The Role Of Family, Religion, And Family Shape The Experiences Of Young Black Men

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.

As the family structure and needs within the family are changing, the grandparent role is becoming more considered as the parent. As societies problems are growing such as substance abuse, violence, incarceration, homicide, mental illness and at the time this article was published the presence of Aids, the children in these families are starting to be cared for by their grandparents due to these issues being present in their parents’ lives. In just the African American culture according to the article “Empowering African American Custodial Grandparents”, “13.5% of African American children are living with their grandparents or other relatives.” This article discusses the imploring of the Family Systems Theory in the area of empowering the grandparents

HIV/ AIDS affect African Americans at a higher rate than any other race (White, Asian, and Hispanic). With African Americans making up approximately 13 percent of the U.S. population, in 2014, they made up almost half of all new HIV/AIDS cases; 44 percent. African American men accounted for 73 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases, and of that 43 percent of African American men were heterosexual (CDC 2014). Since heterosexual African American men don’t equate to the larger population of HIV cases as compared to African American men who have sex with men, these heterosexual men are virtually invisible in the theoretical and empirical psychological HIV/AIDS literature (Bowleg, 2004, p.166).

​African-Americans are the ethnic group most affected by HIV/AIDS. Ironically african-americans represent 14% of the population of the United States , but represent 44% across the gender line. African-american men represent 70% of HIV infections among the ethnic group, however african-american women are also highly at risk of HIV infection. Indeed they have a rate of infection that is 15 times greater than the rate for caucasion women (HIV among African-Americans, 2012). Most African-american women (85%) are infected with HIV through heterosexual sex, often with partners, who claim to be

This article climbs into the struggle of young black males. Many issues that are recurring such as early school dropout, delinquency, poverty, unemployment, incarceration, fatherless, and they don’t have much of a chance to lead a successful life. Most black males are set up to fail at this rate and all this leads to a need to develop interventions to save those lost lives of the young black communities.

In today's world, there is such a big emphasis on education and its importance. And there should be an emphasis. Unfortunately, not everyone has the same attitude about receiving a good education. This article attempts to discuss the attitudes of African American's towards education when a stable family structure is absent.

On busy street in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska there is a small, light brown building that says “Law Offices” in large letters on the front. This building houses NAP, or the Nebraska Aids Project; the only aids service program in the entire state. The Nebraska Aids project is vital to Nebraska’s population in general, more specifically however it is crucial to young men of color who have sex with men (MSM), a broad term just to describe people of varying sexualities; the term young in this instance refers to those twenty-five years of age or younger.

In the eyes of many, mass incarceration constitutes a brutal technique of punishing individuals for excessive periods of time. There are many reasons to be doubtful that the system of mass incarceration has helped the nation in any form. Rather, locking up millions of people for nonviolent crimes seems just too excessive and redundant. According to “The Black Family in the Age of Mass Incarceration” by Ta-Nehisi Coates published in The Atlantic magazine, the majority of those incarcerated are minorities mainly African American. More clearly, the technique of mass incarceration is used to limit the numbers of minorities in society or control the minority population. Regulations regarding incarcerating millions must be reviewed thoroughly on a federal level and refine precedent to a better future. What major actions must be taken into account to change the turmoil of mass incarceration? Is it possible to adjust the law in reparation for a better future?

A father’s role in a child’s life is extremely important when it comes to a child’s development. With so much emphasis placed on young black boys needing their fathers during crucial developmental ages, the rate of our young black girls growing up without fathers is staggering and overlooked. What is an absent father? The definition is quite simple; an absent father can be defined as a father who is not present in the life of their child whether it is physically, emotionally, or both. Although the absence of a father is detrimental in any child’s life, the absence of such in a young black girl’s life is even more crucial. The absent father in a black girl’s life leads to, in some cases, promiscuity and teenage pregnancy, poverty, and

According to recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, approximately 1.2 million individuals in the United States have HIV (about 14 percent of which are unaware of their infection and another 1.1 million have progressed to AIDS. Over the past decade, the number of HIV cases in the US has increased, however, the annual number of cases remains stable at about 50, 000 new cases per year. Within these estimates, certain groups tend to carry the burden of these disease, particularly the gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men (MSM) and among race/ethnic groups, Blacks/African American males remain disproportionately affected. (CDC)

Harris explains that theses exertions became a matter of life and death during the early 1980s when predominately male African-American male congregants, pastors and other church members became sick from an unknown illness which later became recognized as the autoimmune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). AIDS and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) has a superfluous effect on the black community. African-Americans accumulate nearly half of most HIV and AIDS diagnoses. The delayed response of black leaders to the epidemic was another factor that incited the highly prevalent rates of HIV and AIDS cases within the African-American community. Along with affected gay men, prostitutes and intravenous drug users became infected as well; Harris further reports that those people were considered “degenerates” and “immoral” by black church leaders. Trailing back to the days of slavery, black religious leaders assisted as freedom fighters of social justice for oppressed African-Americans. Those affected with the disease looked to religious leadership for spiritual support and to bring the disease to light. However instead of the desired support, they were faced with disdain and denunciation at the lifestyle as black leaders believed caused the individuals to be affected with the disease. Furthermore, Harris addresses that many gay men who died from the disease were restricted from being buried beside their home churches. This

African American parents are one of the greatest gifts that a child can ever receive. It is important that they’re around to be there and guide their children through the lifespan. Children will need their parents to learn how to make it own in the world and how white society will do everything in their power to manipulate. African American parents must also continue to push their kids to work hard and succeed because no one is going to wait around and give it to them. African American parents should always do their best to keep their kids protected since the world will corrupt their minds and get the best of them.

Minority and sexual minorities understand the oppressive nature of majority groups. However, double minorities like Black gay men often suffer under virulent conditions such as the politics of Blackness, religious conservatism, homophobia, financial hardship, homelessness, lack of support systems, and isolation. Due to this Black gay men seek out comfort in spaces where other Black gay men frequent such as nightclubs. Sometimes nightclubs are the only spaces available where Black gay men feel safe. Often, stigma, racism, and homophobia force men into these spaces, but also these issues lead to negative health outcomes. These issues can prevent gay men from meeting up in healthier spaces and sharing their stories. And, because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the community lost a number of men who could have passed on a rich history.

Magic’s biggest challenge did not hold him back even though sadness and disappointment is consuming him. He continued to be a voice for Aids awareness and an educator that created an epilogue, “A Message for Black Teenagers.” As he continue to educate the world, a question made him think and left it unanswered. “If all this had happened to somebody else, what would have i done?”

According to NATIONAL SURVEY OF TEENS AND YOUNG ADULTS ON HIV/AIDS, “There are more than 1.1 million people in the United States living with HIV today, more than at any time in the history of the epidemic. Young people account for two in five new infections in the U.S., and minorities and gay men have been disproportionately affected. To better understand the views of young people in the U.S. on HIV/AIDS at this critical juncture in the epidemic, the Kaiser Family Foundation contracted with the research firm GfK in the fall of 2012 to conduct a national survey of 1,437 teens and young adults ages 15 through 24.( Kaiser Family Foundation 2012)” Nowadays, the age of maturity starts at an early age. From that point, they enter a world full of sexual desires that is apart of being human. This is why it is important for the parent(s) to be