By Dr. Rodney Smith
August 17, 2011

For the past twenty to thirty years, the plight of the African American male has been widely discussed and oftentimes fiercely debated by public officials, intellectuals and laypersons alike. The African American male’s plummeting educational, social and economic status has been at the center of these discussions. Their disproportionate representation in America’s penal and criminal justice system, their unemployment and under-employment rates, their homicide rates as perpetrators and victims and the fact that they are at the bottom of virtually every academic indicator has many believing that they are simply academically inferior and incapable of doing well in school and beyond. There are several speculations as to why this phenomenon is occurring. Many believe that low-expectations, laziness and mediocrity have permeated the minds and souls of African American males. Yet others insist that their dilemma is pathological, which insinuates that failure and underachievement are not only inherent, but inevitable. To the contrary, I believe that there is any number of reasons that contribute to the crisis Black males face today. First and foremost would be America’s history of racism and discrimination.



Perhaps the most vicious assault to the stability and progress of America is its legacy of slavery. American chattel slavery was perhaps the most brutal, multi-generational, multi-faceted form of human bondage known to mankind. In many regards, it rendered generation after generation of Americans functionally dysfunctional. As a result, many African Americans have developed various comportments and behaviors in an effort to withstand the unremitting effects of oppression. Activist, scholar and author Joy DeGruy Leary calls these adaptations, post-traumatic slave syndrome. PTSS describes the trans-generational behaviors African Americans have employed in order to survive the on-going and repressive influences of slavery. Leary, in her 2005 publication, Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome, highlighted a number of actions that could possibly be linked to the effects of slavery. One the author highlighted described a scenario where a Black mother and White mother were engaged in a conversation about the academic and social progress of their sons, who were classmates and teammates on one of their school’s athletic teams. The central theme of their brief conversation offered two very distinct viewpoints.

The Black mother asked the White mother about her son’s progress. The White mother described her son in glowing terms such as “talented”, “gifted”, “good athlete” and so on. However, when the White mother asked the Black mother about her son’s progress, though clearly proud of her son, the Black mother talked about his sometimes less than fitting behaviors in school and at home. It is important to note that the African American student was outperforming the Caucasian student, both in the classroom and in the athletic arena, but his mother neglected to publicly acknowledge his accomplishments.

Such incidences can be linked back to slavery when a slave owner would notice and comment on the progress of a slave child. The slave mother or father would quickly retort about how awful the child was in an effort to protect him or her from being physically harmed or possibly sold to another slave owner.  In those days, a slave’s denigrating remarks toward a child were done in an effort to dissuade harmful outcomes. However, today, comments similar to those of the Black mother in the above scenario, although seemingly harmless, can serve to scar as well as humiliate an African American child, who is confused as to why his parent spoke so poorly of him. Unfortunately, in many cases the child then begins to internalize the scathing comments, thus causing grave effects to his self-esteem, especially when the painful comments are repetitive and have taken place over long periods of time. Even more distressing, neither the parent nor the child is aware of the historical context of which their behaviors are based. Further, as we examine the effects of slavery and racism, we must look at the affects that both have had on the academic arena.

Cultural and ethnic racism in the United States assumes the superiority of European Americans - the dominant group, and the inferiority of people of color, causing tremendous gaps in various components of society, most detrimental within the halls and walls of academia. Noted scholar and author, Beverly Daniel Tatum believes that racism is akin to living in a city plagued with smog. The author wrote in her 1997 publication, Why Are the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? “that racism, like smog, sometimes is so thick it is visible and other times it is less apparent, but always present, causing individuals to breath it in, whether they want to or not.”  Racism then develops into prejudices, developed by negative categorizations of certain groups as a result of living in an environment that bombards society with stereotypical media images and rare exposures to the accomplishments and significance of subordinate groups. National anti-racism activist, Tim Wise, states the following about racism in America. “Race may be a scientific fiction, but is a social fact: one that none of us can escape no matter how much or how little we talk about it”.

Currently, in American classrooms less than 8 percent of public school teachers are African American, while almost 20 percent of public school students are African American. In major urban cities, 73 percent of teachers are Caucasian and in smaller urban cities 91 percent of public school teachers are Caucasian.  In many instances, African American students matriculate through 13 years of public school education without ever having the privilege of being taught by an African American teacher. Interestingly, in schools where African American teachers make up a large percentage of the teaching populace, African American students are expelled or suspended from school less and are rarely steered into special education courses. Of further interest, in the same schools they are more likely to be placed in gifted education programs and more likely to graduate in four years. Ivory Toldson, in the 2008 publication, Breaking Barriers, postulated that African American teachers are more likely than their Caucasian peers to characterize African American male students as intellectually gifted and describe these students as more likely to be engaged in positive scholarly activities such as completing homework in a timely fashion, regularly attends school, and assumes leadership roles while participating in learning activities. Toldson highlighted further that African American teachers serve as more than just conveyors of content, but stand as models of an educated citizenry. And if African American students are to believe that one day, they too will become members of an educated citizenry, they must see themselves reflected in the representation of that educated citizenry.

Unfortunately, racism continues to seep its way into the halls of academia as a result of the all too familiar images of young African American men in handcuffs, arrested for a violent crime, prompting scores of individuals to view young Black men with fear and suspicion. These views of the Black male, of course, make their way into the minds of their teachers. Interestingly, in an opinion survey conducted in the 1990s by the National Opinion Research Center, upwards of 60 percent of the Caucasians polled believed that African Americans are typically lazier than other demographics, 56 percent believed that Blacks are more prone to violence and more than half believed that African Americans are, in general, less intellectually capable than other groups. Another survey conducted by the Anti-Defamation League in 1993, found that three of four Caucasians accepted as truth at least one racist stereotype about African Americans with regard to such notions as laziness, propensity to commit crimes, violent acts, work ethic and intelligence. Yet another 2001 survey revealed that approximately 60 percent of Whites polled believed at least one harmful stereotype about Blacks. These negative beliefs were in regards to aggressiveness, violence, work ethic, and welfare. Also, when polled on tests of implicit or unspoken associations, Whites subconsciously linked the faces of African American with negative terms such as evil, criminal, vile and failure; they exhibited difficulty linking Black faces to pleasant words or positive attributes. When shown African American faces for a fraction of a second, the areas in their brains designed to respond to danger automatically lit up.

With findings such as these, coupled with the fact that most African American male students are being taught by Caucasian Americans, it is to a large degree, logical to hypothesize that Black males are having difficulty developing healthy academic efficacy as a result of poor teacher-student relationships. Several of the influences that lead to healthy academic efficacy depend upon positive relationships with significant others or individuals in leaderships roles (i.e. teachers) who have a direct impact on student achievement and performance. Again, one could reasonably imply that positive academic efficacy of the African American male is, perhaps, damaged as a result of less than positive interactions with a teaching populace whose perception of the Black male is less than favorable.

There is no denying the role that race and racism has continued to play throughout the years. Tatum, in her 1997 publication, Why Are the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria, described the dynamics of America’s dominant culture versus the so-called subordinates. Tatum opined that the dominant culture in America holds power and authority and sets the rules and parameters by which the subordinate groups function. And of the so-called subordinate groups, multiple scholars suggest that the Black male is seen as the least of them and receives maltreatment far greater than any other demographic as a result. As such, African American males rank lowest in virtually all statistical measures. They are misdiagnosed by their teachers and placed in special education classes and suspended at rates never before seen in the history of this country. Many of their teachers lack proper certification and are the least experienced in their respective school districts. National statistics contends that they have less than a 50 percent chance of graduating high school in four years. If they graduate, there is no guarantee that they will attend college or acquire gainful employment. And a considerable amount of them will have extensive contact with the criminal justice system, if not under its complete control. Yet, many African American males are transcending their circumstances and rising above their situations. Many view achievement as a natural expression of their very blackness and use their accomplishments as vehicles for a better life not only for themselves, but their families as well.

It is true, African American males live in a world that has been fueled by centuries of misguided and malignant misinformation about them. Individuals that know the truth must not be afraid to speak up and speak out on their behalf. Those that are committed to their well-being must be prepared to enact strategies that include a multitude of methodologies; strategies that protect, challenge, consult, negotiate, and provide for the best interest of Black males, if and when necessary. The reversal of the position many Black males currently find themselves is an attainable goal, but it will take the entire village.  America must realize that black males can be raised to have a great sense of who they are and what their place is in the world. They can be educated to understand what the world expects of them and how they, themselves, can change the negative opinions associated with them. Many have already begun the process. Some have embraced the notion of scholarship and achievement. They are not academically inept or socially defiant. They are not lazy, criminal-minded, deficits to society. Rather, they are scholarly, skillful, intelligent and well-mannered. They are loving sons, loyal friends and civic minded community members. They are aspiring college graduates, business leaders, husbands and fathers. They are me and I am them!

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