This column is part of a series written by seniors from the pilot senior seminar on American citizenship. The class is led by its students, whose interests and experiences are as diverse as their areas of study. These columns are their lessons.
Thirty-three percent of African-American males will end up in prison at some point in their life. Only 41 percent of black men graduate from high school in the United States. The No. 1 cause of death among black males between the ages of 18 and 24 is homicide.
We’ve all heard the facts, we’ve all seen the news — but why isn’t anyone confronting the problem?
This isn’t about racism or prejudice, though I do think these factors contribute to the problems I outlined above.
This is about a group of Americans who, for some reason, are not able to reap the common rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We want these men to be proud of their country, and we expect them to feel like equal citizens, right?
But how can we do this when the average teenage black male in Detroit is stopped 2.2 times each year by the police? Or when I, a UNC student, have been stopped without reason on several occasions, both on and around campus and even in the supposed liberal haven of Carrboro?
The answer is that we can’t. Black males cannot begin to feel entitled to their rights as American citizens until the same rights, opportunities and resources that are provided for the rest of America are also afforded to them.
A lot of people believe the success of black men is determined by their family structure and the quality of their home life. I couldn’t agree more.
What I don’t agree with, however, is the idea that society and, to some extent, the government have not played a role in the disassembly of the black family structure.
