Five Wise Men: African American Males Using Urban Critical Literacy to Negotiate and Navigate Home and School in an Urban Setting

Beyond School Failure

Taking an antideficit view of African American males toward a focus on strengths and possibilities requires intentionally attending to the voices, agency, and astute observations of these young men as they negotiate and navigate their home and school contexts in urban settings. Such a view also requires a

. . . belief that despite what is consistently reported in the media, peer reviewed academic journals, and research reports, there are many Black male students who enter [high school and] postsecondary institutions with high levels of academic preparation, support, and motivation, which enables them to succeed academically. (S. R. Harper, 2015, p. 142)

Their preparation also includes strategies (e.g., Urban Critical Literacy [UCL]) for negotiating and navigating the schooling context to achieve greater access and opportunities that ultimately assist them through high school completion and beyond.

Although it cannot be denied, the importance of examining all aspects of the schooling experiences of African American males within the education system in general, urban schools in particular, attention to those factors that disrupt the so-called academic achievement gap (Milner, 2013) and enable academic success also cannot be denied and must not be ignored (S.R. Harper, 2015).

For these reasons, focusing on those factors that contributed to the success of the five African American males such as the concept of “Urban Critical Literacy” (UCL), a strategy that emerged from data analysis (and discussed later in this article) is not only important in its own right but ultimately can provide an opportunity for the recognition of the strengths that reside in the target population. Taking a strength-based approach serves to counteract the negative representation, images, and associations of African American males as problems and failures. Highlighting those African American males who are able to effectively negotiate and navigate their home and school contexts and who reject school failure to achieve school success can provide greater insights into not only those factors that facilitate their success but also the impact of educational inequality (see Harper & Associates, 2014; Howard, 2014; S. R. Howard & Associates, 2017; Milner, 2015).

An antideficit and strength-based approach uses equity-based practices/emancipatory pedagogies (see Emdin, 2010; Gay, 2013; Haddix & Sealey-Ruiz, 2012; Kinloch, 2012; Kirkland, 2013; Morrell & Duncan-Andrade, 2002; Wright, Counsell, Goings, Freeman, & Peat, 2016) to disrupt the prevalence of the deficit-oriented narrative around African American males and their educational success versus failure. The following research question guided this inquiry:

This question was formulated based on a constructivist grounded theory approach to critically examine and interpret those constructs (e.g., attitudes, beliefs, practices) embedded in the various situations and circumstances that the study’s participants used to negotiate and navigate their home and school contexts. The strategy of UCL that builds on critical literacy, emerged from a deeper analysis of the data, which is further used to describe and explain how these five young men’s understanding of, and experience with, social stratification (i.e., divided and unequal) along lines of race, class, and gender prepared them in some ways to negotiate and navigate their home and school contexts in an urban setting.

What Is Critical Literacy?

Critical literacy is a stance, mental posture, or emotional and intellectual attitude that readers, listeners, and viewers bring to bear as they interact with texts (McLaughlin & Devoogd, 2004). Critical literacy has been traced to the work of Paulo Freire, who taught those systematically marginalized in society to “read the word” to “read the world,” and to engage in a cycle of reflection and action (McLaughlin & Devoogd, 2004). In reading the world, those in the margins and on the periphery, “recognize inequality as deeply embedded in the fabric of [a racist] society” in which they must figure out the best strategy to “refute . . . [the] reproduction of Black inferiority materially and symbolically” (Casey, 1993, p. 123), which is both psychologically and physically exhausting. Building on this framework of critique, critical literacy in the present study goes beyond simply understanding literacy as a set of skills or practices to

Using these principles and a constructivist grounded theory approach, the participants’ reflections on their experience living and going to school in an urban context are documented. These experiences are later analyzed using the concept of UCL that as previously mentioned emerged from a deeper analysis of the data, in which the author of this study listened to the voices of five African American males to better understand what it meant for them to be literate (reading the word and the world) in a multicultural, democratic, and racist society, where the existence of White supremacy and racism treat the languages, literacies, and cultural ways of being of African American students as “deficiencies to be overcome in learning the demanded and legitimized dominant language, literacy and cultural ways of schooling” (Paris, 2012, p. 93; see Lee, 2007; Paris & Ball, 2009; Smitherman, 1977).

Method

The perspectives of five African American males considered high achieving in an urban pilot school in the Northeast were documented using a constructivist grounded theory approach (Creswell, 2013). This approach was used specifically as an instructive framework to examine and interpret several constructs embedded in the various perspectives, situations, and circumstances surrounding the lives of traditionally disenfranchised individuals (Charmaz, 2006; Strauss & Corbin, 1990). These include, but are not limited to (a) participants’ feelings, assumptions, and ideologies surrounding what it may mean to be Black and male in their cultural worlds of home and school (specifically, the multiple realities and complexities related to these different settings); and (b) participants’ views and actions used to negotiate and navigate various spaces and places that tend to be circumscribed by race and gender. This approach provided a method for the development of UCL, a four-step strategy that emerged from the data analysis of the five wise men and discussed in greater detail later in this article.

The study’s findings illustrate the use of strategies taken up by the young men that enabled them “to see deeply what is below the surface—[to] think, critique, or analyze” (Wink, 2005, p. 1) situational and situated issues of urban life and living to strategically navigate their home and school contexts. Thus, like the three biblical wise men who departed to their own countries another way, so too do the five young men in this study. They go a different way in pursuit of academic success in school. Put another way, these young men skillfully “read the word and the world” (Freire & Macedo, 1987), with the understanding that in doing so, they will achieve “higher education access to gainful and rewarding employment, and access to civic life” (Morrell, 2008, p. 237) to a greater extent.

Participants: Who Are These Young Men?

At the time of the study, the five participants were socially and academically successful African American male adolescent 11th and 12th graders, all of whom attended Success Academy (pseudonym) during the 2005-2006 school year. In addition to all participants belonging to loving families, each adolescent was intrinsically motivated and protected by a “thick skin,” and was an astute observer of life and living within his respective communities/neighborhoods. These qualities enabled them to successfully negotiate and navigate environments where negative perceptions were abundant. Without mechanisms to deflect negative mischaracterizations reified in media portrayals and low societal expectations, such perceptions borne out of stereotypical depictions of these young men can compromise and impede their success in school.

As captured in Table 1, the five young men who participated in the study represent varying family compositions, dynamics, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

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Table 1.

Characteristics of the Participants.

Name	Age	Grade	GPA	Academic program	Family composition
Johnathan	17	11th	3.1	English 11 Honors Spanish 11 Honors Algebra 11 Trigonometry	Single parent (mother)
Mark	18	12th	3.0	Spanish III Preengineering Precalculus	Two parents (mother and father are not married)
Marlon	18	12th	3.0	Spanish III Digital art seminar	Single parent (mother)
Nate	17	11th	3.0	English II Honors Spanish II Honors Algebra II Trigonometry	Single parent (mother) adopted
Zach	18	12th	3.6	Psychology 100 Spanish 102/201 Critical writing 111 College algebra 115 (taken at a local university)	Two parents (mother and father married)

Note. GPA = grade point average.

The profiles that follow are testaments to these young men who allowed me into their cultural worlds of home and school to better understand how they used their experiences, social supports, situations, and relationships to shift identities, behaviors, and decisions dictated by existing hierarchies of power, communication, and opportunity they navigated on a daily basis.

Johnathan was a junior at Success Academy with three younger sisters. He was a soft-spoken 17-year-old of average height and weight, with brown eyes and short black hair. Firm in his convictions and unwavering in his attitudes and beliefs about school, he strived to compete against a standard of excellence he had set for himself. As reflected in his quote above, his is a story of self-determination as he pressured himself to succeed against all possible odds with the support of his family, peers, and teachers.

Marlon, who has one younger sister, was 18 years old, of average height with brown eyes, dark brown skin, and a head full of shoulder-length dreadlocks. A senior at Success Academy, his family and teachers describe him as intelligent, energetic, funny, hardworking, and kind. In and around Success Academy, Marlon can be seen with his dreadlocks pulled back in a ponytail, wearing baggy pants, a large T-shirt, and the latest name-brand sneakers, and moving through the halls with a walk that reflects his confidence.

Nate was a 17-year-old rising senior of average height and weight, with brown eyes, and short brown hair. He was painfully shy. His inconspicuous manner might easily allow him to be invisible in a large high school. However, it was impossible not to notice this mild-mannered intriguing young man in the small but vibrant learning community of Success Academy, of which he was a valued member.

Mark was a senior with an older brother and two younger sisters. He was a tall 18-year-old of average weight, with dark brown eyes, and wavy hair that he kept cut short. He was well groomed and wore a style of dress he claimed was uniquely his own. He insisted that he was from the “hood,” and was born in the projects, and considered himself to be diligent, hardworking, intelligent, handsome, ambitious, and spontaneous. Mark was also something of a comedian, as he enjoyed engaging in joking and teasing (e.g., playin’ the dozens) with his peers.

Haitian American, Zach was born in 1987 to immigrant parents and the youngest of four siblings. A senior, he had dark brown eyes and short black hair. He was extremely intelligent with a personality that was contagious and permeated everything in which he was involved. He was also a devout Christian, active as a youth leader in his church. When Zach was not at church, he enjoyed listening to a variety of music such as alternative and classic rock, heavy metal, rap, hip-hop, and R&B.

Settings: Private and Public Places and Spaces

Success Academy (pseudonym) serves predominantly African American and Latino students. Sixty-one percent of the student body is on either free or reduced lunch. According to the school’s website, Success Academy is a nurturing and supporting environment, where every student is known by his or her first name. The faculty is highly qualified and has high academic expectations for all students. At Success Academy, the strong sense of community is assumed to deter the feelings of alienation, low academic performance, and the high drop-out rates that often characterize large urban schools (Steinberg & Kincheloe, 2004).

Success Academy is located in a very large, diverse, and vibrant community with widespread poverty, limited community resources, and racial segregation in a city where crime rates are considerably higher than the national average across many U.S. cities. However, despite these challenges, the study participants’ do manage to steer clear of many of the challenges they have frequently witnessed their peers fall victim to.

Data Collection

To examine and accentuate the participants’ local worlds of home and school, their individual and collective realities, as well as the complexities of each young man’s views and actions, they were interviewed individually on four occasions and collectively one time as a focus group. Observations of home and school were completed across the duration of the entire school year. For example, observations of the school context were conducted periodically during different parts of the school day (e.g., first period, science and math classes, lunch, afterschool). Observations of the home took place randomly over the course of the school year. Each participant gave me a personal tour of his home and community pointing out areas in his neighborhood that should be avoided. The interviews conducted were biweekly at school and in the homes of the young men. Prior to the start of each interview, the young men were given a written summary of their previous interview as a reminder of what topics were discussed and to clarify information shared.

Data Analysis

Interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Initial a priori codes (street smarts, social awareness, reflective young man) derived from observations of home and school, guiding questions, substantive literature, and the theoretical framework (critical literacy) served as the basis for emergent codes (intrapersonal reflection, code-switching speech, code-switching dress; Patton, 1990). Data displays generated in ATLAS/ti V5.0 (a qualitative software program) were used to aid in data reduction, to facilitate interpretation, and to identify patterns within the data (Miles & Huberman, 1994). These included matrix displays for the primary research question: “What funds of knowledge (or meaning making resources) do high-achieving African American male adolescents use to navigate and negotiate their cultural worlds of home and school?” The participants’ responses to this question and those questions that emerged (e.g., What do you think it means to be Black and male in the United States?) as a result of the observations conducted at home and school were displayed to compare (not an hierarchical sense) and contrast their experiences of growing up Black and male in the United States. Analytic memos further develop the analyses and interpretations of the data.

These analytic memos were based on the initial coding of the data that revealed three patterns for analysis: (a) interpersonal reflection, (b) code-switching (speech), and (c) code-switching (dress) strategies across all five participants. From these patterns emerged the development of the UCL four-step strategy that took place in two stages. Stage 1 involved the identification of patterns within and across the five wise men that represented tenets of critical literacy. In Stage 2, from these patterns, the concept of UCL that represented the context (urban) and strategies (critical literacy) in which these five young men negotiated and navigated their cultural worlds of home and school were analyzed. Assignment of a specific step (e.g., reflect on it) in the UCL four-step strategy was determined during the focus group interview in which the participants explained and described, for example, the strategy of “reflect on it” individually and collectively used when faced with a situation and/or circumstance that could potentially get in the way of their academic striving. This process of the five young men providing checks and balances on each other offered quality controls on the data collected to weed out the potential for false or extreme views (Krueger & Casey, 2009). The group dynamics that lead to focusing on the most important strategies used to negotiate and navigate home and school were relatively consistent and shared across all five young men.

Findings

Data analysis of observations and interview responses using a matrix approach (Miles & Huberman, 1994) revealed some interesting, yet familiar, trends and patterns among the participating African American adolescents. Altogether, the data captured the participants’ feelings, assumptions, and ideologies surrounding what it may mean to be Black and male as they navigate and negotiate their cultural worlds of home and school. Most noteworthy are the strategies frequently used by African American adolescents to manage their life experiences (both at home and at school) to best support their personal goals, namely intrapersonal reflection, code-switching speech, and code-switching dress.

Intrapersonal Reflection

Consider how Johnathan effectively used intrapersonal reflection to make sense of a family decision to impose a curfew. Johnathan reflected on its relevance to achieving his short- and long-term goals. He explained,

I do not want to be like other people that I see. Like some of my friends, yeah, I do get a little jealous sometimes that they’re out longer [curfew] than me, having more fun. But at the same time, I can see what they’re gonna become. I don’t want that. So, I take my time to look at life and divide it up and take what I want, and what I don’t want. I make the decision to do the right thing, and I put all the pressure on myself to be what I wanna be.

Johnathan’s quote demonstrates his understanding of the complex reasons his family imposed a strict curfew. Aside from helping him be well rested so he can be alert in school the next day, he believed that a strict curfew also kept him safe and away from the gang activity or other violence he reported in his community (focus group interview). Also, he perceived his friends as becoming less successful in school, and later curfews could very well have been a contributing factor. Johnathan tended to reflect on life, and focus on what was in his best interest, to ensure that he would succeed. Doing this, he believed, would help him not become like other people he observed in school and in his neighborhood.

To further problematize Johnathan’s perceptions of the value of a strict curfew imposed by his family, on one hand, seems appropriate in light of the real challenges that his family believes can potentially jeopardize his success in school. On the other hand, his belief that a strict curfew imposed by his mother will keep him on the “straight and narrow” creates an “us” versus “them” mentality. This occurs when a particular individual or group’s self-image is enhanced be it real or manufactured resulting in a false sense of superiority. This, in turn, can lead to discriminating and holding prejudice views against others. In the case of Johnathan, his belief in the importance of a strict curfew as imposed by his family can unwittingly result in a deficit view of his peers who do not adhere to a strict curfew. Moreover, such a rigid view can lead to a false sense of self and security, and the belief that because his peers do not follow a strict curfew, they will automatically be less successful. This type of thinking promotes a familiar narrative about mainstream parenting practices (i.e., White middle class) as ideal. Johnathan’s perspective may also reify the belief that there is only one path to achieving school success. This view is in many ways counterproductive to one of the tenets of critical literacy regarding “challenging common assumptions and values.”

Code-Switch Speech

Across the five participants, Mark was particularly skilled at code-switching his speech patterns as demanded by different social contexts of home, school, and work. The quote that follows represents Mark’s understanding of what it means to code-switch with respect to speech. He understood and effectively used various language registers according to the context demands and audience. Mark articulated the value and need to code-switch between slang, African American English (AAE), and Standard American English (SAE) both in and outside of school. He stated,

In this world, right, people think only White people speak proper English. Some of them do, but some Black people do too. Like me, I speak both proper English and slang. I mostly use proper English in class and at work. But with my friends, though, I use slang, like everybody else. The difference for me is I know when not to use slang. Like some of my Black, White and Spanish [Hispanic] friends don’t. You gotta know how to switch it up because people will think you are not smart. You know what I’m saying? I already know, that if I use slang, like at work, people will think I am not smart or something. You know all the stereotypes out there. But you know I got to represent and show ’em that I know how to speak proper English. Oh my bad, I mean, show them. (Laughter)

Mark’s quote highlights his understanding of styles of communication in and outside of school. He did not mince words when he explained his perception of society’s views associated with SAE as somehow synonymous with European Americans, not to mention, an accepted assumption regarding higher intelligence. Despite this view, Mark believed that both White and Black Americans use SAE, as indicated by his emphasis on the word “some.” He admitted that he used slang (which exists across all racial and ethnic groups), AAE (not to be confused with slang), and SAE, and he recognized when it was appropriate to use these styles of communication, demonstrating his understanding of the use of code-switching albeit on a surface level. He concluded by stating, “you gotta know how to switch it up because people will think you are not smart.”

On one hand, Mark seemed to understand when it was appropriate to use and SAE given what was expected of him in school, his community, and at work. On the other hand, his privileging of SAE over slang (that exists across all racial-ethnic groups and often confused by mainstream as a derivative of AAE) ignores how particular languages (e.g., AAE a legitimate language with a set of rules and structures) historically and presently are dismissed as mere slang, street talk, and having little value in schools and society. A deeper analysis of Mark’s view of SAE in relationship to slang and AAE revealed a language hierarchy, wherein non-White students learn early that the linguistic, literate, and cultural practices they bring from their homes and communities must be replaced with superior practices as schools demand. This linguistic genocide under the guise of the importance of SAE to acquire greater access and opportunity further perpetuates systemic inequalities in schools based on race, ethnicity, and language.

To further substantiate the aforementioned point, AAE, in particular, has been criticized as primitive. Scholars such as Kirkland (2013) have noted how mainstream (particular school-based) attitudes toward various elements of AAE (e.g., Black Masculine Language [BML]) are associated with laziness and lacking in intellectual prowess. These deficit views of AAE problematize what is not reflected in Mark’s critique of the use of different communication registers (e.g., code-switching, code-meshing), and that is those speaking a language other than English and/or a variety of the English language (which will all speak) to give up their home (slang, English varieties) and cultural languages (AAE) to speak the language that mainstream society deems appropriate and necessary to achieve the myth of the “American Dream” (see also Paris, 2012; Young, Barrett, Young-Rivera, & Lovejoy, 2013). Put another way, Americans especially non-White Americans (and those living in poverty) are often presented a “choice” under the guise of a command to invest in Whiteness (not as a race) but as an ideology to amass particular resources toward greater access and opportunity (see Lipsitz, 2006). Like code-switching, styles of dress that deviate from societal norms also require those from nondominant groups and those who exist outside of mainstream establishments to conform in a manner that tends to marginalize much of what individuals learn in their homes and communities as irrelevant to schools and society.

Code-Switch Dress

Like Mark, Nate also demonstrated his perception of the importance of code-switching in relation to different attire for school, work, and in his neighborhood. He stated,

When I go school, I try to dress nice because I know it is getting you prepared for work. You wanna dress nice when you are in school and on the job. You know first impressions matter, and you don’t want people thinking you are not serious about your job and stuff. Like my teachers know that when I come to class, I’m there to learn. But when you’re hanging out in your hood, you want to switch it up with some sweats and stuff and put a little swag in it so my boys know that I am cool and stuff (laughter). [Be]cause you know, people be watching you and stuff and so, knowing how to fit in, is important.

Nate offers advice on how to dress appropriately for school, work, and in his neighborhood. He recognizes that first impressions matter and that assumptions will be made about an individual if they fail to adhere to appropriate styles of dress according to different contexts, places, and spaces. He believed that “dressing nice” in school conveyed to his teachers that he was in school to learn, just as appropriate attire for the job conveyed to his boss at work, that he took his job seriously. Nate further distinguished appropriate forms of dress for school and on the job when he stated that clothing should be more relaxed (e.g., sweatpants) complemented with a particular way of walking (swagger) to be congruent with the environment. He admonished that because people are watching, adhering to appropriate styles of dress is important for both survival and success.

It cannot be denied that particular styles of dress are privileged over others (see Anderson, 2008). Given this fact, Nate’s perception of appropriate dress may at first glance, seem well reasoned. However, when consideration is given to respectability politics, Nate’s critique of appropriate dress is shortsighted. There is much evidence to suggest that even when members of nondominant groups, African American males, in particular, have adopted a certain style of communication and dress (believed to be compatible with mainstream practices), they were not able to inoculate themselves from the effects of racism and discrimination in and outside of school. For these and other reasons, and in the spirit of the “Black Lives Matter” movement, neither language use nor styles of dress that deviate from mainstream norms can serve as a justification to rationalize the perpetuation of racism, sexism, bigotry, hate, and violence (such as in the case of Trayvon Martin, 17 years old).

The thoughts, perceptions, and firsthand experiences voiced by the young men specifically, their developing ability to question what they saw, and critically interpret what they heard beyond the surface level, resulted in a deeper analysis. The critical thinking skills demonstrated by their calculated critiques and analysis of peer pressure, societal perceptions about them, as well as their own assumptions about how they are engaged (or not) and were consequently viewed by school personnel, led to the creation of a new psychosocial concept. Coined as, Urban Critical Literacy (UCL), this important and timely construct will be defined and described in the subsequent paragraphs.

Constructing a Theory of UCL

Aronowitz and Giroux (1993) and Freire (1974) define critical literacy as the motivation and capacity to be critical of the school curriculum by asking questions that challenge assumed or unquestioned beliefs and prejudices. According to these scholars, when teachers introduce critical literacy to students in the multicultural classroom, they can help them cultivate transformative knowledge—insights into the construction of knowledge surrounding the school curriculum. Other scholars, for example, Morrell (2004), define critical literacy as “the consumption, production, and distribution of print and new media texts by, with, and on behalf of marginalized populations in the interests of naming, exposing, and destabilizing power relations [e.g., white supremacy, racism]; and promoting individual freedom and expression” (p. 241). Finally, according to Freire (1970), Hull (1993), Kirkland (2013), Milner (2015), McLaren (2007), and UNESCO (1975), critical literacy can lead to an emancipated worldview and even transformational social action. From the critical literacy, tradition has emerged a new theoretical framework coined, Urban Critical Literacy (UCL).

What Is UCL?

Conceptually, UCL is a navigational strategy used to navigate and negotiate peer pressure while confronting and counteracting negative stereotypes (e.g., misbehavior, gang membership, prison, drugs, and crime) that prevail in U.S. society, especially within urban settings. UCL relies on a deep understanding of both the society and one’s own racial-ethnic identity. UCL provides the individual with the personal strength needed to resist pressure from peers (e.g., pressure to reject or view academic achievement as incongruent with their racial-ethnic identity).

Operationally, UCL is an array of navigational strategies used to move from setting to setting successfully through the processes of deflecting identity threats and decision making/problem solving, to claim opportunities for optimal development (e.g., school success). Through the processes of careful and critical reflections on situations related to school achievement and circumstances that could potentially impede their success in school, the individual employs UCL. In so doing, the individual will make an informed decision—one that will not interfere with or jeopardize their school success and future life goals.

The African American young men in this study who embody UCL were able to acquire greater access to succeed in schooling through the development of a powerful language of critique of schools and society in the social reproduction of discourse, dialogue, and oppressive practices that continue to position the urban poor as deficient (Brock, 2010). UCL, as operationalized by these young men, develops out of the aforementioned reality; it is the ability to learn from, and seek out, the positive elements of one’s environment without being interfered with, or distracted by, peer pressure or the negative stereotypes mentioned above, many of which have largely maintained this population’s miseducation, undereducation, and/or exclusion from educational opportunities. In the subsequent section, I outline the constitutive parts of the theory of UCL that include (a) reflect on it, (b) speak it, (c) name it, and (d) replace it.

The UCL Four-Step Strategy

As explained, UCL is a strategy derived from specific behaviors that the five young African American men used in this study to resist pressure from peers to reject academic achievement (pressure to view it as incongruent with their racial-ethnic identity). In addition, the participants used UCL to ensure their school success is not compromised when they faced situations that threatened that success, thus requiring wise decision making. These young men sought out the positive elements of their environment to succeed, especially in school. Such an ability is particularly important in schools in general, but especially urban schools given the often negative attitudes and beliefs that some Black adolescents hold about school (Fordham, 1996), which I argue, is not because they lack the ability to actually do the work or feel that education is unimportant to their lives, but rather, because of the negative ways that they are categorically treated in and outside of school that undermine any chances for an equitable education. As a result, this racial violence that stems from schools and classrooms decreases opportunities for African American males to develop into fully participating citizens in a so-called democratic society.

The UCL four-step strategy that includes reflect on it, speak it, name it, and replace it is expounded below and should be understood as a strategy used in the moment (short term) by the five young men to mitigate albeit temporarily those negative experiences from home to school that might impede their school success:

The UCL four-step strategy used to further analyze the quotes of the participants captures their use of UCL, specifically what it means to reflect on it, speak it, name it, and replace it, based on situations and circumstances they encountered living and going to school in an urban setting.

Conclusion

Overall, the findings from this study lead to the conclusion that UCL was a useful strategy employed by the study’s participants to navigate their cultural worlds of home and school. Through the use of UCL, the participants demonstrated their social competence, problem-solving skills, and autonomy. Indeed, this study emphasizes and affirms the participants’ insights into perceptions about adolescents in general, and African American males in particular, who live and attend school in an urban setting. The emphasis the young men seem to place on the importance of being aware of one’s environment highlights perhaps the necessity of the use of UCL as an important psychosocial concept that can maximize one’s potential.

The study in some ways challenges the universally negative perceptions that seem to abound about Black males. It demonstrates hope to African American males and all who care about them, and it affirms that they do care about their education, communities, and futures. Moreover, they are skilled in their abilities to negotiate and navigate effectively their worlds of home and school. Each of the participants evidenced his ability to question what he sees, reads, and hears beyond the gentry to respond thoughtfully to negative situations and actually uses them as stepping stones for success in and outside of school.

Because many African American boys and young men begin early in their lives responding to a daunting array of school, social, and community pressures that “may” encourage misguided decisions, it is imperative, that helping Black males “reflect on it, speak it, name it, and replace it,” through this four-step model that teaches young people how to counteract peer pressure and negative stereotypes (e.g., misbehavior, gang membership, prison, drugs, and crime) that prevail in U.S. society. Moreover, to respond to racism and discrimination strategically in the moment is to deflect the debilitating impact of this violence on self to mitigate progress toward making sound personal choices and potentially avoiding trouble. Sadly, for many African American males regardless of the strategy, violence, as discussed in this article, may ensue.

The power of literacies such as UCL lies in the young person having the ability to make a sound personal choice to reflect on it, speak it, name it, and replace it responsively to avoid overreacting negatively that could result in a number of unfortunate outcomes. Thus, the student who has a negative encounter with a peer or school official can replace it with a positive (re)action to avoid escalation. By using strategies such as UCL, African American males can create and apply positive resolutions to counteract potentially negative home- and school-related experiences, such as stereotypes.

This work is not simply the sole responsibility of young African American males but requires schools and society to heed the plea of S. R. Harper and Associates (2014) to “stop mischaracterizing young men of color as hopeless” (p. 3). Instead, recognize their strengths and needs and engage them in supportive in-school and out-of-school experiences that do not require a “loss of self, or alienation from one’s culture, language, and values” (Morrell, 2008, p. 237), but rather, serves as a buffer. When African American young men must constantly be on guard in and outside of school, the fatigue that is symptomatic of this vigil impedes their ability to learn at the highest levels of which they are capable (Knight, 2014). Thus, providing opportunities for African American males to name injustice and prejudice—to overcome the pressure to be silent about personal experiences involving racism and discrimination when they occur—is absolutely critical to their survival. Unfortunately, race and gender (including class) continue to circumscribe the schooling experiences and life chances of this population. For these reasons, recognizing and cultivating the astute ability of students in general, and African American male students in particular to read the word and the world critically will ensure that they will choose to go another way to claim greater educational access toward increasing their overall life chances. What follows are recommendations for teachers as voiced by the five wise men.

Recommendations for Teachers

In addition to identifying and describing strategies that the five young male adolescents used to navigate and negotiate their home and school cultures, they also discussed how teachers could likewise advocate for them by recognizing and supporting their efforts. Marlon demonstrated his awareness of the multiple challenges and struggles Black males face in his community and school. When asked the question, “If you were principal of your school, what would you want teachers to know about African American young men to help them be successful in school like you?” Marlon responded,

I would like to let them know it’s a big struggle that African American males have to go through, and just let them be aware of it, and probably have workshops about what’s going on in the neighborhood with most of the males who are African American. I feel there is a struggle between African Americans and society. There are males in the streets, jail, and males at their homes who have problems, males who just don’t get money, don’t get food, don’t get an education. So they [teachers] just really need to push them.

Aware of the many societal problems that have kept young African American male students from completing high school and succeeding in later life, Marlon felt it crucial for teachers to grasp the problem in all its complexities. He readily recognized the challenges that countless young men like him face, and that recognition motivated him and informed his decision to pursue an education, so he could avoid a similar fate.

Zach’s critique of some teachers further highlights an alarming factor that disturbs many students in urban schools: Too many teachers are not invested in students’ futures. He said, “you [can] see [right] through the duplicity,” and explained,

See, some teachers are sneaky. They’ll talk about you during staff meetings. They’ll send out memos. They’ll send out emails, and they think that you don’t know that they’re writing about you, but they are [be]cause not everyone was born yesterday. And basically, some of them just have a bad, nasty attitude around you. And you can vibe, you can sense it in their presence although they try to hide it, and be nice, and try to keep the peace. But of course, deep in their heart, it’s not true. And sometimes, you see right through the duplicity. You see right through it. Well, actually, I see right through it. That’s me personally. It’s like when I, I walk into a store I know they are watching me, thinking umma try and steal something. I got money! I’m going to college; so don’t judge me [be]cause I’m Black. I know how to switch it up, to play it cool, you know.

Zach’s quote demonstrated his ability to distinguish between teachers who do and do not genuinely care about their students’ futures as well as how behaviors of suspicion (e.g., racial profiling) are played out in society. His quote also revealed his ability to name, confront, dismantle, and recast perceived discrimination toward resiliency.

The thoughts, perceptions and firsthand experiences voiced by the young men specifically, their ability to question what they saw, and critically interpret what they heard beyond a superficial surface level demonstrates their use of UCL. The five wise men’s astute critiques and analysis of peer pressure, societal perceptions about them, as well as their own assumptions about how they are engaged (or not), and were consequently viewed by school personnel, further demonstrate their ability to reflect on it, speak it, name it, and replace it.

Future Research

In their own words, the five young men offer insights into their understanding of how to make sense of the complex ways in which structural racism, discrimination, and stereotypes shape their lived experiences and can potentially undermine their well-being. Their voices, agency, aspirations, and input into their lived experiences should enliven discussions about improving the social-emotional realities and educational experiences for African American males. Consequently, making visible those strategies employed by African American males that enable them to name, confront, dismantle, and recast strategically the differential treatment they frequently experience both in, and outside of school. The identification of such strategies requires a deliberate and careful focus on the challenges that are unique to this frequently misunderstood population that is beset by negative stereotypes that fail to account for the social-emotional trauma in their lives.

This study aims to contribute to documenting strategies such as UCL that emerge from the everyday experiences of African American males. As a result, the ongoing gathering and analyzing of additional data are required to determine the antecedents of how the strategy of UCL is developed. Moreover, why do African American males such as the young men in this study have UCL, and do other young men living in urban settings have it as well. Questions such as these require a closer investigation into the experiences and well-being of African American males to determine and document the onset of such strategies and their protective factor quality that can help this population not just survive but thrive in and outside of school.