What Is HomeGrown Black Males?
HomeGrown StL partnered with the St. Louis American to help change the narratives surrounding, attached to, and weaponized against Black boys and young men. “Homegrown Black Males” series is edited by Dr.Sean Joe, Benjamin E. Youngdahl Professor and associate dean at the Brown School, and Chris King, managing editor of The St. Louis American.
Algorithms and African-American life by William F. Tate
During the early 1990s, I served on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin at Madison. As was the custom, I presented the early version of a paper to my colleagues. The paper asserted that the use of mathematics and statistics in our democratic society is often linked to an attempt by one group seeking […]
I try to help out and give back By RaJae Johnson
I am a 20-year-old African-American male born and raised in the ghetto of St. Louis. I graduated from Jennings Senior High School, where I was a three-sport athlete (football, basketball and baseball) and received a lot of local attention for it. I dealt with a lot of stuff because of my skin color, on and […]
Moving ‘Beyond Jobs’ to regional change By Jason Watson
Nobody is shocked that life is dark in parts of our city. But not everyone has walked the walk and lived the life to understand how hopeless it really can seem. Growing up in Walnut Park, in the heart of North St. Louis, the youngest of 10 kids in a single-parent home, I know what […]
We must heal black men to heal our region By Mikel Whittier
Before my first day of kindergarten I bore a scar on my forehead from being hit with a beer bottle. While my mom panicked, I stood there emotionless as blood ran down my face. I had developed the skill to internalize my emotions for protection. I carry memories of observing drug sales and drug use, […]
I am grateful for having kept my pledge By Malik Ahmed
I am grateful to be alive and in relatively good health. Many black men who were born and raised under impoverished conditions don’t live long enough to tell their story of overcoming the many obstacles that clogged their path and the joy of the journey. I am grateful to have been raised by a loving […]
Learning to nurture by Marcel Scaife
I grew up in a two-parent, two-income household in Jennings. I would say I had it pretty good. In the late 1980s and early ‘90s, Jennings was a great place to be. I can remember my dad taking me to Northland or River Roads to shop. I had white classmates and white neighbors. I understood […]