[The Cushite]

AKA_monet brings up an interesting point about the Nuclear family structure in the black community. True, studies have shown that the black family hasn't taditionally been "Nuclear" in the sense of a breadwinning man, a domestic woman, and 2 kids. Mainly due to historic and social forces prohibiting such. At best, we see approximations of the Nuclear family construct in our community, with extended family and fictive kin (check the work of Robert Staples and Patricia Hill-Collins). Chances are, when you see the black family, you are gonna see blended families, single mothers, and extended family members taking care of the kids. But, I think that, considering the fractured state of our community, we have to seriously explore the notion advocating for a more nuclear family structure in our community. I am not talking about nulcear family role definitions, but a nuclear family structure, with two parents in the home who earn living wages so that they do not have to work 2 and 3 jobs just to make ends meet. This way, they have a better opportunity to be better parents. Studies also show that when a father is in the home, things like juvenile deliquency, teen pregancy and school trunacy all go down. Without the community there to step up when a single mother has a child, can we say that the single parent family is the most responsible family structure considering the socio-economic climate of 21st century America? This nuclear structure isn't probable for many black people unless there is social, political and economic reform. I think this is where the church should step in.

Bro. Tony B06 notes that there are churches who step up and provide social services for people. This is true, and while I applaud those efforts, I think we have to think about the notion of charity vs. reform. The Bush admin. is pushing faith based initiatives so much because there is a practical end to the notion of charity and social service in capitalistic societies. These entities provide minimal help, just enough to get people who are oppressed and exploited to become pacified and not so focused on the notion of true structural change. Charity is necessary in our society because there are large groups of people who are exploited and need the necessities like food, clothing , and shelter. When these things are provided minimally, it helps calm the passions that could call for revolution. Charity doesn't call for structural change, in fact, some would say it helps to maintain the status quo. Bro. Dr. Cornell West put it best when he stated that we shouldn't confuse charity with justice. The church must provide aid while advocating for justice. The church needs to advocate for a more critical understanding of the social structures that characterize the conditions of people who are indeed victims of capialistic and political oppression. It's not enough to talk about "the enemy keeping you from your blessings", but talk about how this happens, why it happens, and also put a human face on that enemy, so as to not mystify or spiritualize real world issues.

For every church that is providing aid, there are 100 that are probably teaching this blame the victim, intellectually bankrupt message that breeds the nihilism or other-worldliness that I stated in my earlier post. I think that there are too many churches that open up without a definite plan for uplift in the communty. They open up from an"epiphany" of a preacher and then ride a wave of emotion that is pedalled as "the Gospel" and begin to spew forth a rhetoric that is uncritical and irresponsible. I think we as a people need to take our spiritual strivings more critically. Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays warned against his in a book about the black chruch puiblished in 1933. He stated, among many criticisms of the church, that the message of too many black churches was too "Pie in the sky" for there to be any real hope of social change to come from them. I think this can be combatted if we hold preachers more accountable to be more theologically sound and committed to a more social gospel.

But one thing that is still true is that a black preacher, and the black church he runs, will have the attention of the largest group of black people. The black church is still the largest institution in our community that is totally autonomous. We can do anything we want to do with our churches. Now, this hasn't translated into much lately as far as social reform and structural change, but I think the potential is still there. We just need the vision that comes from thinkers like Bro. TonyB06 and AKA-Monet that challenges the prevailing attitude of uncritical and irresponsible theology.

Blackwatch!!!!!!