A man can biologically reproduce from the time he hits puberty till death, theoretically producing thousands of children.

Women can biologically reproduce from the time they hit puberty till menopause. Then each time they get pregnant (rounding) it takes them a year before they have the capacity to reproduce. So between 13 and 51 (average age of menopause), 38 years, if they had 1 child per year, they could produce 38 children. Men can theoretically produce that many kids by have sex 38 times.

There are biological differences that no one disputes that by necessity are going to lead to sociological implications.

The question for us as Blacks becomes two fold as an oppressed minority. One, if there are biological differences, how do they influence behavior in local social circumstances within the context of white supremacy?

—

In regard to your particular research, what are you doing to account for white patriarchy as a dominant form of psychological pressure among the various boys that you are researching?

But I am going to ask you again, because not you, nor anyone else has answered the question that is most relevant to our condition as Blacks:

How do articles like this help us win?

Let’s ratchet down the rhetoric. Let’s move past the discussions on Black male / female research, the implications you perceive to arise from your research that points to specific pathologies caused by the perception of ‘lack of value’ conferred on Black men by society in general. That is all fine, some results I probably would agree with.

But that to me, Natalie, is a different argument then this thread. Even if we disagree on the differences of what constitutes (or should constitute) Black masculinity that is a different argument than my primary problem with the efficacy of articles like this in helping improve our collective condition.

I don’t dispute the fundamental idea that Black males (can) acquire pathologies based upon broader social and culture circumstances. I can dig that. I can even get that some of your research indicates that this is caused by the dichotomy of “giving value or lack there of” to Black male and females and the respective social context of each gender and how this interplay causes a challenge to the Black male psyche. I dig that too.

The power of white supremacy is not monolithic in its implications. It was not just a tool of economic and physical oppression, it also has psychological overtones that are embedded in the ‘Grand American Narrative’ that put a particular psychological pressure on us as Blacks. This is the premise behind “post traumatic slavery syndrome” and some of the concepts behind that theory.

So I get all of that.

The problem that I have with articles like this, outside of my perception of what constitutes appropriate Black male gender identity, is this.

——————–I creates a caustic and conflict based approach to problem solving that pits our two sexes in a war as opposed to positioning us to create collaborative solutions to our collective problems—————

It is a symptom of White supremacy aligned with broader social movements in America that create conditions whereby it is more appropriate for the Black man and woman to ‘fight’ instead of collaborate for collective solutions. This post is a reflection of that. This is a punch in the face. If you have studies any form of media, marketing, message positioning, etc. Natalie this becomes pretty clear really fast.

So I will say again, HOW DOES THIS TYPE OF ARTICLE HELP US WIN???

Natalie, here are few to get you started:

Abbreviate Bibliography

Books
Sperm War the Science of Sex – Robin Baker
Unifying Biology: The Evolutionary Synthesis and Evolutionary Biology

A Few Journal Aricles
Life History Theory and Evolutionary Psychology – (Kapelan & Gangestad, 2004)
Note: Of particular note is the section on mating

Social Dominance Orientation and Gender: The Moderation Role of Gender Identity – (Wilson & Liu, 2010)
Note: Key is the concept of SDO and gender identity which has particular relevance to the conversation we are having in here

Is That and Action Man in There? Masculinity as an Imaginative Act of Self-Creation (Warren, 2010)
Note: This one addresses the concept of masculine identity and self narrative. It touches on some of your research. The implications are the masculine frame work is rooted in the social cultural narratives and engagement between other men on what it means to be masculine.

Evolutionary Origins of Stigmatization: The functions of social exclusion (Leary, 2001)
Gender and Political Cognition: Integrating Evolutionary Biology and Political Science (Masters & de Wall, 1989)

Beyond Nature versus Nurture: Process and Biology in the Development of Gender (Birke, 2002)

excerpt:

This leads to another question: in American culture, it often appears that everybody cares about women as a group, even when they don’t need it, and that nobody cares about men as a group, even when they do need it. Or, as author Tim Goldich suggests, women are the automatic subject of compassion but presumed to have no power, whereas men are automatically assumed to have power but not presumed to deserve compassion. I have talked to some of my colleagues who are big on Evolutionary Psychology who look at that and despair, saying, “yep, men have no in-group preference, and the universal biological imperative is protect and provide for the females!”

http://www.avoiceformen.com/men/agape-the-forgotten-love-of-men/

Thanks! Trust me Im not worried!

http://www.theboysinitiative.org/images/Study_and_Proposal_to_Create_a_White_House_Council_on_Boys_to_Men.pdf

http://whitehouseboysmen.org/blog/

Excerpt regarding evolving roles

Prior to the women’s movement, girls learned to row the family boat only from the right side (raise children); boys, only from the left (raise money). The women’s movement helped girls become women who could row from both sides; but without a parallel force for boys, boys became men who had still learned to row only from the left—to only raise money. The problem? If our daughters try to exercise their newfound ability to row from the left, and our sons also row only from the left, the boat goes in circles.

A family boat that goes only in circles is more likely to be sunk by the rocks of recessions. In the past, a man was a family’s breadwinner and he might be with one company for life. In the future, advanced technologies make economic change the only constant, increasing the need for a family boat with flexibility—with our sons eventually able to raise children as comfortably as our daughters now raise money.

A White House Council on Boys and Men can provide leadership to help our sons adapt to the next generation’s needs for more flexible family participation and more flexible work participation. To introduce both our sons and daughters to the trade-offs of both a traditional partnership (of each sex specializing in rowing on one side of the boat); and the trade-offs of a relationship in which both sexes feel comfortable rowing on either side of the boat.

Excerpt regarding mental health of our boys

In the past, our dads learned from their dads what to do in the fields, or what to do as an apprentice. It was our dads’ job to do, not to feel. The messages to our dads from their dad, mom, church and community were both clear and unified. And for dads who could fit in, that enhanced emotional stability. Today, with so many boys raised in non-intact families, there is neither clarity nor unity; neither dad nor mentor. And that can create emotional insecurity.

While our sons need two parent families and mentors, the messages we send our sons to prepare them for the future need not be the same as the messages of the past. Just as more of our daughters found that more flexible expectations allowed them to experience emotional fulfillment from the permission to discover who they are, so we have the opportunity to create more flexible expectations for our sons rather than the pressures of the male role that too frequently lead to emotional distress or suicide.

The Council’s mandate includes helping our parents and professionals give our sons leadership that balances the ability to do with the ability to feel —to help our sons make the transition from human doing to human being.

But these organizations don’t get the support they need to really make a difference in the community. They rely on people outside the community for their funding, which hinders what they can do or limit what they can say. The bottom line is, if we don’t start creating financial, business, cultural, educational, health, (physical and mental), and others, while supporting these organizations, then we can’t blame anyone but ourselves for the destruction of our community. Go to http://www.blackunitythetotalsolution.com

Black Unity means financial independence and happiness