Unmasking Racism: Halloween Costuming and Engagement of the Racial Other

We explore Halloween as a uniquely constructive space for engaging racial concepts and identities, particularly through ritual costuming. Data were collected using 663 participant observation journals from college students across the U.S. During Halloween, many individuals actively engage the racial other in costuming across racial/ethnic lines. Although some recognize the significance of racial stereotyping in costuming, it is often dismissed as being part of the holiday's social context. We explore the costumes worn, as well as responses to cross-racial costuming, analyzing how “playing” with racialized concepts and making light of them in the “safe” context of Halloween allows students to trivialize and reproduce racial stereotypes while supporting the racial hierarchy. We argue that unlike traditional “rituals of rebellion,” wherein subjugated groups temporarily assume powerful roles, whites contemporarily engage Halloween as a sort of “ritual of rebellion” in response to the seemingly restrictive social context of the post-Civil Rights era, and in a way that ultimately reinforces white dominance.

Black Immigrants in the United States and the "Cultural Narratives" of Ethnicity

This article argues that social science representations of post-1965 Black immigrants in the United States employ the concept of "ethnicity" in ways that reinforce the racialist myth of Black (American) cultural inferiority. Specifically, the discursive use of Black immigrant "ethnic" and "cultural distinctiveness," while admittedly reflecting an important recognition of the heterogeneity of the United States Black populations, is in fact predicated upon a repackaged "culture of poverty" discourse that serves to reaffirm the overarching racial order. In a discussion of the theoretical and historical development of the concept, I show how the current discourse of "ethnic distinctiveness" perpetuates a form of racism under a theory that denies the relevance of race while it continuously recodes the biological notions of race as "culture." Thus, Black immigrant distinctiveness, when presented through the prism of the cultural narratives of ethnicity, allows for the perpetuation of a "cultural racism" that adversely affects all Blacks in this country. I therefore call for a rejection of ethnicity theory as it is currently conceptualized and suggest the need to ground theories of Black distinctiveness within analyses of power relations and ongoing practices of racial subjugation.     

Psychosocial Factors That Contribute to HIV/AIDS Risk Behaviors Among Young Black College Women

Sustainable consumption is one of the most recent challenges in the field of education. This is the reason why a great number of international institutions have formulated strategies to foster more sustainable consumption. In Greece, certain educational programs have gradually begum to implement a policy aiming to sustainable consumption in the field of the new curriculum of studies for primary school. The intent of this study is to highlight the need to consider the pupils' consumer habits and behaviors in the purchase and management of products and services in reference with modern consumption patterns. Specifically, the aim of this article is to identify the pupils' sustainable and unsustainable practices, considering their personal dimensions of everyday living, and giving a particular meaning to consumer education in Greece.     

Polarization and progress in the black community: Earnings and status gains for young black males in the era of affirmative action

We examined the occupational mobility and earnings attainment of young black and white male workers in the period 1974–1981 for evidence of class polarization among blacks in the era following the 1960s' antidiscrimination legislation. Our model links occupational status and earnings to the social resources of education and father's socioeconomic status, using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, 1968–1981. The results suggest that such resources operated more strongly for advantaged blacks than for whites. But for less advantaged blacks, race remained a significant barrier. As predicted by the polarization hypothesis, enforcement of affirmative action guidelines was beneficial, but only to more qualified blacks.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meetings of the Society for the Study of Social Problems, August 1987.     

Out of Harmony: Health Problems and Young Native American Men

Abstract

Studies of the current health status of healthy young Native American men (American Indians and Alaska Natives) are rare compared with the attention researchers have given the many problems that plague the lives of these young men. Native American men are frequently not included in other studies focusing on men, and information on college-aged, healthy young Native American men is generally not readily available. Despite those drawbacks, this article brings together what is written or known about the health status of young Native American men. The emphasis, based on available information, is placed on some of the major health problems confronting this population.     

Filipinos and the Myth of Model Minority in Hawai'i

Abstract

Despite tremendous heterogeneity in culture, native language, values, socioeconomic status and a steadily growing presence in the United States, Asian Americans are viewed as a monolithic group under the model minority stereotype. Using the focus group approach with youth, young professionals, key/community leaders, and parent participants, the authors determined that in reference to Filipino Americans living in the diverse ethnic and cultural landscape of Hawai'i, the model minority label does not apply. Implications for policy, practice, and further research are discussed.     

African American Adults' Perceptions of the Effects of Parental Loss During Adolescence

The purpose of this study was to examine twenty African American adults' perceptions of the effects of parental loss during their adolescence, examine their grief reactions at the time, and identify how they were assisted through the grieving process. The study results indicated that males experienced significantly more delinquent behavior than females following the loss of the parent. Respondents who had grief reactions for more than a year experienced multiple problem and behavioral reactions. The study found that most participants did not receive professional help but relied on informal help for their grief. Implications of the results are discussed.     

Resource Effects on Access to Long-Term Care for Frail Older People

Abstract

Access to long-term care depends primarily on personal resources, including family members and income, and on external resources, including Medicaid and Medicare. This study investigates how resources affect frail older individuals' access to long-term care, with a focus on Black and White widows. Data from the 1989 National Long-Term Care Survey is used, in conjunction with state-level Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement rates for nursing home and home health care, to estimate the likelihood of five types of care arrangements. Results show that children are a primary resource for unmarried individuals in maintaining access to informal care. Income effects are nonlinear in relation to nursing home care: increasing incomes below the mean income are associated with decreasing probabilities of nursing home care, while increasing incomes above the mean are associated with increasing probabilities of nursing home care. Income and Medicaid effects are interrelated, with nonlinearities associated with income having the potential to adversely affect some older persons' ability to access nursing home care.     

Adolescents' Daily Assistance to the Family in Response to Maternal Need

Although children's provision of family assistance is a common routine, little is understood about the day‐to‐day variability that may exist in children's assistance behaviors. Guided by a family systems framework, the current study examined whether Mexican American adolescents' provision of family assistance was contingent on daily maternal need. Adolescents (N = 354, 49% males, M_age = 14.96 years) and their mothers (M_age = 41.55 years) each completed reports on 14 consecutive days. The results indicated that adolescents generally responded to maternal need, being more likely to help their families on days when their mothers worked or felt fatigued. This daily contingency was modified by family and adolescent characteristics, with adolescents thought to generally engage in low levels of assistance (i.e., youngest males and those in families with little economic strain) increasing their help when their mothers were fatigued. In contrast, daily maternal work did not appear to stimulate greater assistance among families with low levels of economic strain.     

Racism,Trauma and Positive Aspects of Exposure to Race-Related Experiences

ABSTRACT

Ex po sure to race-re lated ex pe ri ences, such as race-hate as sault and dis crim i nation, are not rou tinely and sys tern at i cally ad dressed in as sess ment and treat ment in ter ventions or in so cial work prac tice formulations. A psychodynamic, ethnocultural, and strengths-ori ented conceptual framework is presented to describe exposure to stressful, traumatic, and positive race-re lated experiences. Criteria are identified for con ducting an in quiry about race-re lated ex pe ri ences to help as sess pos-si ble en vi ron men tal stress ors re lated to pre senting symp toms of Adjustment, Acute Stress or Post-Trau matic Stress Dis or ders. Also, there is an identification of obstacles and factors to consider when in ter viewing about ex po sure to race-re lated ex pe ri ences, and aspe cific in ter view format to guide sys tern atic in quiry about such ex po sure. Finally, sa lient im pli cations for as sess ment, treat ment and re search are de scribed.     

Hurdling the Artificial Fence Between Child Welfare and the Community: Engaging Community Partners to Address Disproportionality

As with many national and state social service systems, child welfare agencies have traditionally functioned in isolation. A multitude of federal and state laws and policies direct the functions and practices of child welfare systems, setting up an artificial fence around the agency that has created a culture lacking in interprofessional collaborations. However, recent reform efforts have emphasized the importance of engaging the community in discussions and decisions regarding child welfare practice. Child welfare agencies are now expected to work with community leaders, key stakeholders, affiliated service providers, and families to address issues impacting children and families. A major obstacle is determining where to begin, how to proceed, and what is needed to develop those partnerships. This article reports the efforts of one state agency in hurdling that artificial fence to address the overrepresentation of minority children in the system. Through focus group interviews with community members, child welfare staff, and legal professionals, barriers to community engagement are identified, and recommendations are provided for facilitating meaningful relationships and partnerships between child welfare agencies and the communities they serve.     

Cultural archaeology and historical geographies of the black presence in rural England

This paper focuses on the exclusion of black peoples from the English countryside. It particularly considers how white imaginaries of the English rural have ignored historical geographies of the black presence. Firstly the paper reflects upon the heritage of Englishness as represented in and through the rural tradition. It then presents some cultural excavations of black history undertaken by academics, community scholars and local history groups and asks how the histories they reveal challenge ideas of rural histories of England. The paper then considers how historical geographies of anti-racism may complement these new takes on rural heritage and provide a counter narrative to ’traditional’ English rurality.     

Places of socialization and (sub)ethnic identities among Asian immigrants in the US: evidence from the 2007 Chinese American Homeland Politics Survey

This research provides an empirical assessment of the relationship between places of socialization and ethnic self-identity preferences among Asian immigrants in the US from separate parts of a politically divided homeland. Does place of socialization influence the (sub)ethnic self-identity of Chinese Americans raised in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong? How do socialization context and transnational political concerns, among other factors, help structure the relationship? Benefiting from recent advancements in targeted ethnic sampling and telephone survey methodology, this paper examines results of the 2007 Chinese American Homeland Politics Survey to study the contour and sources of ethnic identity preferences among Chinese in the US from separate homeland origins. The usefulness of a theoretical framework that contrasts primordial ties with transnational political ties in understanding the structuring of identity preferences at the subethnic level is tested.     

(Mis) Representations of the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Sexual Abuse in the Courts

SUMMARY

This study addresses the (mis) representations made by pro-false memory attorneys and expert witnesses in court regarding the long-term effects of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). Five pro-false memory positions were identified: (1) there is no causal connection between CSA and adult psychopathology; (2) the evidence is insufficient; (3) CSA does not cause specific trauma-related outcomes like borderline and dissociative identity disorder; (4) other variables than CSA explain the variance of adult psychopathology; and (5) the long-term effects of CSA are general and non-specific. Examining the testimony revealed that such pro-false memory testimony was based solely on a partial understanding of retrospective data and that pro-false memory experts do not cite the more recent prospective data. Reviewing the totality of the scientific evidence demonstrates that such pro-false memory testimony is inaccurate and has the potential of misleading the jury. Prospective studies provide sufficient evidence to causally link CSA to a number of areas of adult psychopathology including multiple, co-morbid psychiatric conditions, and possibly to link early parent-infant attachment pathology to the development of borderline and dissociative identity disorder.     

Linking Beliefs to Collective Action: Politicized Religious Beliefs and the Civil Rights Movement

Sociological Forum - Are religious ideological antecedents factors in the emergence of African American social protest? If so, how do these factors translate African American discontent into...     

In search of career satisfaction: African-American public relations practitioners, pigeonholing, and the workplace

The goals of the research were to explore African-American practitioners’ satisfaction with public relations as a career and to examine their perceptions of tokenism and pigeonholing in the workplace. Three key themes emerged from the research: career entry and social support in public relations; encounters with everyday racism; and pigeonholing in public relations. For the majority of 12 African-American practitioners interviewed, they have experienced discrimination in their careers and in public relations, yet the practitioners did not see themselves as pigeonholed in their roles or positions. The complete study can be requested from the author.