommon encounters w/ ignoramus. The U.S., purely like everywhere else, has a seen "decrease classification" society, and American Blacks are actually not the only team in that class. thank you for this question!

Answer 7

Its all bad parenting.

All races have bad parents, black families seem to have a much higher percentage of bad parents. These uncaring, uneducated, abusive, selfish or neglectful parents are only capable of raising children that will themselves grow into bad parents.

There may be no end to this cycle, because nobody can force a mother or father to be a good parent, and they sure the hell aren't choosing to be.

You think I'm wrong? If the kid was raised the RIGHT WAY, with proper values, ethics, and respect; would he be skipping school, smoking weed, getting arrested, joining a gang, or learning to abuse the system? No.

And if the kid was raised the right way, he would certainly instill the proper values, ethics, and respect in his own children.

IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SKIN COLOR, it has to do with parenting.

"Political correctness" makes us put our blinders on, and pretend that ALL different races aren't plagued by different problems more than others, everything needs to meet their(PC crowds) ideological ratio. The downfall of this way of thinking is that we never address the issue if we sweep it under the rug, or pretend that we do not see patterns and statistics that DO exist. Its intellectually dishonest, and it is counterproductive to society as a whole.

Bill Cosby is intellectually honest, he genuinely wants to solve the problems... and to pretend they don't exist makes you a bad parent.

Answer 8

I agree with Bill Cosby because the main point he was making was it all starts with the family. I think Black Americans particularly have a legacy of broken families that was instituted by slavery.

Another problem that should be addressed is the unfair treatment of blacks by law enforcement. Slavery may have ended years ago, but traces of it's brutality still affect us today. When every year a cop shoots another innocent black man for pulling out his cellphone, it sends a message as to our value in society. Therefore, a young black man is less likely to value the life of another.

These are just some of the cycles that need to be addressed. America created it, and benefited from it, shouldn't they at least be somewhat responsible for fixing it?

Answer 9

Unity. African Americans have no sense of unity. This is a problem all over the world for Africans. If one is an African, it only tells what continent they are from, but Africa is huge. There are so many different cultures, languages, religions, history, colors, races and etc... All of these things makes it hard for us to be unified. Europeans no matter if they are from Sweden or England share the common bond of being European. Africans are different. As far as African Americans are concerned. We have, in a sense, lost our way. Not all of us, but some because we have obtained a level of acceptance and progress but now what do we do with the progress? Who are our true leaders? What do we as a whole stand for? You have some trying to acclamate and adapt and adjust while others who are not. Poverty, drugs and alcohol, disease, lack of proper education, and lack of unity is keeping us from reaching our full potential. Yet, we are a people that must overcome. The questions is, WHEN?

Answer 10

I don't really know.. but I completely agree with you. I also see nothing wrong with African American culture and I try to embrace it as much as I can. The thing is, it's really sad to see young guys joining gangs and killing each other for no reason. I live in a city quite full of this behavior (Richmond, Virginia), and I almost can't stand to watch the news any more because of all of the young, senseless deaths being reported daily.