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I am wondernig why there is such a decline in our young Brothers reading today. What are your opinions? Are you running any programs to increase literacy amongst young Black men? I ask that because I am director of education for my chapter and I am working on some new programs for next fraternal year and I am trying to think of ways to get young men to read more. I have suggested comic book drives as increased literacy. However, except for my well read Bros, it is hard to find a man under 30 that reads on the regular. What is up with that!
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Hi Sphinxpoet,
I think the decline in reading among young black boys comes from no reading repetition as elementary youngsters. Sure moms and dads may read to the child as toddlers and preK/Ks, but when they get older, the reading-together time drops off more and more.
The parents let the kids explore reading on their on. On the other hand, parents should get more and more involved with reading by discussing new books that they can each read together and reading together in the house as one family.
When I was younger, mom always read the same books that I finished reading (whether comic books or novels). Then we talked about them. Dad always had car stereo magazines and Kung Fu books that he would read and discuss with me. A lot of parents don't keep fellowshipping through reading with their children as their reading levels mature because the parents do not read that much for fun.
Most black people as well as black men may read, but they stick with ethnic literature and know nothing of mainstream material. How many black people have read LITTLE WOMEN or THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, or TESS OF D'URBEVILLE or THE SUN ALSO RISES or THE GRAPES OF WRATH or LES MISERABLES? I cannot think of any black people that read these books. If I do run across one who has read them, then they only know it in a cursery way (i.e. because they had to read for class or for research), not for their literary beauty.
To remedy the problem, I believe that Alphas should start with a parent/child reading program as young ones (similar to Head Start and First Steps early childhood programs) and encourage them to stay with the program and the book-sharing techniques as the child reaches pre-teenage years.
Aside from prayer and petitioning toward God, I think it takes parent education, not child education.