The Savvy Caregiver Program: Impact of an Evidence-Based Intervention on the Well-Being of Ethnically Diverse Caregivers

This article reports on the impact of the Savvy Caregiver Program (SCP) on English-speaking caregivers of Hispanic, Black/African American, and Asian/Pacific Islander descent. Caregivers completed a questionnaire prior to study enrollment, at 6 and 12 months postenrollment. Caregivers in all 3 ethnic groups showed more caregiver competence, reduced depression, greater tolerance for care recipients’ memory problems, better management of their overall situation, and improved perception of that situation 6 months and 12 months post-enrollment. The study demonstrates that in the sample studied the SCP was as effective in helping ethnically diverse caregivers as it has shown to be with Caucasian caregivers.     

面纱后面传来的声音--《从奴隶制中奋起》的文体与修辞技巧及其黑人身份认同危机

<从奴隶制中奋起>是著名的非裔美国人政治家布克·华盛顿撰写的自传.叙述者在叙述"我"的近乎传奇般的经历过程中通过对词语修饰(重复)、举例、概括与具体化,以及引用的巧妙运用,发出了拯救"黑人民族"的强音.但历史地看,华盛顿在该自传中所发出的不过是来自其黑色"面纱"背后的卑微、谦逊和规训的声音,深刻地反映了美国黑人在追求民族解放的过程中所存在的巨大而危险的身份认同危机.     

Big lie, small world: what e. Lynn harris wanted readers to understand about the struggle for african american, homosexual males seeking to attain the american dream

This article will examine the social implications for African American homosexual males seeking to achieve the American Dream. Invisible Life and Just as I Am-the first two novels in a trilogy by the late E. Lynn Harris writing from a semi-autobiographical perspective in late-twentieth century America-will serve as the texts that drive this research topic. Careful analysis of these works will substantiate the assertion that the American Dream, even on the cusp of the new millennium, is just beyond the grasp of this specific subpopulation.     

Saying the Unsaid: Probing Homosexuality in The Hairdresser of Harare

ABSTRACT

Homosexuality in Zimbabwe often evokes strong reactions. Due to a tradition of silence, the topic largely continues to be taboo. However, it has been used by some politicians and church leaders to strengthen arguments and to denounce opponents. It is against this background that The Hairdresser of Harare (Huchu, 2010) ought to be understood. The novel gives helpful clues into discourses on homosexuality in contemporary Zimbabwe. This article analyzes the author’s approach to the subject and critiques it. It maintains that the author’s view on homosexuality has been limited by attaching the theme to postcolonial politics and violence. However, the article appreciates his courage in exploring the theme.     

无奈与抗争——评《宠儿》中的男性形象

《宠儿》是美国黑人女作家托尼·莫里森1993年诺贝尔奖获奖作品。作品塑造了女主人公赛丝的丈夫黑尔和情人保罗·D,他们分别代表着奴隶制取消前后的黑人男性。在奴隶制重压之下,黑尔需付出巨大的代价才能保护母亲,完全丧失夫权,不能尽到丈夫和父亲的职责。保罗·D历经种种磨难幸存下来并在奴隶制废除之后直面过去的苦难,乐观向上,帮助女主人公塞丝走出阴霾。托尼·莫里森通过保罗·D的形象,寄托了对黑人男性的信心。     

A Leadership Training Group for at Risk Fifth & Seventh Graders: Results from A Brief Strength-Based Group Program

ABSTRACT

An increasing number of youth are exhibiting social, emotional, and behavioral problems that hinder their ability to function at grade level. Subsequently, school mental health services have not been able to address the need for services particularly among students who are minority and poor. A mixed methodology study was conducted to determine the treatment outcomes from a brief strength-based leadership training group for primarily students who are African American and poor. Pre–post scores on three scales and focus group data revealed significant positive changes in regard to internal areas of functioning and social skills, anger management skills, and school attitude. Gender and age significantly impacted outcomes.     

Alternative Practicum in Health Education

Abstract

Young African American men in the inner city have higher rates of mortality and morbidity from potentially preventable causes than other American men of the same age. They suffer disproportionately high rates of preventable illness from violence, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV infection. These young men present with problems related to sexual concerns, mental health issues, substance abuse, and violence. They also report substantial risk-taking behaviors, including unprotected sex, substance use, and weapon carrying, as well as exposure to violence. Access to and use of preventive primary care services has been limited for these patients in the past because of financial barriers and competing social issues. Racism and historical oppression have created barriers of mistrust for young men of color. Factors that contribute to their adverse health status, as well as ways to address these problems, are discussed.     

Trial and Lifetime Smoking Risks Among African American College Students

Abstract

The authors surveyed 614 African American university students to determine the magnitude of cigarette use, identify risk factors, and develop models to predict smoking. More than half (58.3%) of the participants had smoked at least once, and 9.3% of that group were lifetime smokers. Among the lifetime smokers, 71.3% had smoked during the 30 days preceding the survey. More women (66.8%) than men (56.1%) had tried smoking and were classed as lifetime smokers. Residence, parental, and peer smoking (current and childhood) were associated with trying smoking; age, race/ethnicity, and marital status were additional factors for becoming a lifetime smoker. The risk of being a lifetime smoker was reduced when neither friends nor parents of the student smoked and the student viewed spirituality as important. The results of this study add to the growing understanding of health risk behaviors among African Americans and can be useful in reducing smoking.     

Elder Abuse and Neglect in African American Families: Informing Practice Based on Ecological and Cultural Frameworks

Despite the rapid growth of the elderly African American population in the U.S., elder abuse and neglect in African American families continue to be underdeveloped areas of study. This article presents an ecological and culturally informed framework for the study of elder abuse in African American populations. The model was developed based on Bronfenbrenner's Human Ecological Theory. The model identifies risk factors associated with different systems that have an influence on the lives of African American families. Cultural protective factors also are identified in the model. The model is intended to provide an understanding of elder abuse and neglect in African American families by considering the influence of contextual factors such as the legacy of slavery, social exclusion, and structural segregation and racism. Specific suggestions for practice are proposed according to cultural strengths of African American communities as well as the ecological premises of the model.     

Pulping the Black Atlantic: Chester Himes’ A Case of Rape and the Limits of Expatriation

Abstract

This article examines the early expatriate career of Chester Himes, and his overlooked Paris-set novella A Case of Rape (1956). Scholars have identified postwar Paris as the locus of a ‘Black Atlantic’ cosmopolitanism that allowed African American writers to transcend American racial and literary regimes, and in particular the stigma of black ‘protest’ fiction. By contrast, this article argues that Himes’ exile was paradoxical; defined by an exchange, rather than an ‘exceeding’ of American racial and literary stigmas. First, I explore the fetishistic racial politics that energized the Left Bank’s construction of black expatriates as symbols of individualist, masculine, and specifically western transgression. Second, I examine the way in which A Case of Rape, and its narrative of the false conviction of four African American expatriates for rape, dramatizes this paradox. With supreme irony, the novella sees the expatriate celebrity merge with a central symbol of the African American ‘protest’ novel: the black male rapist of white women. Finally, I argue that A Case of Rape is of particular importance for the ways in which it anticipates Himes’ move into pulp fiction. Like his later detective series, A Case of Rape captures Himes’ own disillusionment with conventional notions of authorial autonomy, and literary instrumentality. I conclude that expatriation worked to galvanize, rather than displace, Himes’ interest in the overdetermination of African American literature within dominant western racial discourses.