At risk young African-American men
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Mass incarcerations is perhaps the most daunting problem facing young African-American males today.
“These statistics should break our hearts,” former U.S. President Barack Obama once said of the disturbing, growing number of young African-American males who are at risk. The numbers paint a dismal picture of mass incarcerations, high unemployment, and illiteracy. “And they should compel us to act,” he added.
Mass incarcerations is perhaps the most daunting problem facing young African-American males today. “Incarceration rates climbed in the 1990’s and reached historic highs in the past few years. In 1995, 16 percent of black men in their 20’s who did not attend college were in jail or prison; by 2004, 21 percent were incarcerated. By their mid-30’s, 6 in 10 black men who had dropped out of school had spent time in prison,” according to Malik Miah, who authored Plight of Young Black Men.
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High unemployment compounds the problems facing young African-Americans males. Without gainful employment, black males are locked into a continuum of poverty that will affect generations of black families. The numbers are both sobering and shocking:
“The share of young black men without jobs has climbed relentlessly, with only a slight pause during the economic peak of the late 1990’s. In 2014, 65 percent of black male high school dropouts in their 20’s were jobless—that is, unable to find work, not seeking it or incarcerated,” Miah also pointed out. By 2016, the share had grown to 72 percent, compared with 34 percent of white and 19 percent of Hispanic dropouts. Even when high school graduates were included, half of black men in their 20’s were jobless in 2016, up from 46 percent in 2015.
“No children are getting what they need,” says Steve Perry, CNN Education Contributor, “but especially African-American students.” This is especially true in Philadelphia, where the graduation rate is below the national average of 68 percent. The Philadelphia Social Innovation Journal says that “around 80 percent of the students within the Philadelphia School District are minorities, 62 percent of whom are African American. Students from low-income families are six times more likely to leave school than wealthier students. Nearly twice as many African Americans drop out of high school as Caucasian students.”
“Young black men who do not finish high school are more than likely to have a difficult time getting or holding a job, to spend some time in prison and experience a life of crime to survive,” concludes Miah.
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