The tipping point for me comes in the National Urban League's State of Black America. You may view information on at http://www.nui.org/. The League has published reports of this nature in prior years, however, this year the focus presents a portrait of the Black Male.
Some of the findings indicate:
- 18% of black males drop out of high school compared to 14% of white males
- Black men earn less than three-quarters of what white men earned($34,443 vs. $46,807)
- A higher percent of blacks (especially males) than whites are convicted and receive longer sentences than whites.
- Black men under 25 years of age are 15 times more likely to die by homicide than their white counterparts.
Of course this conclusion is not a surprise to prolific author Jawanza Kunjufu who published Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys. Kunjufu concluded in part that "...passive conspirators, are African Americans who participate via their mis-education, self-hatred and apathy. This group consists of African American males who do not raise their children. It also includes African American women who have double standards for their children. They have lower expectations for their sons than their daughters. this group includes African American educators who also have lowered their expectations for African American children, specifically the male child. It also includes those that sell drugs and commit murder."
My attempt is therefore to drive a commitment to action in order to reverse this crisis.
Education is the key. Our males must be shown the value of learning and performing at their very best no matter the circumstances. Knowledge and your ability to apply it to a variety of situations will truly set you free and enable one to compete at the highest levels of our society.
This is about a change in black culture. More on that later. What do you think?
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