Comment by bilbo0s | Hacker News Reader

Comment by bilbo0s | Hacker News Reader

I'm hesitant to ask this question because I think many of you will probably jump down my throat, but I will anyway.

Are any of you actually Black American? By which I mean a son or daughter of American Slavery.

I only ask because I would like to hear from one of them, about being a nerd in the black community. The reason I ask is because I've seen in Newark and LA for example, where even black athletes are only worried about getting home after school. I talked to a football standout from Newark and his exact words were,"I'm not tryin' to meet new faces at school, if I want women, that's what church is for." What I mean is, when I talk to these kids you get the sense that, between the police, the teachers, and the gang members, high school for them is a dangerous place. Many of them have expressed little interest in popularity, or looking down on others, indeed, they express little interest in even knowing others. It is dangerous to them. They SEEM to be just trying to get through the day without crossing the wrong person. Or as the young man I talked to would say, "Ain't no kids in a ghetto high school."

This contrasts sharply with things I've read in the national press and in reports like this about being 'cool', and looking down on the smart kids.

-- EDITED OUT A PART PEOPLE MAY FIND OFFENSIVE --

I'd imagine the average nerdy guy from the black underclass is far more concerned with mistaken identity on his way home, than he is with being accosted because he is smart.

But again, I'd like to know if I'm way off here.

Multi-generational African American "Nerd" here. I'd like to point out that you are conflating "African American" and "poor/ghetto". To the OP, I'd say that your opinions are based on your experiences, and everyone's are different. As mentioned further along in this thread, you are equating "Nerd" w/ intelligent.

Actually, it's interesting that you say that, because the part I edited out clarified that issue. That is, it explained my belief that there are probably, AT LEAST, two black communities. Let's call them the black under class and the black upper class.

The kids from the underclass don't worry about being a 'nerd' or popular or whatever. As I said, I think they have far more pressing concerns. They worry about not setting off some gang banger by stepping on his shoe. Or having said gang banger mistake them for cross town rivals. Or having a police officer mistake their wallets for guns. You get the idea.

Whereas kids from the black upper class are a little different, and this is the part where I have to be careful. I think kids in the black upper class think that being 'cool' is being from the black under class. So they go out and do their best imitation of kids from the black underclass. Only they don't know much about the black underclass, so it comes off cartoonish. Only slightly less cartoonish than when white kids do it.

Since our 'interface' to black America is really the black upper class, we get the impression that acting cool is more important than being smart. That doesn't necessarily mean that kids in the black under class believe that. My suspicion is that we don't really know what those kids believe, and we'd be surprised to find just how pragmatic their beliefs are. I think it was Dr. Dre who said he didn't know any rappers who got rich selling music to the 'black under class'. I'm paraphrasing there, but again, you get his point.

I'd describe my upbringing as solidly "Black Middle Class", having roots and connections in both extremes.

As I mentioned, this is all a very subjective discussion, and generalities are generally wrong. Having said that, the black communities have all the usual cliques: nerd, jock, preppy, musician, etc. and schools which value some cliques over others.

Speaking of an "average" school is as misleading as speaking of an "average" parent (insert the usual joke about half a bra and half a jock strap).

p.s. I think Dr Dre was pointing out that the "poor & urban" niche is not a particularly lucrative one, thus the need to appeal to the mainstream.

"Are any of you actually Black American? By which I mean a son or daughter of American Slavery"

No, My great-grandfather emigrated to Canada from Barbados and my great-grandmother was from Jamaica. This means I am probably a great- great- great- grandson of British Slavery.

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