One. Why do people gravitate toward people like themselves?
We’re hard-wired to be tribalistic and seek people who remind us of ourselves. Part of this is survival, wanting to belong and find cooperation within the group.
Part of the tendency is energy saving: It requires less energy to acclimate to people who share our values, likes and struggles.
In adolescence, the desire to seek “members of our tribe” intensifies as adolescents seek an identity.
Tatum quotes James Marcia’s four identity “statuses” to explain the adolescent’s quest:
Diffuse: a state of little identity exploration and commitment
Foreclosed: a state of living with the beliefs from one’s parents
Moratorium: a state of active identity exploration with no commitment
Achieved: a state of strong personal commitment to a particular identity
Tatum argues that people of color, traditionally placed in the oppressed role, are hungrier for identity than white students, so they are going to be more likely to stick together.
Black students see themselves as “black” more intensely than whites see themselves as “white” because in part society sees black people as “black.”
Tatum makes an interesting point about her 10-year-old black son David who doesn’t see himself as “black” yet, because he’s not yet the age where society says he’s “black” in terms of certain negative stereotypes, but when he’s a teenager and he has to be cautious around the police, he’ll know he’s “black.”
Two. What is “the psychology of becoming Black”?
In the first stage, “the Black child absorbs many of the beliefs and values of the dominant White culture, including the idea that it is better to be White. The stereotypes, omissions, and distortions that reinforce notions of White superiority are breathed in by Black children as well as White.” In this first stage, called pre-encounter, “the personal and social significance of one’s racial group membership has not yet been realized, and racial identity is not yet under examination.
In the second stage, encounter, the child encounters racism and stereotypes, which forces him to be aware of “being black.” This stage occurs in late adolescence and early adulthood.
This shared struggle against racism and stereotypes becomes a glue that makes black youth stick together. Human nature dictates that we gravitate toward those who share our struggle.
Some teachers, as advanced as college, let their students know they’re “Black” by overt and covert racism. There is the infamous case of Malcolm X, a straight-A student, who was told by his junior high school teacher, that he would never amount to anything. There are teachers today, I’ve been told, who don’t call on an African-American student when he raises his hand for an entire semester. That student is saying to himself, “The teacher is calling on the white students, but he’s not calling on me, not today, not ever. I’m black, all right.”
Three. Why does a black child gravitate more to other black children than white children?
The author Tatum gives an example of a black child being treated as a stereotype by a white teacher and then the black child tells her white friend. The white friend says, “Mr. So and So is a really nice guy. I’m sure he didn’t mean it.” Even if the white friend is telling the truth, her tendency to dismiss the black friend’s concerns, makes her less appealing to another black friend who will feel the full weight of disrespect that her black friend feels.
People naturally seek empathy and other people who “get it.”
Four. What is oppositional identity?
We read that for many black adolescents, a time they are aware of “being black” in a white society, they feel repelled by “white” things and attracted to “black” things. As Tatum writes, “Certain styles of speech, dress, and music, for example, may be embraced as ‘authentically Black” and becomes highly valued, while attitudes and behaviors associated with Whites are viewed with disdain. The peer group’s evaluation of what is Black and what is not can have a powerful impact on adolescent behavior.”
According to Tatum, then, oppositional identity is a coping mechanism to the stress of being racially stereotyped and denigrated in a white-dominated society.
Tatum wants to make it clear that black students sitting together in the cafeteria are not plotting mayhem or showing hostility toward others; they are simply dealing with the stress in their lives through this bonding, which is a coping mechanism to the stress Tatum describes.
Tatum adds that this oppositional identity can be self-limiting to black adolescent students because this identity, ironically enough, can be based on black stereotypes. See page 381, paragraph 29.
She adds that academic achievement, regrettably, is not of the black stereotypes embraced as part of black oppositional identity. She writes, “Being smart becomes the opposite of being cool.” Some black kids who achieve well academically are accused by other black students “as not being black.”
We further read that to be labelled as a "brainiac" will result in ostracism or rejection from one's peers.
Five. What's the best strategy for black students who are academically advanced?
Tatum says they should not reject their blackness but become an "emissary," someone who champions the racial group through achievements.
Six. What painful irony does Tatum bring up regarding education in a post-civil rights America?
During segregation, blackness was championed by furthering one's education; in our post-segregated society education is looked at as a betrayal of blackness for too many black adolescents.
Tatum emphasizes that blacks should know their history because such knowledge will show them that there is a great intellectual legacy in black America including Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and Frederick Douglass. We can today look to Michael Eric Dyson, Cornel West, Jamelle Boui, and Ta-Nehisi Coates, to name a few.
Essay Writing Option (adapted from page 388 of your book)
Tatum and Diane Ravitch approach racial inequity and school curricula from different perspectives and with different kinds of examples, yet they share a commitment to making school a place where future citizens can develop fully the skills they will need to succeed in increasingly diverse environments. For a 1,000-word essay, develop an analytical thesis that shows how Tatum's essay complements Ravitch's.
Comments