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11 THE MAROON TIGER
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2003
Marriageable Men
by Jesse Branson
Of the various crises demanding
attention among the African-
American community, it is argued
that none is as pressing as the need
for family healing. The roots of the
problem, unfortunately, stem from
slavery, when marriages were not
legally binding, and family ties were
swiftly dissolved. The “Great
Migration” followed emancipation
and sent men north into industrial
cities with intentions to reunite
families after financial establishment.
As asserted by Dr. Obie Clayton, a
sociology professor at Morehouse
College, it was not uncommon for
men to begin a second family while
being separated north of the first.
The value of family ties
continues to depreciate, as evinced by
the fact that less than 30 percent of
African American children in 2001
were raised in two-parent households.
According to the Statistical Abstract
of the United States of the same year,
there were an estimated 2,093,000
Black married couples, compared to
2,409,000 female-headed
households. Although not always to
our own discredit, the burden of
responsibility and power to initiate
change rests on the shoulders of black
“The value of family ties continues to
depreciate, as evinced by the fact that less
than 30 percent of African American
children in 2001 were raised in two-parent
households. ”
men. The unbalanced ratio of African
American men to women (766:1000)
that brothers gladly acknowledge is
of serious concern. The declining
pool of “marriageable men” puts
hopes of resurgent family values even
further out of grasp.
Accounting for homicide,
incarceration, AIDS, substance abuse,
those of other sexual preferences, and
now suicide, who remains to marry?
It gets worse. While statistics for
enrollment and graduation of African
American women from college
continue to climb, the same cannot
be said for our men. Studies
conducted in Los Angeles, Atlanta,
Boston, and New York show that only
ten to 10 percent of jobs are being
offered to people without college
degrees. Given that the family’s
foremost purpose is to serve as an
economic unit, it does not behoove
women to marry those of lesser
“Accounting for homicide, incarceration,
AIDS, substance abuse, those of other sexual
preferences, and now suicide, who remains
to marry?”
educational and/or financial
equivalence.
It is not this writer’s intention to
promote what has been deemed the
“commodity complex,” in which
“marriageable men” use their scarcity
for gains. On the contrary this practice
is responsible for staggering rates of
illegitimate offspring. Today, 56
percent of African American children
are bom into families in which the
father is not biological. As the number
of children, especially black boys are
raised without the influence of a
committed male role model, what is
to become of our societal norm? Or
is it too late?
Gentlemen, the black family is
in a state of emergency. The African
American community is in dire need
of socially conscious “marriageable
men” who strive to rekindle the
fading embers of black family values.
This 21 st century needs leaders of
households who are positive social
contributors, willing and able to
nurture and encourage successive
generations of men. Our forefathers
have charged us with the formidable
task of rebuilding our communities
one home at a time. I trust you have
heard the call, but will you stand and
answer?
COMMENT
READERS’ THOUGHTS *
Excuse you
To the editor:
This letter goes out not only to the
men of Morehouse (for they are not the
only offenders), but to men all over the
world. It is not a black male issue or a
white male issue; it is an all-male issue.
It’s not about homophobia or respect
ing our women; it’s about respecting one
another. And while the guilty parties
may not be moved to change their ways,
I feel I have to say something about it.
Several weeks ago, I managed to
pull myself away from schoolwork for
a brief moment and actually leave Per
due Hall to go see a movie. The movie
that I saw is not important (and at this
point, I don’t even remember what it
was), but an experience that I had at the
theater inspired me to write this. As I
stood at the urinal in the bathroom, an
other gentleman approached the urinal
to my right and began relieving him
self. However, as I finished up, the man
to my right who, up until that moment,
had drawn no special attention to him
self, let out was arguably the loudest fart
I’ve ever heard. Had the more mature
side of me not been fighting to keep me
from snickering, I might have wondered
if he hadn’t soiled himself. However, I
kept my inquiry to myself, ran my hands
under the faucet, and headed for the
door.
Afterward, as I sat in the theater, I
posed the following question to my
companions: “Do you think it’s rude to
pass gas at the urinal?” Though only one
answered in the negative, it made me J
wonder. I have always operated under
the assumption that the only “appropri
ate” places to pass gas were in a room
by oneself, outside, or in the stall of a
public restroom. The fact that I went 21
years without ever hearing anyone do it
at the urinal further reinforces that be- -
lief. However, one night at the movies
made me feel like it needed to be said
explicitly: Please do not pass gas at the
urinals. If you would not stand beside
me in class and let one go, do not do it
in a closed, windowless room unless you
are sitting on a toilet. And even then,
please do a courtesy flush. Let’s main
tain our manners both inside and out
side the bathroom.
Geoffrey Hill is member of the
class of ‘04
The Meaning of the Mystique
To the Editor:
As a “Big Brother,” I feel
compelled to write this letter. A
student can come to Morehouse
College and leave almost unchanged
by the entire Morehouse tradition, the
“Morehouse Mystique.” It is your
choice. But, if you come in determine
to succeed, there are excellent
resources here for you. As a junior at
Morehouse, I have found
extraordinary opportunities that have
allowed me to illustrate my talents
and abilities, not just within these
walls, but across the country. For
instance, this summer I participated
in the AmeriCorps Program, in which
I interned at the Department of Public
Advocacy, the public defender
system in Kentucky. It was a
tremendous experience that allowed
me to exercise my skills and
knowledge in criminal defense. This
incredible experience would not have
been possible if it were not for
Morehouse College, specifically the
Office of Community Service and the
Emma and Joe Adams Public Service
Institute.
This, friends, is only one
example, but there are other countless
others I can name. And now that I
have a year and a half left at this
institution, I have finally realized
what the “Morehouse Mystique” is.
I can tell you what the “mystique”
means to me, but it is for each
individual student to find that out for
himself.
Therefore, I send a challenge to
the Class of2007: Take full advantage
of everything Morehouse offers. Do
not take your college experience
lightly. Benjamin Elijah Mays once
said, “Wherever you go, you will be
asked, ‘Where is Morehouse?’ Your
response should be [pointing to you
chest] ‘Here is Morehouse. I am
Morehouse, and Morehouse is you.’”
I believe that whatever you are,
that too is Morehouse College.
Scrutinize yourself! Find out who you
are, where you come from, and you
will be able to go into any
environment and be the transcending
social change. Do not allow our
inadequate buildings, our
unbalanced, unorganized
administration, our mediocre
accommodations, our counterfeit
brothers, and all the other elements o
hypocrisy around this campus deter -
you from the true Morehouse Sprit.
Let us no longer coast upon the
legacies of Bennie Mays, Howard
Washington Thurman, Thomas
Kilgore, Martin Luther King, Jr., and
all the other Morehouse Men we
worship. Look inside yourself, look
to them for inspiration. These men
and others made Morehouse what it
is now, but we must make the
Morehouse for the future.
It is my opinion that Morehouse
is the only place where nearly three
thousand black men can come
together and express themselves as
freely as they would like. Morehouse^
is nothing more than an unfinished
cathedral for black men, and to us is
assigned the task of completion. For
I no longer think Morehouse College
is the best school in the world -1 now
know that it is.
Quardricos Bernard Driskell is
a member of the class of ‘05