Sara,
Nicole, Dave, Caitlyn, and Karen
Book
Title: Ain’t No Makin’ It
Author:
Jay MacLeod
Summary:
Jay MacLeod describes the lives of
two groups of teenage boys living in Clarendon Heights, a low-income housing
development project located in Somerville, Massachusetts. He begins his study
by describing the boys, where they live, their families, and their schooling.
One group, the Hallway Hangers, contains about eight mostly white Italian or
Irish youths, five of whom have dropped out of high school. These boys all
smoke cigarettes and drink and/or abuse drugs on a regular basis. The other
group, the Brothers, contains about seven predominantly black youths, who still
attend school regularly and barely get into trouble. They still have faith in
the American dream of starting from nothing, getting an education, and
achieving a middle-class lifestyle. MacLeod describes the challenges these
teenagers face with regards to poverty, racial discrimination, and constant
negative thoughts with regards to their futures.
After a description of the lives of
these sixteen residents of Clarendon Heights, MacLeod revisits these boys eight
years after having left them as teenagers. He interviews them about what they
think they could’ve done differently with their lives, if they even wanted to
change the past, and where they see themselves in the future. In part 3,
MacLeod follows up with what is left of the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers
yet again in 2006 to see where they have ended up. Through interviews and
analysis, MacLeod delves deep into the issues of race, class, crime, sex,
careers, and feelings of defeatism with regards to both of these very different
groups of teenage boys. He focuses on one very important concept: the idea that
poverty is reproduced from one generation to the next. Using the example of
these two cliques, MacLeod provides a powerful argument about how inequality is
created and perpetuated in the United States.
What Should Someone Know?
ReplyDeleteAin't No Makin' It is a qualitative research study, using methods of personal interviews and analysis. MacLeod's views on society and race evolve along with the boys being studied. MacLeod's research reinforces "The role of social capital in the larger process of social reproduction is more complex than that of human or cultural capital..." (MacLeod 2009, p. 419) The amount of influence their early family experiences had and have on their lives is critical to their success later in life. Society's views of the boys socio-economic background, no matter their efforts, even more than race or education, are always a hindrance on their ability to achieve their goals. Although it is society's view, both the Hallway Hangers and Brothers believe that any lack in achievement is their own fault and only occasionally mention other contributing factors, such as racism or bias, to their struggles. The boys in this book all have dreams and aspirations. The Hallway Hangers were more cynical than the Brothers in their outlook, but in the end they all wanted what was best for their families and children.
What did we discuss?
ReplyDeleteBecause of the length of the book, we tried to be selective and discuss the topics that seemed to be of the most importance not only in the book, but also to our lives. Some of our discussions centered around:
• Achievement Ideology- The Hallway Hangers and the Brothers both came from very low socioeconomic backgrounds but reacted differently to the achievement ideology. The Hallway Hangers rejected this ideology while the Brothers accepted it, which was the result of many factors: amount of time spent living in the housing projects, the difference in their parent’s aspirations, and their parent’s educational attainment and job success.
• Racism & Affirmative Action- The Hallway Hangers were an extremely racist group. Not only would they fight and disparage black strangers, but they would also act the same way to the two black individuals in their group. One reason this group is so racist is affirmative action. The Hallway Hangers view black individuals as a perceived economic thereat and feel that the practice of affirmative action takes jobs away from them, creates “black favoritism,” and promotes “reverse discrimination.”
• Subcultures- In the Hallway Hanger’s subculture, to gain status and respect, an individual had to be bad. Physical toughness and street smarts were more important than good grades, which led to ostracism. These actions and thoughts were in direct conflict with the dominant culture’s value scheme. The Brothers, however, did not constitute a subculture because of their belief in the achievement ideology and their compliance with the dominant culture’s value system.
• Personal Accountability-Although the Hallways Hangers faced many challenges when trying to succeed, they never really took any personal responsibility and accountability for their actions. They explained away all of their problems and attributed their lack of success to every factor imaginable but themselves.
Theoretical Issues that the book addressed
DeletePoverty
-Poverty is not just a racial issue but a class issue as well.
-Having money gets you access and affords you the opportunity to receive more.
-With opportunity comes more access and more access provides more social capital.
Race
-While poverty is not a race issue but a class issue, race issues & racism is still very prevalent in today's society.
-African Americans fare poorly on the job market.
-Race is deeply embedded in the consciousness of African-Americans
The intersection of race and class
-two phenomenon in the United States that is woven so tightly within the fabric of what makes America that it is hard to untangle the two.
-Race and class both inffluence the visible effects of each other.
-They are both barriers that only some must learn how to successfully navigate.
Structure & Agency
-Both leads to inequality in America
-Certain structural forces designed by society create barriers that if you don't hold appropriate agency you can not overcome.
So, what do we do?
-In a perfect world we wouldn't have to worry about these issues. however, we don't live in a perfect world. It is up to us to realize our social position in the world and take note that individually we can begin to live out our lives to eradicate the inequality that has plagued our society for far to long.