Research Project: Political Socialization of African-American Teenagers

           RESEARCH PROJECT: POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION OF

AFRICAN-AMERICAN TEENAGERS

 

            One of my lesser works, though I'd share it with you from my days as a graduate student, somewhere around 2002.

            Most experts agree that people’s political opinions are shaped in early childhood. (Hare, 2001; Fishman, 2006). This paper takes a multi-faceted view of the predominant influences that tend to shape the political belief systems (ideology) of African-American teenagers. These factors are: family, school, religion and media.

            In this paper the concept of racial socialization is viewed in terms of community survival and resiliency. Of the latter variable, Miller (1999) writes,

The literature has pointed to the family as essential to the development of resiliency (Garmezy, 1985, 1991; Rutter, 1987). Families transmit the values, norms, and beliefs that are needed by successive generations to cope in an environment in which race plays a critical role (Demo & Hughes, 1990). In a study of 377 African American youths, Bowman and Howard (1985) found that resiliency was promoted among academically achieving adolescents as a result of proactive socialization by their parents. These parents conveyed to their children the importance of ethnic pride and self-development, and an awareness of racial barriers (p. 493).

            As part of the political socialization of African-American youth is the importance of it to survival and resiliency. The concept of “politics” is not therefore only limited to the electoral process or voting rights, but also to how politics impacts on individual and collective black lives.

FAMILY

            African-American children form their political opinions directly from those in their lives who are considered “significant others,” and in many cases this means revered family “elders.” This could range from those who live with their parents to those who are being reared by grandparents or some extended family member. As Pitt (1975) cogently contends,

 “Again, contrary to popular wisdom, African-Americans feel that the family unit is quite useful in shaping and transmitting political values.  Most scholars have noted only the “pathology” of the African-American family and have refused to note its many herculean feats to survive.”

Survival includes consideration of the future well-being of the race in general and the community, in particular. For a number of decades, Blacks have been voting Democrat, primarily due to the concerns and actions taken by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during his “New Deal.” Because of that concern, including housing and welfare assistance, African Americans switched from the Republican Party (the party of Abraham Lincoln) and became staunch Democrats; so much that one generation to the next rarely questions the political party that will be supported, but African-Americans to look at individual candidates, especially at the local level, in hopes of finding someone who reflects and reinforces their views and values.

Among considerations of black families and others who influence the views of African-American teens are considerations of civil rights struggles and voting rights. The hard-fought battle against segregation, spearheaded by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is oftentimes highlighted by a painting that hangs in a great number of black households, of King standing in between the Kennedy brothers,  John and Robert. The fact that all three were assassinated forms a bond between the liberal Kennedy’s, the Democratic Party and black leadership that, in turn, young African-Americans are taught about even before they are old enough to vote.

But the influence is not only political in terms of the electoral process. Young African-Americans have always been tuned in to the “politics of race and class” and have adapted accordingly. As examples, the wearing of Malcolm X gear, the renewed interest in the Black Panther Party, the youth-oriented celebration of “Juneteenth, and even the youth awareness of Marcus Garvey in black communities all over America. But it is also a matter of taste and style to be politically conscious. Holly (2004) writes,

The zoot suit's influence was so great that it would have an effect on men's fashion in the future, and it would become one of the first articles of clothing to cause a spontaneous youth movement among African-American, Hispanic-American, and eventually European and Canadian whites. It would have a social and political effect on Fashion in the 1940s, and it was to be the first article of clothing to cause race rioting throughout the United States and Canada (p. 225-226).

In other words, young African-Americans are tuned in to politics on a number of levels. Add to this the fact that adolescent is a time of change in a young person’s life, and a time when the introduction to key decision making is made, and political consciousness is viewed here as a key component of life for the youth of the African-American community. The formation of political ideologies is common as in many case, learning about the political process is a family consideration.

SCHOOL/EDUCATION

On page 180 of Jonathan Kozol’s Savage Inequalities, he explains the kinds of comparisons that have been used to explain or describe the gaps between blacks and whites:

In seeking to find a metaphor for the unequal contest that takes place in public schools, advocates for equal education sometimes use the image of a tainted sports event.  We have seen, for instance, the familiar image of the playing field that isn't level. Unlike a tainted sports event, however, a childhood cannot be played again.  We are children only once; and after those few years are gone, there is no second chance to make amends.  In this respect, the consequences of unequal education have a terrible finality. (p. 180)

            Education then, is not necessarily the panacea that many black parents believe it to be, but there is a side of education that does provide major socialization for African-American youth: the presence of peers in the schools and the collective views by those peers that being politically active and aware is something positive. Young people tend to have an “us versus them” mentality when it comes to the system, a view that is based with their encounters with various institutions. Miller (1999) writes:

Character development. Chestang (1972) has stated that the covert and overt racism experienced by African Americans affects their character development. Development is thus predicated upon three interdependent conditions: social injustice, societal inconsistency, and personal impotence. The hardships caused by social injustice lead to frustration over the discrepancy between American ideals and reality, as well as feelings of impotence at being unable to influence one's environment (p. 499).

            Education is a major agent of political socialization, although it may not be responded to by African-American youth the way that it affects other youth. But that is because different experiences are at the root of the African-American youth and the development of his “political consciousness”; political socialization, therefore, impacts him/her differently and for different reasons.

RELIGION

           

            Traditionally, the church has been the mainstay of the African-American community; it is there that the people in attendance not only gained their religious education, but their political education as well.  The southern African-American church served as the catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s, and assured that the congregants were keenly aware of the political process by which many of the Bills regarding voting and Civil Rights were concerned all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court (Karenga, 1990: pp. 311-312).

The African-American church has always been tied to the quest to increase voter registration and has in many cases gone to the forefront to make political freedom a reality. The non violent-marches of the 50’s and 60’s is so much of what was instrumental in the African-American American’s right to vote today and the college student participation  proved what young people had desire to get involved in a positive way. The African-American church is over 60% female and as such, the institution and impacts upon the female invariably impacts upon the children, since more than half of African-American families are headed by a single parent and that parent is the mother.

As a form of political socialization, religion in the black community no longer has to only rely on older pastors and preachers. Young people are not only being socialized by the church but are returning the favor. As Swedenburg (2007) notes,

First hiphop permeated American culture; now it’s dancing its way through religious culture. Hiphop churches, religious recordings, concerts, festivals and ministries are drawing a robust multicultural mix of youth and young adults. The hiphop religious movement is dominated by evangelicals but increasingly speaks the language of other faiths, including Islam and Judaism. It includes DJing, rapping, emceeing, dance, art and graffiti. The linking of faith with music known for misogyny, homophobia, materialism and violence has its critics, but rappers respond that not all hiphop music promotes these values. Advocates point to hiphop ministries’ success at engaging young people (p. 1).

            And,

Mostly, houses of worship give a nod to hiphop in services and programs as they try to reach out to youth. On the street, for example, phat means cool, but at New Hope Assembly of God Church in Lancaster, Ohio, it stands for Purposeful, Humble, Available, Teachable. Mainstream urban churches may include a hiphop song in worship or host a Christian rap concert. But around the country, more churches are using hiphop as a serious tool of ministry and outreach (Swedenburg, 2007: p. 1).

MEDIA

            The pervasiveness of the media is well known, and it is also a fact that black youth watch more television articles on a weekly basis than do white youth of similar age. Furthermore, what appears to be a contradictory position on the role of TV news is actually not. Take note:

“The television is the most massive programming and socializing instrument ever created, and cannot be expected to do anything more than deactivate our youth.  While it is true that television previously served to bring the news of marches, protests, rallies and so forth into the home and the American conscious, it appears that the lesson has been learned and that such events are intentionally being played down, if covered at all.  The management of news has become more sophisticated, and a shift from straight news to sensationalistic entertainment is evident.  The danger of television’s raising consciousness is declining” (Hare, 2001: 72) .

            While it is clear that television and its major programs may be attempting to manage the political views of young people and others, the previous passage may have overlooked cable channels that are geared toward controversial  and underground news for young people (e.g., BET, MTV, TV One, etc.). These are networks that socialize young people about more than just the latest music and dance steps; many of the programs are geared toward political protest, increasing political awareness and political history, with an emphasis on the importance of voting.

 CONCLUSION

            The politics of socialization is a form of political socialization in and of itself. When it comes to African-American youth, the family, the church, schools and the media are all having an impact. But the key is that as a growing market with a great deal of influence and spending power, young people are having their needs catered to by all of the institutions mentioned in this paper.

REFERENCES

Hare, B. (2001). African-American youth at risk. Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press.

Holly, A. (2004, June 20. The zoot suit: Its history and influence. Fashion Theory, 8, (2). . pp. 225-236.

Karenga, M. (1990). Introduction to Black Studies. Los Angeles: Kawaida Publications.

Kozol, J. (1991), Savage inequalities. New York, New York: Harper Collins.

Miller, D.B. (1999, Fall). Racial socialization and racial identification: Can they promote resiliency for African-American adolescents. Adolescence, 34, (15). Pp. 493-501.

Pitt, J.P. (1975, June). Self-direction and the political socialization of African-American youth. Social Science Quarterly, 56. pp. 193-204.

Swedenburg, T. (2007, April 9). Hiphop meets religion and soars. Retrieved on December 2, 2009 from http://www.religionlink.com/tip_070409.php.