Critical Analysis of the Moynihan
AFST 1001 - Introduction to Africana Studies
University of Cincinnati
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
Throughout the centuries, the United States has evolved in some aspects. However, along
with improvements, some actions were definitely two steps back. Race and equality is one of
those things the United States just can’t seem to get right. With each time the country has
made a step forward towards unity as a nation, those in power find some way to jinx it and
drag us two steps back. The Moynihan Report of 1965 perfectly showcases this, as it gives
the reader a perfect view into how race relations then were. It is shocking how little things
have changed in the grand scheme of things.
According to Moynihan, the “overall problems” of Black families are our family structures.
He believes that with how many Afro-American homes are without a father figure, we all live
in an unstable, volatile household that isn’t the best household. While that may be true, being
a single parent indeed does make things a bit more uncertain, but I wouldn’t say the house
would be volatile as a result. I personally have seen innumerable single parents creating
inseparable bonds with their children despite working long hours and whatnot. While we are
on the topic of parenthood, I would also like to mention that with most of our fathers (at the
time) basically being demeaned and humiliated all the time, our mothers were forced to be
the heads of the house. Society itself basically forced our men to be house-husbands. This
was all part of a ploy to “keep the negro in his place”, in other words, keep the big bad black
man in his place as a lesser citizen. (Chapter 3) Again, because of all this discrimination,
Afro-American fathers were very unlikely to get a good paying job. They were forced into
unemployment or stuck at a dead end job with minimal pay. With that being said, Moynihan’s
implication that women should not be heading households is an outdated concept.
Afro-American women were virtually forced to be strong enough to carry a whole family on
their back, as again, the whole “keep the negro in his place” mindset was ravaging our homes
relentlessly. One thing I would like to talk about is how Moynihan seems to be holding
AfroAmericans accountable for occurrences outside their own control. For example, poverty.
Poverty was essentially artificially forced upon Black people through shady practices
involving the prison system, sharecropping, lynching among others. Essentially, back then if
you were not
White and you did something some White dude did not like, they would have you
conveniently “disappear” (killed, tortured, both). The point is, that many Afro-American
women lost their partners due to society wanting to keep one group in power over the other
(Why’d you think Tulsa and Rosewood happened?) Slavery also was brutal and played a big
part in the destruction of our family structure. Let’s do a quick comparison real quick. In
Brazil for example, it is stated that the enslaved were significantly more “free” than their
American counterparts. Here’s a short paragraph from the report: “...the slave had many more
rights than in the United States: he could legally marry, he could, indeed had to, be baptized
and become a member of the Catholic Church, his family could not be broken up for sale, and
he had many days on which he could either rest or earn money to buy his freedom. The
Government encouraged manumission, and the freedom of infants could often be purchased
for a small sum at the baptismal font.” (chapter 3) Now compare this to the American
enslaved person: “the slave was totally removed from the protection of organized society
(compare the elaborate provisions for the protection of slaves in the Bible), his existence as a
human being was given no recognition by any religious or secular agency, he was totally
ignorant of and completely cut off from his past, and he was offered absolutely no hope for
the future. His children could be sold, his marriage was not recognized, his wife could be
violated or sold (there was something comic about calling the woman with whom the master
permitted him to live a 'wife'), and he could also be subject, without redress, to frightful
barbarities” (3) Obviously this is horrible as a whole, but I want to focus on the “children can
be sold” part. This was a very common practice where families would be split apart as
enslaved people were seen as mere cattle. You or your children can be separated at any given
notice and no one would be able to stop it because you are just cattle. Traumatic events like
this typically makes one believe that they do not have any true family, they can't risk getting
too close to their peers as they or them can disappear at any given moment. All in all, it can
be said that throughout our entire time here, Afro-American women have had to be strong not
only for their own trauma but others as well.
Moynihan has explored themes of power and gender in the report countless times. Usually
when it comes to the relationship between Afro-American men and women. From what I can
tell, he is perplexed that there are many women who are the heads of the house. He is amazed
that more
Afro-American women are higher educated than men, he is amazed at the overall excellence
of Afro-American women. To be totally honest, I would say that at the time, with all the
discrimination going on, there may have been more opportunities for Black women at the
time than Black men. In chapter 3, Moynihan states that “keeping the negro in his place”
specifically refers to keeping Black men in their place, as the female “isn’t a threat to
anyone”. Moynihan also noted that more Black girls go to school than Black men, which I
can’t really deny at all. All throughout my life, my friends were told to go to the army, get
straight into the workforce after high school, etc. While the girls were told to go to college,
get a degree, etc. I believe that isn’t just for Afro-American youth though, unless you’re some
rich politician’s kid, you probably are told to make “tough” decisions if you are a dude and
“cute, intelligent” decisions if you are a woman. It’s classic double standards, only instead,
the male has almost no chance at making it big in the workforce. Because of his inability to
even make any income, the male gradually loses his self-worth, falling into what seems to be
an endless abyss of calamity.
As a matter of fact, speaking of “feeling like a man”, in Chapter 4, Moynihan notes one
Mississipi man stating that his time in the army was the only time he actually “felt like a
man”.
Perhaps this is a technique society implements in order to always have fresh batches of
soldiers?
It reminds me of Guam, where 27% of the island is basically an army base. Comparisons
aside, Moynihan seems to be giving all the power to the woman in an Afro-American couple.
It’s true, even to this day, (in my experience, anyway.) and well I do not really think it is
anything to change. Some women like some men are natural born leaders. If a woman has the
pants in the relationship, I say who cares if they are happy. Of course, if there’s an obvious
power imbalance then they should skedaddle. In terms of opportunities, it's not like back then
where we had obvious blatant underfunded schooling, now we have an equal-ish opportunity
to succeed in our dreams.
Moynihan’s proposed solutions to the issues in the African American community strike me as
insanely passive. I feel as if just waiting for the issue to die out is NOT enough. Many people
are suffering every day because of the inequalities enforced by those in power. Moynihan
even said it himself that “Liberty and Equality are the twin ideals of American democracy…
Many persons who would gladly die for liberty are appalled by equality. Many who are
devoted to equality are puzzled and even troubled by liberty.” (Chapter 1). Obviously we can
not force people to understand the struggles of those they do not care for. We can not change
those who are set in their ways, which is why I think we should look at the younger
generation (Around 14-18 year olds). The younger generation are a hit or miss as some may
realize that the racist teachings of old are rubbish. But it is a LOT more than just “waiting for
the problem to die out” for sure. The youth are an often forgotten group of people who have
passions just like us, and with the right guidance they can rebuild what the older generation
has broken.
Overall, I would say the Moynihan Report as a whole is sadly true for the most part. He does
a decent job at telling us just how badly history has impacted Afro-Americans as a whole, the
statistics really show how badly society has done us. However I do wish he would explain the
statistics a bit more, give us more background as to WHY we have so many divorces,
children, etc. It is pretty much left to the reader to guess what is going on with these couples.
Without context, these statistics just basically paint the image that we as a people are
irresponsible lazy people who do not want to work. The only context I got was a tiny bit
where he told the reader that Black men in particular couldn’t find any jobs due to
discrimination. I would have loved reading more about things like that. Of course I hated his
“solutions” to basically do nothing. I found that to well, be ineffective. If anything, I found
this Report to be very informative and while I wouldn’t say it was “fun” reading it, I enjoyed
it nonetheless.
Fast forward to this day and age, I would say this report still holds merit today, not in the
solutions or statistics (since they’re 60 years outdated and BAD.), but rather in the fact that
Black women are carrying us so far, and we as dudes MUST stop being cogs in a machine
that doesn’t even give back to us. We should go to school, prove our competence not for the
adoration and awe of our White counterparts, but rather, for our own collective happiness.
