African American Childhood: Part One

I found the chapter in the book "American Childhoods" by Joseph E. Illick that talked about African American childhoods interesting for a number of reasons, one of which being that he said come things that were politically incorrect but factually deducible. I love that kind of bravery. Now understandably any view of history is not without its bias so you can say what you will about that. I also feel that I learned some things about the slave experience and the children who suffered through it. I want to present my thoughts on the chapter of African American childhood in two sections. One will be primarily quotes from the chapter that I found very informative, and would like to pass on. I may toss in a few ideas, but most of my ideas will be given in part two, which I am still refining.



pg. 41 "The grim picture shows that the slave family, extended or nuclear, was always vulnerable and that most fathers did not live with their children." This strikes me as eerily similar to the make-up of many African American households, today.

pg. 41 " Certainly slave children saw their parents (but not their white peers) beaten, and their parents in turn beat them - whether because this was traditional practice or to prepare them for their adult lives." This trend is common in families who experience domestic violence. A child who is abused often becomes the abuser in the next generation. How much more must this be the case when a whole race inflicts such treatment on a whole other race.

pg. 43 "This was not a world parents could explain to children , much less justify except as the will of the Lord"

pg. 44 " Richard Wright (author of 'Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth' (New York, 1945)) described his boyhood in a household filled with acrimony and violence; he was alternately preached to and beaten."

pg. 44 " Illegitimate births were common before first marriages; mother and child almost always remained in the grandparental household, which served as a secure social setting for the child or children until the mother made a stable marriage. The first child was the most fondled and stimulated and often became the most self-confident and capable, illegitimate or not."

pg. 46 " African American childhood in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was profoundly affected by the social context of slavery and its aftermath."

pg. 46 "It was enunciated by George Wallace, a segregationist when he began his four terms (elected in 1962, 1970, 1974, 1982) as Governor of Alabama, who reportedly gave barracks lectures during World War II defending his white supremacy position: ' I don't hate them., The coloreds are fine in their place, but they're just like children and it's not something that's going to change. It's written in stone,' It did change, and Wallace recanted. Nevertheless, the idea of African Americans as children has had a history in America dating from the mid-nineteenth century."

pg. 46 " Historian Thomas Webber argues that the planter class aimed to have slaved internalize values which would make them conscious of their own inferiority, 'overflowing with awe, respect and childlike affection for the planter and his family.' happily aware of the rules of slave behavior and convinced that slavery was not only right, but the best of all possible worlds. Slaves were kept ignorant of the outside world and the written word, denied privacy, forbidden to recall their African past, and refused the very privileges that defined their white counterparts as adults.
While Webber argues that most of the values attitudes, and understandings taught by white masters were not accepted by black slaves, he concedes that one must look deep into the slave literature to reach this conclusion. In other words, even if slaves were not convinced by their masters, they had to disguise their true beliefs. How long this masquerade persisted, whether it still goes on, is a matter of debate. But whichever side of the issue is taken, it seems that African American's eventually fulfilled the expectations of the European Americans who wanted to perceive them as perpetual children."

pg. 49 " A turning point in the understanding of black male character came in 1941 when anthropologist Melville Herskovits published "The Myth of the Negro Past". Herskovitz accused scholars and policy makers of basing their work on myths that supported racial prejudice, the first one of which was 'Negroes are naturally of a childlike character,' Pointing to the sophistication of an African worldview, he concluded that' such maladjustments to the American scene as characterize Negro life are to be ascribed largely to the social and economic handicaps these folks have suffered, rather than to any inability to cope with the realities of life.'"

pg.49 "The courage demonstrated by African Americans during the ensuing civil rights struggle surprised most white Americans, as indeed it should have. The long and concerted effort to marginalize blacks and rationalize such treatment on the basis of their being essentially simple , weak, and vulnerable was confounded by their willingness to confront their enemies at lunch counters, schools and courthouses, to create public demonstration where sometimes their very lives were at stake."

pg. 50 "This was not the first generation of African Americans to want freedom, nor the first generation of European Americans to resist granting it. But encouraged by federal action in the armed services and in the courts, not to mention the attention showered on these steps forward and their consequences on television, these black youths were able to act on beliefs long and deeply held."

One of the things I was most reminded of is that the steps that African Americans have taken in fighting for equality were begun not long ago. The last quote was referring to school desegregation that occurred in the 1960's: only 50 years ago. I keep thinking that we are very distanced from the time of blatant segregation, just because I don't remember it being blatant in my lifetime, but that is not actually the case. There will be more about African American culture and me in part two so stay tuned.

Artsplosure

Last Saturday (May 21), we had the awesome opportunity to go with Daddy to Artsplosure. The kids had a great time making butterflies, necklaces, and other things. On the way over we traipsed through the outdoor activities for Astronomy days at the Natural Science museum, a re-enactment for the anniversary of the secession in North Carolina, and a tour of the capital building. All of that and the kids didn't even get tired of walking.

We have moved into a new phase in our family. Our application has just been accepted by Dillon International to adopt through their new pilot program in Ghana, West Africa. I for one feel like I am going home. I understand international adoption. There are so many aspects of it that resonate with me. The quality of private organizations is one of them. I respect the contribution we can make to a child of another culture, and I appreciate how celebrating another culture enhances our family. As to be expected in international adoption it will be a long, expensive, and paper heavy process, and we are bracing ourselves for all of it. But we have been there before and we made it through, with great success. We will actually be working with the same social worker we worked with to adopt Arin. She remembers us, and is excited to work with us, too. Wow, such a night and day difference from what we dealt with over the last two years.

I will keep you posted on our slow steady progress and I look forward to introducing you to our new children or child two or three years from now.

In the meantime. I am passing on the opportunity for you to contribute to our adoption if you choose. We would welcome positive thoughts or more concrete things like money. If you drink coffee I have started a store at www.justlovecoffee.com/spieringfamily. Anything you buy from this store will contribute to our adoption. All of the coffee is fair trade and some of it is organic. They also offer decaf and espresso, so please take a look, or pass the web address along to anyone you know who may enjoy some fresh coffee.

The North Wind and the Sun

Our foster care journey is over, and I am still processing everything we experienced during the process. One of the lessons that I would like to embed in the minds of many people we worked with during this process is expressed very well in the parable of the North Wind and the sun. I saw so many people blustering their desires, when a calm, sunny approach would have gotten the job done. It is such a simple lesson that it just boggled my mind that many of the people we were working with did not know it, and seemed completely unable to comprehend it. My hope is that others will listen, learn , and make the world a more peaceful, friendly place because of it.

This is the story

Cinnamon rolls

Yeast and I don't often get along. That, or I somehow always get the yeast that underachieves. Early in our marriage I discovered I didn't have the touch. When I saw how much time I had to invest at something that didn't give me much satisfaction or anything edible in return I decided to turn to other pursuits, like trying to get to all the toilets before they were grodey.

So you may understand that it was no small endeavor when I decided to take on a cinnamon roll recipe that included my nemesis, yeast. The way Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond described her Cinnamon Rolls I felt all warm and and comfortable, like a person in a blanket sleeper with a blanket and a good book in front of a fire with a light snow outside and, well you get the idea: basically the ultimate in warm fuzzy contentment. I wanted that, and I was willing to risk an encounter with yeast to get it. So on Arin's birthday, Nina helped me as we mixed up the dough. I checked every few minutes to see if it was rising. It was. I was afraid it wouldn't stop and would engulf the kitchen like a dough monster. What was supposed to make 16 servings(I doubled the original recipe), ended up making ten pans of 6-8 cinnamon rolls each. Needless to say we are well supplied with them for the rest of the year. They do taste really good! They are so sweet, in fact, that I start getting a sugar overdose about halfway through one. We did it! Thanks, Ree! And for those who want to bring all the warm fuzziness home, as well as a good coating of flour all over the floor (Wow, that was a mess) here is the link. Tell Ree I sent you. (She is a pretend friend of mine in my own mind since I read her book)

My Forever Kids

We are nearing the end of our foster care journey and as I say goodbye to our foster girls I am reminded of my forever kids and how much I love them. Here they are during a normal school day.

Here we have the older generation educating the younger.

Nina and Evan decided to build a marble mess, um track, in the boys room.

Arin is getting excited during some video game time playing Super Hero Squad Online. Really, though, what is there not to get excited about in this game, if you're Arin. I mean where else can you watch Ms. Marvel eat a pizza in one bite. Amazing.

And, of course, my baby doll Cory Scott, silly and stoic.

March for Midwives

On March 2, Todd, Cory and I went to the state capital building here in Raleigh to participate in a walk in favor of licensing midwives. We were so grateful that we had the option to have Cory at home. Unfortunately, now our midwife doesn't even want to sign any documents for us out of fear that she may get into legal trouble. While it is legal to be a midwife in North Carolina and legal for me to have my baby at home, it is illegal for a midwife to attend my home birth. Both sides of the home birth debate feel that theirs is the one that is the safest and most healthy. As with most debates there is very little hope in deterring either side from their opinions. I know that from where I stand home birth worked for us. Similar to hospital birth, it is very important to have a competent professional with you who knows what they are doing. I believe our midwife was an excellent example of the kind of midwife that can get a woman through a birth successfully. I think it is a shame that she is afraid of legal action simply for doing what she does so well for women who know what they are getting into and want what she offers. These are not back alley abortions we are talking about. They are beautiful births in a calm environment accompanied by a professional with training and equipment, but most importantly, compassion and understanding. I love my midwife for allowing me to have control of my birth, and I will do whatever I need to in her support to allow other women the option I had. Thanks, nameless midwife!