Title: "Being a sucker" - African American males
I have a former student who is now a graduate student in Public
Health. She is looking for research on a very specific topic and
I haven't been able to offer much in the way of help. Does
anybody have any input/suggestions (beyond the usual lit search,
which she has conscientiously done)? Below is my summation of
her description. After that is a longer description she emailed me.
Many thanks.
Beth Benoit
University of Massachusetts Lowell
She is working on a research project about the encouragement of violence
within the African American culture among male adolescents as a sort of
rite of adolescence in order to gain respect. The expression "being a
sucker" refers to not having respect for themselves, particularly because
they feel victimized. The best way to "not be a sucker " is to be violent
with each other, and this will win respect.
Here is what she emailed me:
>>African American male adolescent violence, interpersonal, continues to be an epidemic, and recent studies have shown that perhaps the violence is not simply a result of anger since the violence is described by these males as a way to free themselves from further victimization. Throughout history African Americans have been victimized by society with living conditions, poverty, resources, education, healthcare and they experience feelings of hopelessness and of being victimized. African American Males experience violence among each other as a rite of passage, and it is believed that one has to protect oneself. They taunt each other about being a "sucker," the belief that they do not have respect for themselves and that they are not worthy of respect from others, and the only way to prove self respect and prevent further victimization is to act out in violence. Therefore they prove that they respect themselves, and because they believe that violence against Whites will have severe punitive affects, they have violence among each other because the act usually is unrecognized and they win respect that they do not recieve interracially. Self-respect is something you win, that you wear, that you acquire from others, not something within. They have been robbed of respect and in this one way they may preserve a small part of it.<<
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