ktmeng/mec huggingface dataset:
Topic: racism

The reading also looks upon how the media was portraying racism as gone when it really was not. The last source that I have found that supports my theory is a study based on anger in regards to African-American’s dealing with racism. The title of the study is called, “Getting Mad But Ending Up Sad: The Mental Health Consequences for African Americans Using Anger to Cope With Racism” This looks at how black people cope with dealing with racism and how it has negatively effected their well-being.
Topic: racism

Racism has caused drastic damage over the years and continues to cause major problems in today’s society. Racism is discrimination or prejudice based on race or ethnicity. Racism manifests in many different ways including negative thoughts and racial slurs. Racism includes not only these morsels of spite, but also abusive behavior and severe discrimination. This severe discrimination affects people’s families, livelihood, and ability to succeed. Although racism has not been completely abolished, the United States has made some progress as a country to improve race relations.
Topic: racism

There is still institutional racism where it makes it difficult for people of color to advance. For example, people of color are underrepresented in the U.S. Congress, on Wall Street, and in leading large companies and organizations. To reach this ultimate goal of equal opportunity, people must be able recognize their own prejudices. Many individuals subconsciously have prejudices against others who are different from them in some way. Once people can acknowledge their own prejudices, only then can a society began to change people’s hearts and minds.
Topic: racism

The pages of human history daubed in bloodshed and thickly coated with ethnic, racial conflicts ask a crying question. How to make this Planet Earth heaven -like? The answer is simple and direct. Eyes full of understanding, heart full of love and the life that refuses conflicts—these alone are enough! When an individual or a people of a particular race are constantly nagged and abused, condemned and ostracized by the society, they become bitter and cynical individuals. Heartfelt care and concern, an understanding approach and tender regard for their feelings are necessary pre-requisites to heal their inner wounds.
Topic: racism

But what mattes is the interpretation of the laws and their applicability to the ground level situations, concerning the blacks. The book is an authentic source of inspiration to the educated younger generation of blacks, and for the African psychologists of the day. The book cites case studies and they are properly dealt with. The point by point analysis of the “intra-psychic” dynamics of Black life in every day America is extremely informative and an eye-opener. Blacks, in many parts of the world where the whites were the dominating community, suffered, and in USA they suffered intensely.
Topic: racism

The authors are psychiatrists by profession and they are eminently suited to treat this subject. The inner conflicts and the desperation of back life, how they carry on with their back to the wall existence—all these have been highlighted, with the zeal of pursuing the truth. As the black race is exposed to various social situations related to the individual growth through education, employment, achievement of status in life, the intra-racial problems have begun to crop up with great intensity. The authors cite the case of an educated school teacher, marrying a laborer. They explain: “…She was embarrassed by his poor education.
Topic: racism

He felt that she and her friends were “phony” and that she was preoccupied with maintaining senseless appearances. Their mutual hostility led to verbal and later physical assaults. Divorce was the result. This pattern is so common in Negro marriages that it deserves special study, which might shed light on the broader problems of how in America choice of mate and marriage in general is influenced by a person’s blackness. ”(p. 75) The authors put forth strong arguments that black people living in a racist, white dominated society have suffered and are suffering psychological pressure by the effects of racist oppression.
Topic: racism

This sometimes, has the telling effect in on the day to day disposition and black people act in unpredictable manner. The thesis of the book: Will the country ever awake in to that heaven of freedom, and when it will be free from the division of narrow domestic walls created by race prejudices? What you do to mitigate the mental barrier of racial discrimination on so many counts is not important. How you do, what you do is indeed important. More acts and legislations have helped to create a stir in the minds of whites and blacks. But the problem eludes permanent solution.
Topic: racism

This is so, because the feeling of superiority within the minds of the whites has to change. When the thought process will change, the action process will also change! When the thoughts are changed, the mind is changed; when the mind is changed, the man is changed; when the man is changed, the society is changed; when the society is changed, the Nation is changed. Then only we can way that plenty and prosperity engulfs USA, not otherwise! The contents and arguments in the book contain too much sex, much more than required by the literary standards.
Topic: racism

But some times, these issues are beyond the control of the authors. Firstly the book must sell. This is the prime objective of the publisher. Fortunately or unfortunately, sex sells. If it is handled well, it sells well. This could be one of the reasons for the extra dose of sex in the book—this may not be as well! This book has about 230 pages with 10 chapters, Who’s angry, the shadow of the past, achieving womanhood, acquiring manhood, marriage and love, character traits, the “Promise” of education, mental illness and treatment, and how come there’s so much hate and black rage.
Topic: racism

In a nutshell, the contents of the book discuss and analyze the bitter past of slavery in USA, the tension-ridden race relations in USA today, and the future of black and white race relations which have the possibilities to turn worst, on the slightest provocation, when the black race is making its presence felt strongly, in political, social, and economic spheres. In sports, blacks are dominating! The blacks accepted the domination of the white race-will the whites accept the domination of the black race in times to come? Will the law of divine retribution work in this context?
Topic: racism

Identify the evidence used by the author to support his/ her thesis That which is evident requires no introduction, elaboration, or appreciation. Light is bright and it is evident. Milk is white and it is evident. Simply say black race in America, and everything is evident. The saga of suffering of the Negro race, the era of slavery, violence and cruelty to subdue their legitimate aspirations rotates on the curtain of one’s mind. The authors of Black Rage do not mince words when it comes to condemning the atrocities committed on the black race.
Topic: racism

“The voice of black America has been heard in the explosions of Watts, Newark, and Detroit,” they warn. (p. 3) They assert their aspiration in strongest terms. “Black people continue to revolt against laws and customs that are deadly and humiliating…Aggression leaps from wounds inflicted and ambitions spiked. It grows out of oppression and capricious cruelty. ”(p. 3). The younger generation of Negroes is not willing to wait and accept ‘the tactful handling of the situation’ by the whites when their interests matter.
Topic: racism

The white race is not willing to travel in the boat where the rudder is controlled by the black. The blacks are aware, by their bitter past experiences that the whites will go to any extent when their own interests matter. This causes more frustration and apprehension in the black community and adversely affects their psyche. The example cited in the text is that of Jimmy, a twelve year old boy. “His face was jet-black, and his expressions ranged from somber to sad. Whether relating stories of home, school, or the streets, he disguised his true feelings.
Topic: racism

At twelve he had learned one of his first lessons–always play it cool. As much as possible, he worked to hide his inner life. One day he stared long and hard at his fist and said: “I want to hit a white man. ”(p. 59) State your own opinion and ideas about this book. The book contains tough opinions about the white race. To tell a black youngster to forget the past, say that he is constitutionally protected and enjoys equal rights as applicable to whites or any ethnic group is as good as telling him a story.
Topic: racism

The suffering of the Negro race is something very special and closely linked to the destiny of America. The black can condone the past; they can not ignore or forget it. The whites are not obliging the blacks by the present stance of understanding them. They have no other alternative. They must accept their newfound social position—equal in every respect as compared to the black people and it is their duty to say that the black-brother is first among the equal. They must attempt and secure the transformation within. The writers put it crisply and authoritatively.
Topic: racism

“After all, the thoughts begin, the Negro is also an American and if he is different it is only matter of degree. Cliches are brought forth and there is a lengthy recitation of the names of famous Negroes. Long association has bred feelings of familiarity which masquerade as knowledge. But there remain puzzles about black people; all is not understood; something is missing. ”(p. 23) “It is better to have a world united than a world divided; but it is better to have a world divided, than a world destroyed,” said Sir Winston Churchill at the time of II World War.
Topic: racism

Presently, does this quote apply to the solution for the race problem in USA? USA will never be divided in geographical terms, the Constitution of USA is strong enough, the political leaders have enough foresight, but the example given in the book is shocking and is the definite pointer, how the division of the hearts is complete. How Come There’s So Much Hate? “When the man died, his wife of forty years was pitied by her friends. The widow was a stern New Englander; her dead husband was a black. In spite of strong social disapproval of their marriage, they had raised children and prospered.
Topic: racism

There had been some discord between them, but they handled it discreetly and the children had never heard them comment on racial matters. Even when a racial incident was prominent in the news, not a word was said about it. The children assumed that their mother had long since accepted the realities of marriage to a black man. They were completely unprepared for her words when her husband died: “Thank God that nigger is gone! “(p. 181) Spirituality, not religion, seems to be the only answer to this vexed problem of race relations. Once a human being crosses the mind barrier, all differences all tensions, cease!
Topic: racism

Mind is a bundle of negative and positive thoughts. The usual methods of suppressing the thoughts and emotions are not going to bring permanent peace. If the Negro race has to surrender at any point, it has got to be the dynamic surrender, of a supreme and brave human being. They should not accept the supremacy of the white race, nor demand the pound of flesh for the historical misdeeds of the whites. If the revengeful attitude persists, it will take them and the Nation nowhere. If the Nation does not survive how will the black and white races survive?
Topic: racism

The film “Crash” written and directed by Paul Haggis was taken place in Los Angeles. This movie illustrates how discrimination and prejudice has affected our everyday lives, due to the misconceptions we have of each other. All the characters in this movie are either victims of prejudice and discrimination or are guilty of it. To help us give more understanding about this movie I am comparing the movie Crash to Joseph Healey textbook, Race, Ethnicity, Gender & Class.
Topic: racism

Healey believes that there are four different combinations of prejudice and discrimination. The first one is Timid bigot, Healey asserts, “A person who is prejudiced but doesn’t discriminate is a timid bigot” (Healey 96), An example of this is shown in the beginning of the movie Crash, when Dorri and her father, Farhad, are in a gun shop and the owner of the gun shop makes references to Osama bin Laden and Jihad thinking Farhad was Arab. When Dorri tells the gun shop owner that “You can give me the gun or give me back the money and I am really hoping for the money” (Crash), the gun shop owner gives her the gun because he is in a gun shop business for the money.
Topic: racism

This scene from the movie Crash shows a perfect example of timid bigotry; the gun shop owner is prejudiced but doesn’t discriminate due to his nature of work, he is a business owner and his interest is to make money. The second combination of prejudice and discrimination Healey mentions in his book is “Fair-Weather Liberal.” Healey states that “a person who discriminates without being prejudiced is fair-weather liberal.”(Healey 96).
Topic: racism

It’s more like Officer Hansen who gets upset with Officer Ryan’s treatment to Cameron and Christine; he watched this whole scene but couldn’t stop Officer Ryan who is superior of him. He files a complaint against Officer Ryan and obtains his own squad car. Officer Hansen didn’t say anything to Officer Ryan instead he went back to his department and took an action against Officer Ryan. The third combination of prejudice and discrimination Healey mentions in his book is “All Weather Bigot” is when a “person is prejudiced and does discriminate” (Healey 96). In this case we can relate this definition to Officer John Ryan, who is white and racist against all color of people. Right after learning that the person who is handling his ailing father’s insurance case is black; he decides to take his frustration out by pulling over Cameron and his wife, who were black.
Topic: racism

This is also an example of the Scapegoat Hypothesis mentioned in Healey’s book, which describes how “people sometimes deal with personal failure or disappointment by expressing their anger on a substitute target, not against the object or person that actually caused their frustration” (Healey 98). In this case, Cameron was driving and did not violate any law; still Officer Ryan treated him and his wife Christine as inferior, and went so far as to molest Christine right front of her husband. Officer Ryan showed prejudice and discrimination by misusing his powers; he held Cameron and Christine until they surrendered their dignity. On the other hand, I believe Officer Ryan is not a bad person, because he is fighting for his ailing father and later in the movie he also saves Christine when she gets into car explosion.
Topic: racism

These different scenes from the movie illustrate that Officer Ryan who is racially prejudiced is ironically both villain and hero. The last combination of prejudice and discrimination Healey mentions in his book is “All-Weather Liberal” “a person who is neither prejudiced nor discriminate” (Healey 96). The best example for all weather liberal in the movie Crash is Daniel the locksmith. In the whole movie I did not see Daniel being racially prejudiced against any character. He is very quiet and the peaceful person in the whole movie and due to nature of his work, he usually works late at night. However, to me it seemed like that he doesn’t really care about working late nights rather he wants to spend more time with his family.
Topic: racism

Moreover, Crash demonstrates some other examples of stereotyping that are mentioned in Healey’s book. According to Healey’s book, “Stereotypes are exaggerated overgeneralization” (Healey 99). It means that people often have distorted perception of another person or a group. They are based on race, ethnicity, gender, age, physical appearance and many other factors. An example can also relate to Daniel the locksmith, who comes to change the door locks for Jean and Rick’s house.
Topic: racism

By looking at his appearance and tattoo Jean sees him as a gang banger. She thinks after he leaves from her house he is going to give a copy of her house keys to his gang members and they will come to rob her house. That’s why she asks her husband Rick to get the locks changed again in the morning. Jean stereotyped Daniel based on his appearance. To me Daniel is a good guy, but Jean didn’t think of him as a family man. By looking at his appearance she made her judgment and thought of him as a gang banger but nothing else.
Topic: racism

There are some other terms that are mentioned in Healey’s book that can be related to the scenes in the movie. Another term from Healey’s book that is closely related to the movie Crash is “Selective Perception,” which means that “people often see what they expect to see, so stereotypes are often confirmed in a vicious circle.” The example can relate to Officer Hansen; from the first scene he is in, we can tell that he is not prejudiced and it seemed to me that Officer Hansen doesn’t have lots of experience with people outside of his race. In the movie he helps Peter, who is walking on the road side, by offering him a lift. This was the first time Officer Hansen seen prejudiced in the whole movie.
Topic: racism

Peter began laughing without explanation and Officer Hansen asked him to leave the car. Peter wanted to show him what he had in his pocket that was so funny. While Peter was reaching in his pocket, Offer Hansen panicked and shot Peter, who was innocent. That was the first time Officer Hansen had shown prejudiced; even though he was shown as a good man in the movie, he end up killing an innocent man. I think Office Hansen shot peter because he was afraid that his own life might be in a risk. Officer Hansen thought Peter was reaching his pocket for some kind of weapon and in seconds he made his decision and fire at Peter.
Topic: racism

The movie Crash shows many aspects of prejudice and discrimination. Crash explores many social encounters that are defined by different characters of the movie. I think Crash represents the race relations in America and shows that how misconceptions and lack of communication makes our life situations very unstable. On the other hand, Healey’s Book Race, Ethnicity, Gender & Class have helped us with more understanding of prejudice and discrimination by giving us different combinations of racism and prejudice and by providing all important definitions.
Topic: racism

She has frequently given her honest opinion to her employers with the result of having been fired many times. EUGENIA “SKEETER” PHELAN is the member of a rich white family whose cotton farm employs many African Americans in the fields and in the household. Skeeter has just finished college and comes home with the dream of becoming a writer although her mother rather wants her to get married. At that time, a “good” woman was supposed to get married, have children and be a good housewife and mother but for Skeeter it is her career that is most important.
Topic: racism

When Skeeter has turned back home she wonders where her former maid and nanny Constantine was. As her family always tries to avoid giving her answers about Constantine’s disappearance she finally finds out the truth, namely, she was fired for being too old and slow. Due to the injustice and cruelty that Constantine and other colored maids in the South have experienced, Skeeter decides to reveal the truth about being a colored maid in Mississippi and to write a book about it.
Topic: racism

One day Hilly’s maid Yule May asks Hilly to loan her 75$ to send her sons to college. When Hilly refuses her request Yule steals a ring. Hilly finds out about that and uses her influence to have Yule sentenced to four years in the state penitentiary. The other black maids are angry about Hilly and the way she treated Yule May so that they decide to tell their individual experiences to Skeeter.
Topic: racism

The Help takes place in Jackson, Mississippi, in the 1960s during the civil rights era. Aibileen, Minny, and all the other African-American maids at that time took a grave risk in their fight against racial intolerance. By helping Ms. Skeeter write her book about black maids working for white families, all the maids took a chance of losing their job, their house, even their very own lives. The book demonstrates its theme of racial intolerance by using Hilly Holbrook as the enemy, a racist young white woman who is quick to display her distaste in blacks. The continuous struggle between Ms. Hilly and the maids shows that racial intolerance is significant aspect of the book.
Topic: racism

This book connects to the cultural identity of America by displaying a fight against racism just like how civil rights activists fought for equality during the 1960s. If the majority of people did not gain the courage to fight against discrimination like the characters in the book were willing to, our society today would still be segregated. The Civil Rights act of 1964 protected the rights of people based on their race, and sex and prohibited racial segregation and discrimination against African Americans. This act was a huge step in eliminating racism and discrimination.
Topic: racism

The imagination of Medgar Evers death is very significant to the novel because it represents how dangerous it was to be African- American during the 1960s. He was a colored man fighting for change, fighting to be equal, but his brutal death terrified many people at that time. It made people believe that fighting for rights, or changing the norm, would ultimately put your life at an extreme risk. Evers death showed Aibileen and Minny how risky writing a book about working for white families actually was, and showed the readers how dangerous the situation could be.
Topic: racism

We see in this excerpt that “you is kind” should actually be “you are kind”, but that is not the way Stockett wanted her character to speak. I liked that very much, because it made the characters appear even more real and I could imagine them better while reading the book. Moreover, the topic of the book was very interesting and although the book has 450 pages, it was quickly readable because it was an exciting book. I would really recommend it to everyone, because this book is a must-read I think.
Topic: racism

In the book “The Help” by Katheryn Stockett the author portrays Minny is one of the primary women representing “The Help”, the black women that make their employers life so nice and comfy. In Jackson the help or the maid as they are also called are expected to be obedient and respectful. Minny is the opposite of that. Minny is a bossy, hot headed maid who is unable to keep a job because of her mouth. She always states her mind and does not hesitate to sass-mouth anyone that crosses her. Her home life is difficult because of the fact that she has five children and a husband.
Topic: racism

Her marriage with Leroy is complicated since he often gets drunk and beats on her, and it is hard for Minny to look past this awful characteristic of Leroy because she is in love with him. Because Minny is courageous, fearless and loyal nothing can knock her down. Minny is a loyal person that worked for Miss Hilly’s mother, Miss Walter, throughout the beginning of the novel. They wanted Minny for a maid because she was “bout the best cook in Hinds County maybe, even all a Mississippi. But when Miss Hilly sends Miss Walters, her mother, to the old folks home and tells Minny that she needs to work for her.
Topic: racism

Minny does not accept so Miss Hilly goes out and tells her friends how Minny is a thief so she would have no choice but to work for her. Minny gets so outraged that she gives Miss Hilly that horrible pie. As fearless as Minny is she does not hesitate on taking action when someone crosses her. In the book “The Help” Miss Hilly crosses Minny by making everyone believe that Minny stole from her. Minny decides that she has had enough of Miss Hilly and that she needs to teach her a lesson so she puts it on herself to get payback. Minny as a way to get back at Hilly baked a cake with poop in it and fed it to Miss Hilly.
Topic: racism

Hilly didn’t even notice until Minny said “eat my shit”. As tension rises between Hilly and Minny. Minny decides to participate in the book, talking about the daily life of the help, since she has nothing to lose. As an act of courageousness Minny puts herself in danger by cooperating on the book as she puts her daily life on paper. But in Jackson that is a punishable crime because it is considered a rights movement and it is frowned upon. Since the maids are tired of being mistreated by the whites and having unfair laws they are ready for change.
Topic: racism

They are hoping to open everyone’s eyes so they can see how horrible African-Americans are being treated and Minny doesn’t hesitate on trying to accomplish that. So after she thought about it “every time we meet, I complain. I moan. I get mad and throw a ot potato fit. But here’s the thing: I like telling my stories. ” Minny’s courageousness and actions influence major changes in Jackson, Mississippi. As an act of fearlessness Minny tamed Hilly without knowing it. By Minny being loyal she got respect from almost everyone. She has been through so much which has made her a better person.
Topic: racism

Our achievement ideology is based on the idea that the U.S. is full of opportunity and anyone can accomplish success in our society if they work hard enough. Many grow up thinking education is the ladder that will allow for this social mobility and all you have to do is be willing to work hard enough to earn it. But what about children who grow up thinking differently? Why do some strive for high paying careers while others refuse school and are seemingly ok with staying working class? MacLeod challenges the notion that America is the land of opportunity with research he conducted while in college.
Topic: racism

Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis, both Marxists, believe the American education system builds off of and reinforces the structure of class relations in the U.S. by training the wealthy to take up space at the top of the economy while conditioning the poor to accept their status. Their “correspondence principle” draws the comparison between the social relations of production and personal interaction in schools. They argue that strong structural similarities can be seen in following: The organization of power and authority in the school and in the workplace The student’s lack of control of curriculum and the worker’s lack of control of the content of his or her job The role of grades and other rewards in school and the role of wages in the workplace as extrinsic motivational systems Competition among students and the specialization of academic subjects and competition among workers and the fragmented nature of jobs.
Topic: racism

They argue this theory with how schools vary in instruction based on their location. Schools serving low-income working class neighborhoods are emphasize rules and behavioral control (similar to what we have discussed in the Gilbert book about social mobility and class structure) while schools serving suburban neighborhoods favor more student participation and less direct supervision. By reinforcing social norms, schools socialize students to occupy the same position in class structure as their parents. Pierre Bourdieu believed that cultural capital was passed down from generation to generation. His four main points are: Each social class has distinct cultural capital
Topic: racism

Schools systemically valorize upper-class cultural capital while depreciating lower class capital The job market reinforces the superior academic credentials earned mainly by the upper classes Schools legitimize the process by converting social hierarchies to academic ones Basil Bernstein uses language patterns to link micro and macro sociological issues. Bernstein argues that one’s class will determine a distinct form of speech through family socialization. This results in working class children being surrounded by a restricted code of linguistics while middle class children use more elaborate codes. Bernstein’s linguistic codes refer to the underlying regulative principles that govern the selection and combination of different syntactic and lexical constructions that are derived from social relations and roles within families.
Topic: racism

Shirley Brice Heath also focuses on linguistic patterns but uses race to explain her theory that black working class children are not socialized at home to use the language patterns used in school which hurts them academically. White working class children fare better as they develop many of the cognitive and linguistic skills required in school. Paul Willis’s research determined that students’ background, location, local job market and educational attainment influence their job choice. Henry Giroux developed a resistance theory that suggests working class subordination is not a reaction to the logic of capitalist rationality but that cultural patterns draw on elements of working class culture in a creative way.
Topic: racism

MacLeod dives into the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers, two groups of youth that reside in Clarendon Heights. The Hallway Hangers are a group of mostly white boys (with the exception of 2) who are involved in criminal activity (robbery, drug dealing) drink, smoke marijuana and mostly do not favor school with only of the boys in the group having graduated high school. Despite they criminal activity, most of the Hallway Hangers desire to make enough money to move their families out of the projects. The Brothers are a group of mostly black boys (with the exception of one) who so not smoke, drink regularly, and value education as they all attend high school. Though they are merely a peer group and not their own subculture as they value academics and athletics and are not as bothered by the stigma of living in the projects. Describing the differences in the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers, the MacLeod points out that the Hallway Hangers rarely have parental supervision, many have lived in public housing for several years, many have absent fathers, and the educational attainment of their families is very low.
Topic: racism

The Brothers on the other hand have more parents and siblings who graduated high school and attended at least some college, more have father figures living in the house, and their average time living in Clarendon Heights is less than the Hallway Hangers. The Hallway Hangers view their own job experiences and those of their family members as foreshadowing for their own future jobs and contribute to an entrenched cynicism. They believe their preferences will have no bearing on the work they will actually end up doing. To this group, work is given and it is all essentially the same: boring and unrewarding. The Brothers, however, value careers and are more optimistic about their futures. They see education as their ticket out of the projects and into a better future. The Brothers attribute lack of success on to personal inadequacy whereas the Hallway Hangers see lack of opportunity as just the way American works.
Topic: racism

1) Do you agree that our educational system reinforces America’s class structure? Which social reproduction theorist do you agree or disagree with most? 2) What do you think needs to change in order for our educational system to function properly and not reinforce class structures? 3) Why do you think our educational system has remained the same with no major structural changes for so long despite the fact there is plenty of evidence to suggest it is not working? 4) On page 42 the author says that racism in lower-class communities can be attributed to competition for scarce resources and economic opportunities. Do you think there is some value in this statement?
Topic: racism

5) How do you think the differences in the two groups’ (Hallway Hangers and the Brothers) lifestyle and background shape their lives and impact their future decision? 6) Why does the mentality of work differ so much between the two groups? Why do you think they have different views on social mobility? 7) Do you agree with the Brothers that the U.S. is an open society in which everyone can attain success and failure to do so is due to one’s own failure to work hard enough or do you agree with the Hallway Hangers and think one is destined to follow in the footsteps of their family? How does race relate to all of this?
Topic: racism

Lincoln High School (LHS) is a predominantly middle-class institution with a large student population segregated into several subprograms of study that are tracked both internally and in relation to one another. (88) MacLeod’s primary interest lies with the lower-rung programs into which the educational system places most Hallway Hangers and Brothers: the Occupational Education Program, the Building Trades and Services Program, the Enterprise Co-Op, and the Adjustment Class. Following an interracial, fatal stabbing, LHS augmented its staffing of black instructors, which in turn led to accusations of favoritism by white students, summarized by Slick as the view that now “the white kid’s always wrong”. (89, 96) The high school is also a site for the regular demonstration of disciplinary preoccupations, both overt and subtle in its exercise. (98) Of note in this regard is the ubiquitous promotion of an achievement ideology (the “worth of schooling”) within its halls as reward for good behavior predicated on the efficacy of schooling and equality of opportunity (98-9).
Topic: racism

The achievement ideology establishes that individual merit and achievement are fair and equitable sources of social inequality without resorting to coercive means to make the point (113). In doing so, social cohesion is maintained through legitimation of the entire class order and persuasion of individuals so classed to accept their positions within the hierarchy. (114) MacLeod argues that, when operating unhindered, ideological legitimation of this kind leads those of low class to self-blame, internalization of personal failure, willing acceptance of class standing, and an inability to form broad social critiques (114). Simply put, those of low class are ideologically subjugated into a state of low self-esteem. The notoriety of LHS, though, derives from how school officials refrain from interceding in the social reproduction of class, accepting it as a fact of life, and exacerbating extant classed aspirational differences. (116) For example, counselors transform the vague preferences of eighth graders for manual labor or to remain alongside peers into a definite commitment by enrolling them in the Occupational Education Program and slyly coercing them to stick it out afterwards. (89, 116-7) This stable course of studies, matched by earnest investment, mediocre academic success, and involvement with extracurricular activities characterize the Brothers, who resemble “typical high school students”. (92)
Topic: racism

For the Hallway Hangers, unruly behavior, boredom with classwork, and the like lead them either out of school altogether or into the Adjustment Class, where they come to respect Jimmy Sullivan, the streetwise and financially independent instructor, and appreciate the flexible atmosphere and light workload. In the words of Frankie, “if you do your work [there], you can do whatever [you like]”. (94) MacLeod understands the Brothers, who unconditionally buy into the achievement ideology, commit themselves, and yet struggle to obtain decent grades, as proxies for the problem of the “educability” of the lower classes. (127, 100) Rejecting cultural deprivation theories, explanations that treat these difficulties as the product of working class family life, as inconclusive and prone to victim-blaming, MacLeod wishes to focus on the operations of LHS itself, for its standards of achievement determine whether to judge a student deficient (101).
Topic: racism

These definitions are set by the dominant social classes to reward “appropriate cultural capital” in the classroom and enforce class-linked educational gains. Instructional expectations, the constitution of valid knowledge, teacher-student interaction, and program tracking each contribute in turn. (101) The Brothers, presently oblivious to these operations, attribute their shortcomings in school to personal inadequacy, lowering their self-esteem as a result. (102) Ironically, the instructors who educationally devalue the Brothers also serve as role models for their aspirations, after whom the Brothers pattern themselves in the process of “anticipatory socialization”. (111) MacLeod suggests that the sheltered work experiences of the Brothers to date, with the exception of Juan, have merely postponed realization of the achievement ideology as a veil obscuring their objective life chances. (127) This potential to “cool out” in the future, however, is offset in part by a social legitimation so entrenched in the Brothers that even the “controlled mobility” of sporadic success encourages further self-reproach among those who come up short. (127-8)
Topic: racism

The manifest disaffection and lack of discipline toward LHS among the Hallway Hangers possesses an underlying logic that challenges the value of education through rejection of both the achievement ideology and schooling itself. Its members, based on life experience already informing them that jobs with little educational need lie ahead, rationally foresee barriers to social advancement unaccounted for by the achievement ideology (103). They engage in a calculus of costs and benefits within the social world of the street, where the “name of the game is money”. (107) The costs of obedience, deferred income, disrespect, and lowered self-esteem that schooling represents are rarely, if ever, offset by its benefits in terms of immediate financial success in the face of an uncertain future. (107, 109) In order to minimize such costs, the Hallway Hangers drop out, fall into a minimal course of study, or adopt a general attitude of detachment from education. (108) Thus, the subculture of the Hallway Hangers shields its members against judgments of failure through withdrawal from activities potentially harmful to their self-esteem and by providing a new context within which to foster self-respect through the provisioning of alternative criteria for success (118).
Topic: racism

Yet, the protection afforded to the Hallway Hangers is partial at best, for within American society one cannot fully escape contact with dominant cultural ideals at work, school, or in public. (119) Moreover, MacLeod finds that the group does not function solely to provide solace, for the Hallway Hangers espouse values that are far from defensive in nature. (118) Beyond inversion of conventional mores where bad is good lies a communitarian solidarity that speaks out against the individualism so appreciated in America. (119, 123) In this climate individual interests, particularly the possession of high aspirations for oneself, erode the loyalties that bond one member to the next. Says Jinx of this state of affairs, “if we can’t make it together, fuck it” (120). Despite the recognition of external forces limiting their options to get ahead, the Hallway Hangers often express ambivalence in whether to assign blame to structural factors or to themselves when confronting failure (121). Their renting of the fabric of ideology is incomplete insofar as they continue to accept its disparagement of the lower classes to which they belong. Blinded by racism, alleging that the rise of blacks has worsened their own situation, the Hallway Hangers are unable to level comprehensive charges against the social order (122).
Topic: racism

The employment of reverse racial discrimination as an explanation for misfortune pardons both their actions and society at large. (123) In the opinion of MacLeod, the “fundamental incongruity” between the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers rests with the acceptance or rejection of the achievement ideology (129). Yet, its precepts run counter to the lived experience of both groups, so then what accounts for this divergence? MacLeod points to race as decisive, arguing that the ethnic separation of the two groups is far from coincidental. The Hallway Hangers are compelled to reject the achievement ideology because they are white. They cannot point to racial discrimination as an alternate cause for their class position, and so acceptance would be tantamount to indicting themselves and their families as unfit to compete socially. The Brothers can conform to the principles of the achievement ideology because they are black.
Topic: racism

They can not only attribute their lack of privilege to racial prejudice, but also excuse their parents’ educational and occupational faults (despite clear evidence of effort) through belief that race relations have dramatically improved, however imperfect they remain. (130-1) Holding low aspirations betrays the intergenerational gains of blacks. (131) Certainly, MacLeod’s stance is not that divergence between the two peer groups is simply and strictly racialized. The Brothers are also buoyed by a sense of collective upward social trajectory stemming from an abbreviated tenancy in Clarendon Heights that for many represents a step up (from the South, from the Caribbean), rather than a step down. (132) Oppositional definition of one group to the other also promotes acceptance of the achievement ideology among the Brothers, whose disassociation from the hostility of the resident Hallway Hangers pushes them toward conventionalism. Objectively, MacLeod observes, this antagonism between groups favors the Brothers in the job market, for it only makes sense to conform when another group, the Hallway Hangers, no longer chooses to compete for employment under conditions of scarcity. (132) MacLeod concludes Part I by revisiting the social reproduction theories from Chapter 2 in order to determine their explanatory fit with the findings of his ethnographic fieldwork.
Topic: racism

Given that similar circumstances produce two divergent paths that frame the social reproduction of class, MacLeod readily discharges economic determinist models as too mechanistic to account for the open-ended, though not necessarily positive, responses to structural and ideological factors he has uncovered. (138) Theories of unfettered cultural autonomy are also dismissed, for MacLeod finds due consideration of structural constraints on occupational outcomes lacking in them. (139) Instead, MacLeod believes that social reproduction must be understood through investigation of the interface between cultural and structural forces, where the two interpenetrate one another. As mentioned earlier in Ain’t No Makin’ It, the bridging concept in his analysis is aspiration, linked in MacLeod’s work to the class-based dispositions Bourdieu locates within the habitus (139). However, dissatisfied with its original formulation, which forms a closed loop between structure and agency, MacLeod draws upon Bourdieu’s own ethnographic accounts to enrich habitus as a theoretical tool.
Topic: racism

His favored interpretation is flexible both in its accommodation of social interaction and in the dynamic interplay of mediating elements within the habitus that permit its periodic restructuring. (140) “Working upward from ethnography to analysis”, starting as he does with peer cultures, MacLeod holds that qualitative fieldwork leads researchers to discover such mediating factors on the cultural level. (149) Even though pre-existing structural forces circumscribe individual opportunity, limits that are certainly internalized, MacLeod stresses in his writing that the process is exposed to subjective influence through which people “wrest meaning out of the flux of their lives”(141). From this perspective, then, sociologists may retain the autonomy of subjective situational interpretation while still placing them as responses to the objective limitations of social class. (142)
Topic: racism

Although what interests MacLeod most in the present study is “the way ethnicity mediates the limitations of class”, he demonstrates the facility of his approach through consideration of individuals that differ from his subjects along one dimension of the habitus. Drawing upon the ethnographic work of Jane Rosegrant and Anne Campbell, MacLeod discusses the limitations patriarchy places upon disadvantaged women, with respect to mothering as a route to social acceptance and the inability of girls to form subcultural alternatives to status formation, respectively. (144-5) Recognizing that the Brothers are unrepresentative of impoverished black men on the whole, he also dissects how project youths lack the “ambiance of improved life chances” that propel the Brothers to embrace conformity. (146)
Topic: racism

MacLeod then turns to demonstrate how his theoretical position can make sense not only of groups, but of particular individuals as well. Points of meaningful divergence emerge between half-brothers Boo-Boo and Derek with respect to grammar school peer group interactions and, in the case of Billy, serve to reorient his life course in response to personal tragedies. Unsurprisingly, Part I ends on a downbeat. MacLeod summarizes the situations of the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers by observing that poor whites and blacks have no one to look down upon, so they turn on each other in plain view of others who think of them only as “fucking animals” (152).
Topic: racism

1. Student tracking is presented as pervasive on many levels at Lincoln High School, such as when counselors assign to each Occupational Education student his/her major “on the basis of interest, aptitude, and behavior” (p. 85). How might class-based perceptions and institutional standards shape these qualitative evaluations? How do decisions reached on these merits exacerbate existing differences in occupational aspirations among students? 2. Given the centrality of race to MacLeod’s understanding of the attitudinal differences between the Hangers and Brothers, is his portrayal of racial tension at Lincoln High School sufficiently detailed? How might you complete his account? 3. MacLeod states that the Hangers’ “approach to school assuredly is not based on a rational cost-benefit analysis”. (p. 108) Do you agree with his assessment? What does MacLeod intend to communicate about what constitutes rationality in this context? 4. What factors combine to inhibit the Hangers’ oppositional subculture and its “alternative criteria for success” from achieving “radical significance”, as defined by Henry Giroux? (p. 119, 21)
Topic: racism

5. MacLeod establishes a strong link between ideological domination and personal estimation of worth as the social legitimation of inequality unfolds. When it functions smoothly, low-class individuals internalize failure, producing low self-esteem (p. 115). What are the strengths and weaknesses of this model of legitimation as a process? Can you think of alternate mechanisms by which the process might operate among the lower classes of American society? 6. Among the constituent factors MacLeod considers with respect to the habitus is neighborhood social ecology. (p. 140) He further argues that changing even a single mediating element of the habitus can “mold a different outcome” for individuals (p. 149).
Topic: racism

How might the dispositions of impoverished youth such as the Hangers and Brothers differ were they instead located in either the regional South or a rural setting? Do you think resulting differences would produce outcomes distinct from those presented in Ain’t No Makin’ It? 7. MacLeod conducted the fieldwork presented in Part I during the 1980s. In your estimation, how well does his analysis of race as a mediator of classed perceptions among disadvantaged youth hold up thirty years later? Among Blacks, does the “ambiance of ascension” remain as vital today? (p. 133) 8. Given what we know of the particular circumstantial limitations confronting the youth of Clarendon Heights, what structural remedies might you suggest to improve their life chances? Would your proposals differ in approach to the Brothers and Hangers?