Is History Really History?

Oppression of Blacks in America Today

Overview

Early EducationHigher EducationRacial Profiling

Oppression of Black Women

Education: Brief History

Jim Crow Legislation 1870’s

Plessy v. Ferguson 1896

Brown v. Board of Education 1954

Ernest Green Video Clip

Education TodayTest Score Trends

Mathematics4th Grade: Point gap 26 points in 2007 and

2009 from 31 in 19908th grade: Point gap 33 points in 1990 to 31

points in 2007, and 32 in 2009

Reading4th grade: Point gap was 27 points in 2007,

lower than any other year8th grade: Point gap was 26 – not much of a

difference from any other year

(NAEP, 2009)

Education Continued…Attendance Rates

In 2000 there were no differences in the absenteeism from school between Blacks, Whites, and Hispanics

Retention RatesBlacks have a higher retention rate than Whites and

HispanicsDrop Out Rates

In 2007 the drop out rates for Blacks was higher than Whites but less than Hispanics

College RatesBlack college enrollment rates have increased

Possible Causes for TrendsFamily Breakdown

Poverty Rates 31% Black children lived in poverty in 2000

# of parents in the home Less than ½ Black children lived with 2 parents in 2000

Risk factors for kindergartners Black kindergartners with 2 or more risk factors was 4

times greater than their white peers Being Read to

Black 3-5 year olds were less likely to be read to or told a story in the past week than their peers

Possible Causes Continued…Health

1/8 children under age 18 had no public or private health insurance

A little over ¼ children 19-35 months had not received immunizations

Parental Education81% had mothers with a high school level

education

Higher EducationIn 1980, Blacks represented 9% of all students

enrolled in college. Now Blacks comprise 11% of the total enrollment in school12% enrolled in 2 year institutions11 % enrolled in 4 year institution

In comparison to other racial groups:Whites comprise 68% Hispanic 4%Asian/Pacific Islanders 6%American Indians/Alaska Natives 1%

Majors their studyingAccording to the 2001 NCES report, Blacks

are enrolled inBusiness Management 19.5%Computer & Information Science 3.9%EducationHealth Science 5.4%Engineering 3.6%Law 1.8%Medicine 0.3%

Why these trends?Although Blacks are entering college only

18% are graduating.Factors that are hindering blacks from

entering college are:ACT testingFinancial barriersParental EducationMany Blacks choose to attend HBCU’s

instead of traditional white institutions.

Historical Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU’s)Brief history of the schoolMany attend these universities because

Smaller intimate settingAdmit higher % of disadvantaged studentsAccept lower SAT & ACT scores“Legacy effect”Belief that there is an absence of racism on

campus

Discrimination in the Hiring ProcessIn 2001, the Fair Employment Council found

that over 20% of employers still treats black applicants less favorably than whites.How do companies do this…

Journal: The Hidden Prejudice in Selection: A Research Investigation on Skin Color Bias

Definition of Racial ProfilingAny police initiated action that relies on the race,

ethnicity, or national origin rather than the behavior of an individual or information that

leads the police to a particular individual who has been identified as being or having been,

engaged in criminal activity.

Racial Profiling Cont…June 10,1999 Political figures gather together

at a forum called “Strengthening Police-Community Relationships

Clinton says racism is morally indefensibleKS, MO, WA, and CT pass state legislation for

state policeEnd Racial Profiling Act of 2007

Anecdotal and Empirical ResearchDr. Elmo Randolph’s experience with law

enforcement

Wilkins vs. Maryland State Police

Personal Scenarios

Social Theory

How Racial Profiling affects African AmericansLow self-esteem, weak academics, behavior problems, etc

Distrust in the law

Youth being prosecuted as adults-Juvenile arrests per 1,000 persons in populationAll 56.2% ; Whites 49.1; Blacks 101-Cases referred per 100 juvenile arrests All 88.8%; Whites 88.4%, Blacks 98.5%

Controlling Images

Precarious BehaviorsAlcohol consumption and drug use

-Lifetime alcohol use (had at least one drink of alcohol during their life)

69 Blacks; 76 WhitesEpisodic heavy drinking (had five or more

drinks of alcohol within a couple of hours before or at least one occasion during the last 30 days)

13 Blacks; 30 Whites

Precarious Behaviors Cont..

Drug selling (ever sold or helped sellmarijuana, hashish, or other hard drugssuch as heroin, cocaine, or LSD)

-Blacks 13; Whites 17Theft of less than $50

- Blacks 38; Whites 44

Oppression in Black WomenWays oppressed todayStepping stones in historyGreat influences today

Oppression Today African American Women experience double

oppression. They receive oppression for being black and for being a woman.

Ron Daniels, The Struggle for Women’s Equality in Black America that black women are put on as a ‘pedestal’ to black men.

An example of this: While more likely to be employed than African-American men, African-American women earn lower wages than African-American men and White women do according to Dr. Julianne Malveaux study completed in 2007.

According to the same study African American women made 284 less a week than white men.

Even though we have over come laws oppression black women, oppression still exist in our culture.

Black women face social and economical segregation.

The belief is that if blacks women fail in society it is because of their color and sex.

Black females have the ‘strong black female’ role placed in their heads at young ages. They will not be expected to be taken care of and they will not ask for help.

Black Women are raised to believe that their experiences define them.

A black woman reaches adulthood through her experiences.

Media today portrays black women as large and

obvious.

According to the Journal of Black Studies, In 1993 Black women make up 6.5% of Enrollment to

undergraduate programs.

According to the same study when speaking with black

females they perceived their school environment as hostile

and the school officials as not supportive.

Born in rural Mississippi to a poor unwed teenage mother, Winfrey got her start in television news before taking over a morning talk show in Chicago in 1984

Michelle ObamaReceived a sociology and

African American Studies degree from Princeton

Received a Law Degree from Harford Law school

References  Beckham, A. (Ed.). (2007). The State of Black America: Portrait of the Black Male. NeYork,

NY: Beckham Publications Group. Gourdine, R. (2009). ‘Worldview and strength based perspectives: Defining normative

development for african american female adolescents-implications for black south african female adolescents’, Social Work in Public Health, 24:1 124-130

Harrison, M. S., & Thomas, K. M. (2009). The hidden prejudice in selection: A researchinvestigation on skin color bias. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 39(1), 134-168. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2008.00433.x

Jansson, B. S. (2009). The reluctant welfare state. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Malveux, J. (2008) ‘Perspectives: The status of african american women’ retrieved from:

http://diverseeducation.com/artman/publish/article_10797.shtml Mastro, D.E. “Media Social Identity Approach to Understanding the Impact of Television

Messages” Journal of Black Studies 32.3 (2003): 98-113.

Matthews-Armstead E. (2002) ‘And still they rise: College enrollment of african american women from poor communities’ Journal of Black Studies, 33;44

National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences. (2009). Achievement gaps: How black and white students in public schools perform in mathematics and reading on the national assessment of educational progress (NCES Publication No. 2009-455). Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2009455

National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences. (2003). Status

and trends in the education of blacks (NCES Publication No. 2003-034).Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2003034

National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences. (2009). The nations report card: National assessment of educational progress at grades 4 and 8 (NCES Publication No. 2010-451). Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pubs/main2009/2010451.asp

Neelum, Arya and Ian Augarten.  Criticial condition African American youth in the             Justice system.  www.campaignforyouthjustice.org.   Ramirez, Deborah. McDevitt, Jack. Farrell, Amy. (2000) A resource guide on racial

profiling data collections systems: Promising practices and lessonslearned. Northeastern

University. Stewart, Eric A.  Baumer, Eric P. (2009)  Neighborbood racial context and

perceptions ofpolice- based racial discrimination among black youth. College of Criminology

andCriminal   Justice. Florida State University.