The African-American men community, Moore County : and action-oriented community diagnosis ; findings and next steps of action
Creators: name: Kays, Megan
name: McDonough, Manuela
name: O&apos;Daniel, Kelly
name: Jatau, Afabwaje
name: Keisling, Kelly
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2007

description: Moore County is located in the southern part of North Carolina, and is well-known for its status as a golf, resort, and retirement community. African-Americans constitute 14.9 percent of the population of Moore County. There is a growing concern within the county regarding the health and lifestyle needs of African-American men. An Action-Oriented Community Diagnosis of the African-American men’s community of Moore County was conducted by five graduate students from the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education within the School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The purpose of an Action-Oriented Community Diagnosis (AOCD) is to involve community members and service providers in identifying the community’s strengths and resources as well as its needs and challenges and to create action to address the identified needs. The Moore County AOCD involved three steps: 1) collection of secondary data about the health and needs of African-American men; 2) collection of primary data through interviews with service providers and community members; and 3) presenting the findings to the community in a community forum. The student team conducted interviews and focus groups with 56 service providers and community members; the data analysis showed nine recurrent themes: community activism and politics, education, employment, healthcare, living situation, race relations and segregation, recreation, religion and churches, and youth and family. A Forum Planning Committee was formed from service providers and community members to help plan the forum. The Committee selected five themes for discussion at the forum: education, employment, healthcare, race relations and segregation, and youth and family. The Committee advised the team on issues including the forum schedule, publicity, speakers, and materials. They also committed to continuing with action steps proposed in the forum, and elected two co-chairs to lead the continuing committee and to serve as adhoc members to the Moore Health Board. The community forum “Coming Together for Moore” was held on April 12, 2007. Nearly 150 service providers and residents of Moore County attended the event. The students presented the overall findings and the five selected themes to the forum participants, and invited participants to take part in discussion sessions on the theme of their choice. Student team members facilitated each discussion session with the aim of moving participants from identifying challenges to developing concrete action steps. Education: The education session focused primarily on the lack of emphasis placed on education for African-Americans by parents, teachers, and the youth themselves, with discussion on the issue starting in the home and through cultural values. The two action steps proposed were: Discuss the importance of education with all community members. Form a committee of concerned individuals to attend all school board meetings. Employment: The employment session focused primarily on the lack of availability of jobs other than service jobs. Scarcity of job opportunities was discussed, as was the lack of job training and skills. There was also mention of employers not giving a chance to applicants with less education and skills or a criminal record. The two action steps proposed were: Increase job training availability and publicity. Support the creation of African-American-owned businesses. Healthcare: The healthcare session focused primarily on the fact that many men are not insured and do not have access to healthcare. Discussion included mistrust of doctors and men’s attitude towards seeking medical care, especially given fear of diagnosis and cost for those uninsured. The four action steps proposed were: Collaborate with pastors to increase awareness about the need for healthcare. Increase health education. Increase dissemination of healthcare services available. Form partnerships with health organizations. Race Relations and Segregation: The race relations session focused primarily on the segregation that is perceived to exist between the White and African-American communities, and included discussion of incidents of racism and the existing racial divide. The four action steps proposed were: Create dialogue with government officials about criminal justice for African-American men. Bridge the gap between Caucasian and African-American church leaders. Teach children appreciation of African-American culture and history. Create a committee to work on racial problems and segregation. Youth and Family: The youth and family session focused primarily on the lack of mentoring for youth. Various cases were discussed including single parent families, changing moral values, and lack of support for parents. The six action steps proposed were: Begin a movement of collective responsibility for youth. Teach children and parents about self-esteem. Talk to children about appropriate values. Develop workshops for parents and youth. Support mentoring programs. Network within youth organizations. The action steps generated were presented to all of the forum participants at the conclusion of the discussion sessions. For each theme, one or more participants in that session agreed to be responsible for working on the identified action steps in collaboration with the continuing committee. At this time, the continuing committee members and volunteers from the forum are still meeting to work on generating community action.