Cultural estrangement, attenuation of Black collectivism, and spiritual alienation are the three factors that have hindered the African American community to advance and prosper in the United States. The first factor, cultural estrangement, “may preclude many African Americans from recognizing the presence and importance of their human particularity (807).” This has allowed many practices to be forced upon African Americans to exercise. The biggest practice is that African Americans are at risk in believing that the European Americans have “constructed the most advanced civilizations and have special intellectual talents not possessed by others (807).” This is a problem because African Americans start to believe that their culture is inferior
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Since material objects is highly valued in this society by European Americans to show wealth and importance, African Americans fall victim to this mindset. In order to feel they are equal to white Americans, they put a lot of effort into buying consumer goods. Within the African American community, there are Blacks who have more and Blacks who have less. With this inequality increasing, it is becoming harder for African Americans to collectively come together and preserve a common culture. Separation by where some reside (suburbs vs inner-city), the environment some were raised in, and the daily life experiences some have to face all leads to separation within the group. The effects have caused more Black congressional churches to be built in the suburbs, as well as the “emergence of a new and growing generation of young African Americans who have not experienced the hardships of financial instability and uncertainty …show more content…
The first two factors I have seen an abundant of in my community. Especially the materialistic need that some African Americans believe they must satisfy to fit into society. This is an issue because it has gotten out of control in today’s world. An example is the 16-year-old African American boy who was shot a couple months back at the Dayton mall for trying to rob a man of his Jordan sneakers. The man, who was legally armed, pulled out the gun and shot the boy in self-defense. The friend who was with the victim was charged for his friend’s murder because he was involved in trying to rob the man as well. The sad part is, the teenagers both had the money for the shoes. They just had simply sold out so they figured they would get them another way. To think that a teenager lost his life and another is being locked up over a pair of shoes is ridiculous, for any race or ethnicity. The last portion about spiritual alienation confused me a little. This chapter made it seem that African Americans take the presence of spirituality in their lives and use it to justify their wrong doings. Spirituality is a positive aspect in the African American life and I believe that is it being demonstrated wrong in this section. I can understand the point about possibly relating themselves to the people in the Bible who have to suffer but not so much about the point of inevitable human conflict. In addition, I do not believe that African
Since material objects is highly valued in this society by European Americans to show wealth and importance, African Americans fall victim to this mindset. In order to feel they are equal to white Americans, they put a lot of effort into buying consumer goods. Within the African American community, there are Blacks who have more and Blacks who have less. With this inequality increasing, it is becoming harder for African Americans to collectively come together and preserve a common culture. Separation by where some reside (suburbs vs inner-city), the environment some were raised in, and the daily life experiences some have to face all leads to separation within the group. The effects have caused more Black congressional churches to be built in the suburbs, as well as the “emergence of a new and growing generation of young African Americans who have not experienced the hardships of financial instability and uncertainty …show more content…
The first two factors I have seen an abundant of in my community. Especially the materialistic need that some African Americans believe they must satisfy to fit into society. This is an issue because it has gotten out of control in today’s world. An example is the 16-year-old African American boy who was shot a couple months back at the Dayton mall for trying to rob a man of his Jordan sneakers. The man, who was legally armed, pulled out the gun and shot the boy in self-defense. The friend who was with the victim was charged for his friend’s murder because he was involved in trying to rob the man as well. The sad part is, the teenagers both had the money for the shoes. They just had simply sold out so they figured they would get them another way. To think that a teenager lost his life and another is being locked up over a pair of shoes is ridiculous, for any race or ethnicity. The last portion about spiritual alienation confused me a little. This chapter made it seem that African Americans take the presence of spirituality in their lives and use it to justify their wrong doings. Spirituality is a positive aspect in the African American life and I believe that is it being demonstrated wrong in this section. I can understand the point about possibly relating themselves to the people in the Bible who have to suffer but not so much about the point of inevitable human conflict. In addition, I do not believe that African