On Seeing Black Boys

For 6 short weeks, I actively looked at the world as the probable mama of an African American boy.  I'm amazed at how that lens changed the way the world looks to me.  That group of black boys on the corner at the bus stop?  Somebody's little sweeties on their way to school.  Those black "thugs" who continue to break into neighborhood houses? Somebody's baby boys who are struggling mightily.

Yeah, this is that media induced racist-fear issue we all carry.  We're so trained by the media to fear black teenagers (and men).

Now I find I'm checking out their haircuts, wondering what their mamas say about their low-rider pants, watching how they walk and talk with each other and evaluating who they're hanging with.  Flipping through radio stations a few days ago, I heard a woman passionately talking about the need for a change in education for black children, citing the fact that 60% of black boys will never graduate from high school.  And this thought goes through my head, "my boy will make it through college and then he'll be fine."

So this article really caught my attention today.  In Job Hunt, College Degree Can't Close the Racial Gap.

It turns out when you're black, being smart and working hard still isn't enough.  You still have to hide who you really are to get in the door.