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Compton and Inland Empire don't have good reputations either, and in fact anyone visiting LA would likely be warned not to go to those neighborhoods. Not SAFE.
Unless you're visiting relatives in those areas there is no reason to go.
I don't have a reason to go to Compton. I have no interest in being there. However, when it comes to the Inland Empire,that is a large area, encompassing many cities. How many cities could be that bad?
Students don't chose your parents. There are parents who have their kids learning foreign languages in kindergarten, who have them doing calculus by middle school, and who have them doing various arts and sports since they were small children. These parents hire TUTORS for their children, and of course they do well on standardized tests. Guess who is much more likely to get into a top college undergraduate, and who is much more likely to get into a top graduate or professional school? Guess who is far more likely to be able to earn substantial amounts of money over their lifetimes?
You're putting all the responsibility on kids ,and diving them up into "good" kids and "bad" kids.
Never mind there is no such thing as a kid who simply made up his mind (and yes you mentioned the story of your uncle) and decided he was going to go to college.
Today to get into a worthwhile school is extremely competitive, and I don't think anyone who has a professional career would deny having mentors, parents, and other people who provided proper guidance.
This is why I wish there was some type of permit and contractual agreement required to be a parent. There are too many horrible parents and "so-so" parents and VERY FEW outstanding parents which is why the US has so many issues in the first place. Not everyone will be a doctor or lawyer, of course, but at least everyone could adequately educate and prepare their child to be a contributing member of society if it was mandated by the government.
Thing about LA and blacks is that the most desirable areas of LA (Beverly Hills, West of the 405, Orange Co, beach, etc) are not where blacks generally live. Most blacks live far far away from those areas so it seems like the population is low. Also LA is so spread out it makes it seem like the numbers are low. Overall the black population is large in LA but once you factor in where LA "hot" spots are vs where blacks stay it makes it seem like the black population is lower. The average black person visiting LA is going to Santa Monica, Hollywood, etc and not to Compton or the IE. The average person visiting LA do not want to drive that far out to where they are because of the distance and traffic. Its kind of like Atlanta with the Asian population. We have a good Asian population but most of them live in Gwinnett County. The average person visiting the city will probably think that the Asian population is low
Very true. I only went to Compton out of curiosity and I drove through really quickly, to tell the truth.
Very true. I only went to Compton out of curiosity and I drove through really quickly, to tell the truth.
I went to LA a few years ago on a trip with some students. We were driven around in vans, and the vans never took to Compton. We went to Santa Monica(where Teena Marie was born), Venice Beach, Glendale, Long Beach, the Valencia part of Santa Clarita.
Networking was something I was never good at. And it didn't help that the college job fairs had nothing to do with my major. Currently, I am working and I'm trying to keep myself held together. I also understand that I need to plan for other endeavours.
I've gotten used to feeling like an anomaly. I had to learn to live with it most of my life. Interestingly, alot of my coworkers are Black. I haven't seen that "crabs in a barrel mentality" among my coworkers. Looking back at high school, I probably did see bits of the crab mentality. I remember a chemistry class I had. Out of about 26 students, 4(including me) were Black. I saw crabs in a barrel up close. A Black girl kept messing with me, and it reached a point where I just got up and sat in another seat, away from the rest of the class. She, and another guy(also Black) kept messing with me. I was the one who wanted to learn, who wanted good grades. Oddly enough, she wouldn't mess with the other kids in the class, just the nerdy Black guy. The two Black males who were class clowns. She had no issues getting along with them. This is an irony I've thought of. Someone would have clowned her for being "bougie". Even more ironic, she got good grades.
I never knew architects were having a hard time getting jobs. I figured it would be easier, seeing that people are always building things.
I did take coding classes in college. I did poorly in them. I want to try again. I will mention this. Some of my geography courses involved GIS and cartography. In that sense, I do have some experience with GIS software. I've applied for GPS companies in the past, and never got as much as a phone call back.
I know that Black females and Black males can get clowned for "acting White". It happens. It happened to my sister. It happened to me. It did a number on my sister's self esteem. Growing up, she pretty much had no Black friends, except for one, a male. In both of our cases, we got it in different ways. She got it only from Black girls. Classic "crabs in a barrel" mentality.
Your Miami incident made me think about what happened to me in college. I thought that college would be more accepting of me than high school. And for the most part, it was far more accepting than in my high school years. For that, running into certain racial issues was a shock to me. The police being called on me because I looked upset was a shock.
You have to force yourself to do it. It is hard if you tend to be in the introverted side but it is definitely a necessity. I've gotten all of my best jobs through networking and being persistent. It's rare that I've even had to formally apply for a job. Of course, it is different now that I am pursuing a different field but, fortunately, I've got contacts in IT now so that definitely helps. You should try some local events in your area and professional organizations for your field.
I guess I would be considered "bougie" by some people for my personal tastes but, again, as an adult I could care less whether or not I'm accepted by the AA community. There is too much going on and too many people out here to worry about one group, even if you are ethnically part of that group. My college was a prime example of that. My dorm was full of students from all over the world which was an amazing experience. I guess this is why I love diverse settings so much today. I experienced the "crabs in a barrel" syndrome mostly in high school. There was a bit of an unspoken resentment between the General Ed population and the Science and Tech kids at our school. The Gen Ed students didn't really care about school for the most part and lived to disrupt classes, annoy teachers and start fights. I had a mixture of friends from both sides and, unfortunately, you saw the difference in the households of my Gen Ed friends. Their parents really didn't give two hoots about their grades or attendance. One girl I knew had it really bad in her household and she almost didn't graduate because she missed so many classes. It's pretty sad that this is a common issue in a lot of AA households. I don't know why people have children yet refuse to parent them properly.
The architecture profession has the highest percentage of unemployed professionals. I checked out one local school and the recruiter was practically begging me to enroll. As much as I'd love to be an architect, I refuse to go through schooling, an extended internship and seven certification tests to basically end up with no job.
I took my first coding class online with General Assembly. It may have been that the class you took was taught poorly. Try taking an online class and see how you do. The GA instructors are amazing and really break down the material thoroughly. I took an HTML/CSS course and really enjoyed it.
Also, have you checked your resume to see that it matches with what employers are looking for? It is important to have buzzwords that match the requirements. Try looking on Indeed/Craigslist/Monster, etc to see what employers are asking for and tailor your resume to match. If you don't have the experience, volunteer somewhere on your off time to gain the needed skills. That's how I got into IT with very little knowledge.
Did you attend college in Atlanta? If so, was it a PWI or an HBCU? I'm sure that the type of college you attend makes a HUGE difference in your social experiences.
And even in Atlanta, the Black population can vary. If I spent all my time in Buckhead, it would be different than being in Cascade Heights. Actually, I notice the places with the largest Black populations aren't that close to the places that tourists go. It depends. I remember seeing alot of Black people when I went to Venice Beach. Saw a sizable amount when I went to Long Beach.
Very true. When I visited Atlanta, I only went to Buckhead and downtown. I'm sure I didn't get the "full Atlanta experience."
This is why I wish there was some type of permit and contractual agreement required to be a parent. There are too many horrible parents and "so-so" parents and VERY FEW outstanding parents which is why the US has so many issues in the first place. Not everyone will be a doctor or lawyer, of course, but at least everyone could adequately educate and prepare their child to be a contributing member of society if it was mandated by the government.
The Nazis used eugenics to ban unfit people, including unfit races from having children. This is before they pursued ghetto liquidation (exterminate Jews, gypsies, gays, communists, among others).
You have to force yourself to do it. It is hard if you tend to be in the introverted side but it is definitely a necessity. I've gotten all of my best jobs through networking and being persistent. It's rare that I've even had to formally apply for a job. Of course, it is different now that I am pursuing a different field but, fortunately, I've got contacts in IT now so that definitely helps. You should try some local events in your area and professional organizations for your field.
I guess I would be considered "bougie" by some people for my personal tastes but, again, as an adult I could care less whether or not I'm accepted by the AA community. There is too much going on and too many people out here to worry about one group, even if you are ethnically part of that group. My college was a prime example of that. My dorm was full of students from all over the world which was an amazing experience. I guess this is why I love diverse settings so much today. I experienced the "crabs in a barrel" syndrome mostly in high school. There was a bit of an unspoken resentment between the General Ed population and the Science and Tech kids at our school. The Gen Ed students didn't really care about school for the most part and lived to disrupt classes, annoy teachers and start fights. I had a mixture of friends from both sides and, unfortunately, you saw the difference in the households of my Gen Ed friends. Their parents really didn't give two hoots about their grades or attendance. One girl I knew had it really bad in her household and she almost didn't graduate because she missed so many classes. It's pretty sad that this is a common issue in a lot of AA households. I don't know why people have children yet refuse to parent them properly.
The architecture profession has the highest percentage of unemployed professionals. I checked out one local school and the recruiter was practically begging me to enroll. As much as I'd love to be an architect, I refuse to go through schooling, an extended internship and seven certification tests to basically end up with no job.
I took my first coding class online with General Assembly. It may have been that the class you took was taught poorly. Try taking an online class and see how you do. The GA instructors are amazing and really break down the material thoroughly. I took an HTML/CSS course and really enjoyed it.
Also, have you checked your resume to see that it matches with what employers are looking for? It is important to have buzzwords that match the requirements. Try looking on Indeed/Craigslist/Monster, etc to see what employers are asking for and tailor your resume to match. If you don't have the experience, volunteer somewhere on your off time to gain the needed skills. That's how I got into IT with very little knowledge.
Did you attend college in Atlanta? If so, was it a PWI or an HBCU? I'm sure that the type of college you attend makes a HUGE difference in your social experiences.
+1
Considering that Black people from the South worked in agriculture doing the same job that their slave grandparents until the 1960s or so, what do you expect from people? It will take generations, if not centuries for some families to shake these badly ingrained habits.
Networking was something I was never good at. And it didn't help that the college job fairs had nothing to do with my major. Currently, I am working and I'm trying to keep myself held together. I also understand that I need to plan for other endeavours.
I've gotten used to feeling like an anomaly. I had to learn to live with it most of my life. Interestingly, alot of my coworkers are Black. I haven't seen that "crabs in a barrel mentality" among my coworkers. Looking back at high school, I probably did see bits of the crab mentality. I remember a chemistry class I had. Out of about 26 students, 4(including me) were Black. I saw crabs in a barrel up close. A Black girl kept messing with me, and it reached a point where I just got up and sat in another seat, away from the rest of the class. She, and another guy(also Black) kept messing with me. I was the one who wanted to learn, who wanted good grades. Oddly enough, she wouldn't mess with the other kids in the class, just the nerdy Black guy. The two Black males who were class clowns. She had no issues getting along with them. This is an irony I've thought of. Someone would have clowned her for being "bougie". Even more ironic, she got good grades.
I never knew architects were having a hard time getting jobs. I figured it would be easier, seeing that people are always building things.
I did take coding classes in college. I did poorly in them. I want to try again. I will mention this. Some of my geography courses involved GIS and cartography. In that sense, I do have some experience with GIS software. I've applied for GPS companies in the past, and never got as much as a phone call back.
I know that Black females and Black males can get clowned for "acting White". It happens. It happened to my sister. It happened to me. It did a number on my sister's self esteem. Growing up, she pretty much had no Black friends, except for one, a male. In both of our cases, we got it in different ways. She got it only from Black girls. Classic "crabs in a barrel" mentality.
Your Miami incident made me think about what happened to me in college. I thought that college would be more accepting of me than high school. And for the most part, it was far more accepting than in my high school years. For that, running into certain racial issues was a shock to me. The police being called on me because I looked upset was a shock.
This really depends on where you live. I grew up in Houston and Dallas.
I got made fun of for "acting white" but this came mostly from my cousins who lived and went to school in the hood or the Baptist church my parents would go to. I was the cousin in the suburbs going to the "white" schools. This was mostly in elementary and junior high. I remember my AIM SN in junior high had "Oreo" in it and one of my good friends was Uh-Oh Oreo (if you remember those). By the time I was in high school, no one gave a damn. If you were smart, you were smart. The clowns were looked at as...clowns. They were the ones daydreaming or trying to be slick and cheat during tests. When I was in high school, being smart was the thing to be because it meant you were probably gonna have money in the future. In college? ****. You better be smart and not the class clown because you will really look like the dumbass. Unless you can mix both like some people could (including myself...I wanted to learn, but I still said my piece). The reason why the girl probably kept making fun of you is because you took a lot of offense to it and/or were sensitive about it and showed how it affected you to her so she kept doing it.
This "acting white" thing went both ways though. When I would play basketball with my white friends, they would say my basketball abilities were natural and when we would go to parties, there were rumors from the girls that I had something extra because I was Black. Or they would ask me to dance or teach them how to do whatever dance. In Texas we didn't give a damn about race or if you were "smart" or "dumb" or "cool" after the junior high stage.
After being in LA for about five months now, I have to say that I'm surprised at the amount of Blacks that are here. Pasadena/Altadena, South LA and the South Bay, Inglewood, and the IE. Only areas where I felt out of place was when I was in Laguna Beach and in Simi Valley. The office I work at now has 14 people and 4 including myself are Black (four Blacks, six Whites, and four Hispanics, and we just got rid of our Asian temp who was here for a couple of weeks).
The Nazis used eugenics to ban unfit people, including unfit races from having children. This is before they pursued ghetto liquidation (exterminate Jews, gypsies, gays, communists, among others).
I'm not speaking of races. I'm speaking of individuals making wise choices with regards to becoming parents. If you know that you are badly situated in life and struggling to barely make it yourself, why would you willingly choose to bring another life(or several lives) into the world? It's just common sense to set yourself up financially first and then do all you can to ensure that your child will have a better life than you. There are too many ways to prevent unplanned pregnancies nowadays. As I'm sure we all have noticed, AAs are the only group that seem to stay dormant when it comes to climbing the ladder of success. First generation immigrants who come here may struggle for one generation but they usually set up a better life for their children and their children's children. This is especially the case for most Asian immigrants. They currently have the greatest education and wealth of all ethnicities, yet many are only 2nd or 3rd generation Americans. Most West Indian/African families (Black and other ethnicities) also place a HUGE emphasis on educational achievement as well. In many West Indian countries, children start school at three years old (rather than age five or six like over here). It is not that hard for AAs to follow suit and achieve success as well. Being Black can't be used as an excuse when Blacks from other countries are setting the bar higher and achieving their goals.
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