Article Critique

Throughout the matriculation of a black boy 's’ life, there are many, (labeled natural, yet are culturally, socially and institutionally based) factors, that govern the holistic views and beliefs entailed to the child. From that moment on, challenging the social structures that these norms entail suggest a sense of sensitivity, homosexuality or weakness, ultimately emasculating the highly regarded social stigmas attached with being a man. Despite being indoctrinated into the minds of black boys from an early age, there are many long lasting effects of masculinity that are in turn reciprocated in the role of black fathers, husbands, brothers and friends. Black masculinity is the self-deteriorating idealisms that attack the identity and social positions black men ascribe to.

People believe that marriage is easy and is the key to love and happiness, but in reality marriage is harder than it looks. Everyone marries for different reasons, for good or for bad. People today don’t understand the meaning of marriage; it is more than just money and appearance. Seeing today’s world of marriage is being influenced by media shows like Jerry Springer, Judge Judy, and Murray makes you realize how society today identifies marriage different. Couples who live unmarried will be happier and have more choices than those that are married in agreement with Catherine Newman’s essay called I Do. Not.: Why I Won’t Marry in the book “Acting Out Culture: Reading and Writing “, by: James S. Miller. Catherine Newman is a writer and an author

Contrary to the stereotype of African-American males not being committed to marital relationships, African-American men who marry suffer greatly when those marriages end, a University of North Texas sociologist says.Dr. Erma Lawson is the co-author of Black Men and Divorce, a book published this spring that focuses on her research of 50 divorced men. Lawson says she was "absolutely shocked" by the distress all of the men suffered after their divorces."They all experienced a sense of loss, guilt, anger and a sense of failure, even though some of them had wanted to divorce," she says. "It 's related to a gender role -- most men think it 's important to succeed in all areas of life."She recalled talking to one man who had been divorced 10 years."He could recall the exact day and time he had been handed the divorce papers and what his ex-wife was wearing. Then he began to cry," she says. "It made us realize how much divorce is focused on the problems of women and children."She says she began the research after becoming tired of listening to her female friends discuss "the black woman 's lament.""Most of them say that black men are genetically destined to be non-monogamous. I have heard them state 'What 's a black woman to do because most black men are uncommitted to relationships? '" Lawson says. "I have also listened to male bashing from black women, who say men are immature, unreliable and self-centered."But Lawson says these stereotypes of black men didn 't fit the men in

“In addition to the research showing the detriments of living together, several studies have discovered-with 80 percent to 94 percent accuracy-the variables that predict which marriages will thrive and which will not. This means unmarried couples can know in advance if they have a better-than-average chance of succeeding in marriage.” (pg.507). With an appeal to emotion, it is not a good idea to test a marriage as a result of making the relationship more worse and have more consequences that could lead to a divorce. Overall this essay, is an appeal to ignorance and a slippery slope. It constantly argues about the same topic with an additional lack of quality evidence to believe, since it is not specific to prove that the whole main argument would be

In Mat Johnson’s novel, Loving Day, interracial relationships are showcased throughout the text. The main character, Warren’s, journey through the story to re-identify who he is as a person mirrors the way America has thought about interracial relationships and marriages over time; as the book progresses, so do the thoughts of the main character regarding race and his personal relationships, as if the reader is walking through time from the days when interracial marriages were illegal, to modern day where interracial marriages are becoming more common and accepted. Warren encounters other people whose views reflect the “traditional” outlook on race and relationships as well as people with “progressive” views regarding race and relationships. He has to navigate through his own personal beliefs, the way he was raised, his personal experience, the way others react to him, and the way

After going through the literature given in Gallagher's compilation related to racism and romance, one can easily understand the shift observed in racist attitude over last few decades. Considering the statistics given, it is visible that Black-White marriages and Asian-American marriages were a taboo in the early twentieth century however this trend has gain familiarity and fame in the masses reflecting that individuals from Black and Asian ethic groups are becoming more acceptable to Whites.

Macroaggressions, intentional or unintentional, must be explored on the basis of implicit biases as a preventive method. Moreover, I agree with Esqueda and Harrison, African-American women experiences of IPV is unique because of no other reason than the color of their skin and what they fundamentally represent in America: African descent attempting to survive in a European- dominated system. The authors validate that African-women purported criminality, cultural characteristics, sexual profligacy, and intellectual inadequacy are the frequent objects of public derision and which fertilizes a profound platform for macroaggressions. The authors’ examination of African-American experiences of IVP in comparison to White women reminded me of a video I saw on Facebook. A young African-American woman produced a video, which she justified why black men cheat. She proposed that black men cheat or prefer white women because, “us black women are aggressive, rude, unyielding, complainers and refuses to let men lead.” African-American women, not all, I do not intend to generalize, have come to believe these notions, presented in the research, and convinced themselves that they are the cause of IPV and infidelity and backbone to the longevity of

For many years, black males have been betrayed to be these violent, sexual human beings and this has made it difficult for black males to get in touch with their humanity. To be able to have sex with as many girls as possible or to be this tough figure all the time, does that really make you a man? The discussion of black masculinity is an issue that’s destroying black men’s humanity. In today’s world, black males are looked upon to be the “tough guy” in their definition of masculinity. Black males have historically been associated with thugs, gangsters, and pimps. These are negative images that society portrays young black men. To some degree the media to blame for that and our youth because the radio and the T.V. keeps stereotyping black

Divorce is the legal severing of marital bonds and is on the rise in North America. In 2011, divorce in Blacks or African Americans is at an all-time high. Divorce has many implications for a society. If current trends continue, researches postulated that if African American children were not born outside of wedlock, the African American population would fail to reproduce itself and would rapidly die off. Blacks who are married live longer, are wealthier, happier, and choose healthy behaviors compared to Blacks who are divorced. Many Blacks living in the South or the “Bible Belt” of America profess faith in Christ or other spiritual connections, are often frequent

The late Dr. Martin Luther King could have never fathomed the epic fail of the modern day African-American society that he worked so hard to establish. “The truth is that we are now a two-family nation, separate and unequal—one thriving and intact, and the other struggling, broken, and far too often African-American”(Hymowitz, 2005). While marriage tends to create a stable home for family and children to thrive, many blacks find themselves

Throughout America’s history there have been many struggles with equality amongst the many racial identities that live in this “melting pot.” Acceptance of the many races is a continuous goal in the war on racism in America. Once accepted, many racial identities go under huge scrutiny by the media, society, and their other racial counterparts, etc. Black Sexual Politics by Patricia Hill Collins is a critical analysis of blacks in America and blacks as a race. The book analyzes this race on various levels, and these levels include, but are not limited to the following: the concept of “new” racism, gender ideology within the race, and the potential for progression of

Most people will never have the experience of being a Black male, I personally never had to bear the struggles Black men encounter on a daily basis. However, I have been exposed to the weight and implications of a “Black male in America”. My most recent interaction has been with my current boyfriend, Kelsey Wilkerson. He has been through a lot in his 22 years here on earth. He lost his father at the age of six months. He grew up hearing family members describing the qualities and physical similarities he share with his deceased father. He often described hearing these stories often made him feel bittersweet; it brings a gigantic smile to his face, but it is sad because he will never have that father/son relationship. Kelsey was lucky to have

“African American communities are populated by men who are too weak and by women who are too strong”. In my opinion, this sentence alone fully summarizes chapter 6 of our Black Sexuality and Health text. It has become a norm in the Black community to suggest that strengthening “weak” Black men is the best way to fight racism and to reverse African American poverty. African American women are constantly viewed as “too strong”, and unwilling to accept help for others including her Black man. The tremendous strength of Black women has caused for counseling to “let” Black men lead and also has led to African American men and women being encouraged to blame one another for economic, political, and social problems within African

The two articles used were “Understanding the Occurrence of Interracial Marriage in the United States through Differential Assimilation” (Lewis, Ford- Robinson, 2010) and “Marital Dissolution among Interracial Couples” (Zhang, Van Hook, 2009). The first article “Understanding the Occurrence of Interracial Marriage in the United States through Differential Assimilation”, spoke about the unprecedented changes that our society is going though in the 21st century.

Warner contends that the institutional system of marriage implicates couples who are not married as being “less worthy” than their married counterparts, not just through the tangible benefits of marriage but through the