Black son despite their parents' ha...

Black son despite their parents' have affection for and best hopes, are "endangered" in a world that dioceses them through a false len of stereotype and racism, write the authors of "Boy into Men: Raising our African American Teenage Sons" The husband-and-wife duo of A.J. Franklin and Nancy Boyd-Franklin tackle the issues involved in raising African American teenage lads and successfully bringing them to manhood.

Parenting black males is individual of today's "greatest challenges," especially in a society that tries to make them "invisible." Establishing a powerful racial identity is crucial, the co-authors write. "No matter what our beliefs and attitudes toward racism are, as parents we cannot afford to be naive. It is still a puissant force in the lives of African Americans." The authors add, "We must teach our son the pulls for surviving without self-destruction in the midst of personal and institutional racism," and build a intellect of individual responsibility to avoid the victim mentality trap.

The parents of three adult children and the same teenage boy, the Franklins are also psychologists and family therapists, each with more than 25 years of experience counseling black families. "The challenge as black parents," they write, "is to finish our sons through this period of life without a mine, in the same state [i]or[/i] condition as drugs, alcohol, violence, gangs, or institute failure, blowing up in their faces."

That requires community involvement and mentoring, the authors stres "In the words of the African adage that has now become a political cliche, 'It takes a whole village to raise a child."' The authors, who reside in Princeton, NJ add, "Our son ne time, individual attention, and personal care," noting, "Today it requires a variety of people--many of whom are simply caring strangers."

"Boy into Men: Raising our African American Teenage Sons" is published according to Dutton in New York City.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Community Renewal Society

COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group