Disadvantaged black youth

So, for the last 3 years of my life I’ve had the privilege of being part of the lives of a group of beautiful, bright, affectionate kids who live in government subsidized housing about 15 minutes from my home. Starting a few years ago, I organized a day camp for these kids over the summer. That was when I was a junior in high school. I was so touched and motivated by these kids, that I kept going back to their apartment complex to just hang out, play with them, and be a part of their lives. Eventually, I got to know their parents too- I’ve somehow found a way to make my whiteness blend in with this particular black community. I have a great vantage point… While there may be families who do little to nothing to help themselves or their families, these families work hard- and while some have made poor financial decisions and disastrous mistakes regarding contraception and the parenting of their children, most of the adults I’ve spent time with over the last few years have been economically responsible and attentive of their kids- all have been respectful to me. Yet, their children are dirty. There is no food in the cupboards. The house is in shambles. The kids are misbehaved.

What happened here? What goes wrong?

John Mayer’s “Say”

Take out all your wasted honor
Every little past frustration
Take all your so-called problems
Better put them in quotations

Say what you need to say

No, stop! Don’t leave. I PROMISE this blog will not be just me taking out any hormonal teen angst and trying to explain myself through song lyrics. No, Really, I promise. I’m new to this though, and that song kind of helped me explain why I’m here. There is so much to talk about right now…with the election, the texas polygamy case, the iraq war, israel-palestine…the list goes on and on….that I feel like we need to talk about it. People need to mobilize and reach eachother and talk about what’s going on in this crazy world we live in…most of all, I want to understand. My entire life has been an easy walk in the park in rural, white, central Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh has given me the opportunity to experience diversity, but I’ve recently come to realize that as much as I thought I could understand and connect with people…I have so many prejudices to overcome before that ever happens.

So, selfishly, I created this blog to try to understand other points of view, learn new things, and to strengthen my own beliefs. Thanks for reading.