“Scholars and Activists Debate the ‘Crisis of Young Black Males,’”
Diverse, Aug. 10
From the Court
To the Classroom
The downfall of African-American males, as Dr. Juwanza Kunjufu cites, begins as early as fourth grade. In the article, Dr. Henry J. Holzer states, “A lot of young Black boys look around and they assume … that they are not going to make it.” Speaking as an elementary school teacher, I can say that this is very true.
When you look at urban cities across the United States and the environments in which these young boys are being reared — which are plagued with drugs and violence — the only outlet that most of these young men have is sports. It helps them fine-tune their competitive skills with the hopes of
eventually showing off their talents. And it also gives these young men a sense of pride, letting them know that they are good at something.
As mentioned in the article, there needs to be an effort to reengage these young men, taking that same competitive streak from the court and applying it to the classroom. But what we have to keep in mind is that this is not going to be an easy fix nor is it going to be a one-size-fits-all solution. It is going to take a plethora of resources, people and time.
— Erik T. Wilson
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