- Jun 24, 2007
- 3,282
- 102
- Occupation
- HR/Finance
Please take the poll (answers are anonymous) and please choose only 1 answer for each question.
---------------------------------------
One of the most damaging forces tearing at young black people in America today is the popular culture's pernicious image of what an "authentic" black person is supposed to look like and how that person is supposed to act.
For example, VH-1's highly rated Flavor of Love show features a black man in a clownish hat, a big clock hanging around his neck, spewing the N-word while demeaning black women. And hip-hop music videos celebrate the "Thug Life" and "gansta" attitude for any young black person seeking strong racial identity.
But a critic who points out that this so-called culture is defeatist and damaging — because it leads to high drop-out rates, record black-on-black murder statistics and a record number of out-of-wedlock births — is dismissed as a prude and a censor. Anyone questioning lyrics that glorify violence and make it cool to treat women as sex toys is told that the words reflect the reality of black life, and that they are "acting white".
Looking at Black values over the last 10 years:
(Values: beliefs of a person or social group in which they have an emotional investment - principles or standards or judgments about what is valuable or important in life)
A. Have the values held by middle-class Black people and the values held by poor Black people become more similar or more different?
1. Middle Class vs Poor : more similar
2. Middle Class vs Poor : more different
3. Middle Class vs Poor : no change/don't know
B. Do you believe values held by Black People and White people have become more similar?
4. Black vs White : more similar
5. Black vs White : less similar
C. There are people who believe Black people are currently responsible for their own condition. They believe it is a lack of strong families and the prevalence of values that do not emphasize education, hard work and perseverance. There are those who believe racism and discimination is the key factor (job opportunities, accommmodation, education) is the root cause. Which do you feel plays the larger role?
6. Responsible for our own condition
7. Racial discrimination
8. Both are equally damaging
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16281886
---------------------------------------
One of the most damaging forces tearing at young black people in America today is the popular culture's pernicious image of what an "authentic" black person is supposed to look like and how that person is supposed to act.
For example, VH-1's highly rated Flavor of Love show features a black man in a clownish hat, a big clock hanging around his neck, spewing the N-word while demeaning black women. And hip-hop music videos celebrate the "Thug Life" and "gansta" attitude for any young black person seeking strong racial identity.
But a critic who points out that this so-called culture is defeatist and damaging — because it leads to high drop-out rates, record black-on-black murder statistics and a record number of out-of-wedlock births — is dismissed as a prude and a censor. Anyone questioning lyrics that glorify violence and make it cool to treat women as sex toys is told that the words reflect the reality of black life, and that they are "acting white".
Looking at Black values over the last 10 years:
(Values: beliefs of a person or social group in which they have an emotional investment - principles or standards or judgments about what is valuable or important in life)
A. Have the values held by middle-class Black people and the values held by poor Black people become more similar or more different?
1. Middle Class vs Poor : more similar
2. Middle Class vs Poor : more different
3. Middle Class vs Poor : no change/don't know
B. Do you believe values held by Black People and White people have become more similar?
4. Black vs White : more similar
5. Black vs White : less similar
C. There are people who believe Black people are currently responsible for their own condition. They believe it is a lack of strong families and the prevalence of values that do not emphasize education, hard work and perseverance. There are those who believe racism and discimination is the key factor (job opportunities, accommmodation, education) is the root cause. Which do you feel plays the larger role?
6. Responsible for our own condition
7. Racial discrimination
8. Both are equally damaging
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16281886
