On Cultural Legacies and Outliers

In chapter 6 of Outliers Malcolm Gladwell provides an entry into a larger discussion about cultural legacies. He opens with disturbing descriptions of how longstanding cultural patterns and beliefs influenced violent conflicts among generations of families in Kentucky during the 19th century.

The compelling research findings concerning long-term and deeply held values led Gladwell to the conclusion that

Cultural legacies are powerful forces. They have deep roots and long lives. They persist, generation after generation, virtually intact, even as the economic and social demographic conditions that spawned them have vanished, and they play such a role in directing attitudes and behavior that we cannot make sense of our world without them.

He goes on to note the possibilities of “taking cultural legacies seriously” in order to learn “about why people succeed and how to make people better.”

It’s worth noting that highlighting cultural legacies can easily give way to problematic racial and gendered generalizations—generalizations we have necessarily been inclined to critique or avoid.

Having said that, how might taking cultural legacies seriously hurt or hinder our understanding of high academic achievement at SIUE? That is to say, how would a concentrated focus on cultural legacies enhance or limit our view of those who succeed in college?

EBR Focus on Sonia Sanchez

This week's video features Eugene B. Redmond reading a tribute poem that focuses on poet Sonia Sanchez.


Sonia's Phat Moon Blues

moon phat in soprano & Philly Dog,
Sonia moans Alabama babies in civil mournin,
worryin Sterling's lines--!O Langston's--!O Gwen's
--!O High John's--!O Delta rootress's--name-
callin !Marie !Zora !Maya !Toni (s) !Alice !Gloria
& molten-sweet !Malcolm-tongued epitome epitome
--!resist--sayen dont pity me, sayen !resist . . .

def-like like vodun-muse ala Haiti,
Wolof-hip & down as Nubia Bop,
sista-giant riffs key of Georgia Slop
--!resist--of gods spillin out of wombs
like Philly phonics--!resist--like MLK ebonics,
bronze ballad-dear tonics, earth angel sonics,
Day-Lady's harmonics, trillin batons of !fire



Related content: Eugene B. Redmond and the EBR Collection

The Lessons of Outliers, Pt. 1

Over the last couple of months, we've been having an extended conversation about Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers as part of our larger efforts to increase collaborative intellectual activities beyond the classroom involving students of color.

We've discussed several thought-provoking issues, including accumulative advantage, practical intelligence, meaningful work, and something known as the 10,000 hour rule.

Now that we're halfway through the book, I'm curious about the issues you've considered most based on what we've read and discussed on the blog so far?

Or, what important or overlooked issues concerning outliers would you want to bring more attention to? Why?

The Af-Am Literary Showcase at Woodland

Back in February, we hosted the African American Literary Showcase, an audio-visual exhibit, at Woodland Elementary School for fifth graders.

One of our lead contributors, Adrienne Smith, produced a video based on our showcase. Enjoy.

Pongo's "Miss Amerikkka"

Here's an excerpt from "Miss Amerikkka" from The Malcolm X Mixtape.

I view this song as one of Pongo's most brilliant, fiery compositions from the mixtape. What you'll hear is Malcolm followed by the main chorus of the song; the words to that chorus are as follows:

Welcome to America/ where you can be all you can be
If you're Caucasian with some paper its the land of the free
Or if you black and sell your soul you'll be successful indeed
Or go to college get some debt but never get your degree
This is america, forget who God made you to be
Go get a perm, get some bleach and put Botox in your cheeks
Or better yet, get a tan spend some time on the beach
And maybe then you could look like me!

And stop runnin' for Ms. America (4x)

Hey miss america how you doin
People you busy screwing for money you been pursuing
Heard you got a black man now, hope he treating you good
Soon as he start trippin you sendin him to the hood
Of Chicago, I see progression recession just a reflection


Related:
The Malcolm Mixtape
from Pongo’s “Education (Intro.)”
from Henderson’s “Revolution”

Henderson's "Revolution"

Our man Al Henderso's series of short videos are a crucial feature of The Malcolm X Mixtape. Henderson transforms aspects of Malcolm's ideas into thoughtful audio-visual compositions.

I've reproduced an excerpt from his video "Revolution." The audio samples and remixes a clip from one of Malcolm's speeches. The image shows a group of African American Civil War soldiers, Company E, 4th U.S. Colored Infantry, at Fort Lincoln.



Henderson creates fascinating juxtapositions here. Malcolm's words from the 1960s are position to narrate on a scene from the Civil War (1861-1865), and at the same time, the beat and Malcolm's remixed words link the piece to contemporary era.


Related:
The Malcolm Mixtape
from Pongo’s “Education (Intro.)”
from Pongo’s “Miss Amerikkka”

Pongo's "Education (Intro)"

Since we have limited editions of The Malcolm X Mixtape, I'll try to put excerpts here to give you a better feel for the project. The mixtape has two sections, videos produced by our contributor Al Henderson and music produced by Dometi Pongo.

Here's a sample from the opening song "Education (Intro).

Pongo provides the rhymes. He worked with collaborators from Chicago to provide the music and commentary. (Note: As a rapper, Pongo is known as Prophecy, hence the Dj's references to "Prophecy" and "Proph" throughout).

from "Education:"

I can teach u how to grind make a couple thousand without a dime
without a crime joe I do dat all the time
I can teach ya how to shine, read a Scripture at a time get cha
mind right and everything else will get in line.
I can teach u how to take a city over make an army outta
soldiers break bread wit ya team how u posed to
Cuz I'm a boss, never took a loss,
Learn from me I guarantee u takin off, baby
This is Education (4x)

Related:
The Malcolm Mixtape
from Pongo’s “Miss Amerikkka”
from Henderson’s “Revolution”

The Malcolm X Mixtape

Over the last few months, a group of our black studies contributors (Adrienne Smith, Dometi Pongo, and Al Henderson) worked with me on what we viewed as a forward-looking, progressive project. With Malcolm’s writings and speeches as a focal point, we thought and talked and then thought and talked some more about producing something for “under-represented” folks that might inspire a greater sense of awareness about topics and themes such as politics, anti-black racism, education, slavery, freedom, and justice. That something was a mixtape, and Pongo and Henderson produced the core of the content.

Listening to and viewing the materials on the mixtape demonstrate that these two young men have been doing their black studies homework. Almost all of Pongo’s tracks contain samples from Malcolm’s speeches, and more importantly, Pongo continually invokes and projects Malcolm’s black nationalist militancy throughout his compositions. Henderson remixes and ultimately refreshes Malcolm’s messages so that we can receive them clearly through these thoughtful video compositions. Who knows how Henderson managed to say so much with so few images or where he learned to speak so eloquently about the past using such hip, mixed media discourses?

Keeping in the spirit of mixtapes, members of our black studies crew have been circulating these limited edition compilations among the grassroots here at SIUE. I’ve been really impressed and fascinated with the results. Observing the development of this student-produced work of creativity and ingenuity, which updates Malcolm’s vision, has been a tremendous learning experience for me. As my down-home elders would say, I’m just glad to be a witness.

Related:
from Pongo’s “Miss Amerikkka”
from Pongo’s “Education (Intro.)”
from Henderson’s “Revolution”

EBR Focus on Amiri Baraka

This week's video features Eugene B. Redmond reading a tribute poem that focuses on poet Amiri Baraka.

Maya Angelou, Katherine Dunham, and Quincy Troupe are the well known figures whom Redmond has photographed most. However, I have always viewed Baraka as a crucial muse for Redmond's photographic work on poets. The images of Baraka that appear in the EBR Collection have a certain intrigue energy and appeal that is quite noticeable.

Arched Bishop of New Ark

Arched Bishop of New Ark, his laureateship,
Breach-strider, trouble-rider, funk-glider,
Boperatic scatman; another lion, like Willie, Duke,
Sterling, Bud, Dr. W.E.B.; poet whose whistle
Announces that the activist’s pot is boiling.
Cynosure of Ankh’s Headeyes.



Related content: Eugene B. Redmond and the EBR Collection

Meaningful Work and Outliers

In his chapter “The Lessons of Joe Flom,” Malcolm Gladwell traces the backgrounds and experiences of a select group of people whose “world -- culture and generation and family history – gave them the greatest opportunities.” In particular, he pays close attention to the importance of ethnic background, demographic luck, and meaningful work. Given my remark that “hard work is often overrated” in the comments section of our last post, I was especially intrigued with Gladwell's alternative or refined consideration of work.

According to Gladwell, meaningful work is characterized by 1) autonomy – processes that yield senses of independence; 2) complexity – work that engages the mind and imagination; 3) a connection between effort and reward – a noticeable return on the uses of time and energy.

So rather than champion “hard work,” Gladwell makes distinctions and highlights “meaningful work,” indicating that such work heightens people's possibilities for success when they find their efforts freeing, thought-provoking, and fulfilling.

What determining factor -- ethnic background, demographic luck, or meaningful work -- did you find most compelling? Why?

Or, to incorporate a local concern, what do you think your individual department or the university in general here at SIUE could do to create a community that ensures that more students get engaged with meaningful work?

Walking While Black

Some years ago, in some quarters, there was much talk about driving while black, the notion that police stop African American motorists much more frequently than white drivers based on racial biases.

In New York City, people might consider the issue of walking while black and brown. Columnist Bob Herbert has been highlighting what's viewed by many as the biased and troubling tendency of New York City Police officers to stop and frisk large numbers of African American and Hispanic pedestrians. Herbert sites figures from 2004 to 2009.

Police Department statistics show that 2,798,461 stops were made in that six-year period. In 2,467,150 of those instances, the people stopped had done nothing wrong. That’s 88.2 percent of all stops over six years. Black people were stopped during that period a staggering 1,444,559 times. Hispanics accounted for 843,817 of the stops and whites 287,218.

Why the discrepancies?

Herbert also finds it appalling that the police gather and keep data on the people it stops even though they have not been charged with crimes.

"If the police officers were treating white middle-class or wealthy individuals this way, the movers and shakers in this town would be apoplectic," writes Herbert. "The mayor would be called to account in an atmosphere of thunderous outrage, and the police commissioner would be gone. But the people getting stopped and frisked are mostly young, and most of them are black or brown and poor."

EBR Focus on Margaret Walker

This week's video features Eugene B. Redmond reading a tribute poem that focuses on poet and novelist Margaret Walker (1915-1998). The video features photographs of Walker from the EBR Collection.

Redmond Tribute Poem for Margaret Walker

Alabama, Chicago, & Jackson (Mississippi) were
Nurturing-sharing-ritual grounds For My People,
Native daughter, Jubilee'd by several trips upsouth
To East Boogie, "this beautiful little black city." You
Cooked briskets in your back yard, played bridge,
Painted 'folks' from s/mothered lands to "Poppa
Chicken" Boulevard. Horace Cayton, St. Clair
Drake, Richard Wright were your league of
Scholar-authors. The 20th, you said, was your
Century--ours too for having read/said you.



The photographs show Walker with a variety of figures and in various locations: 1.) Walker autographing one of her books in Atlanta in 1996; 2.) accepting an honorary degree from Jackson State in Mississippi in 1998; 3.) meeting with Broadside Press founder Dudley Randall in Detroit in 1989; 4.) on a panel with poets Margaret Burroughs and Gwendolyn Brooks in Chicago in 1994; 5.) with Redmond at Walker's home in Jackson, MS, in 1986; 6.) with Rosa Parks at the Shrine of the Black Madonna Bookstore in Detroit, MI, in 1989; 7.) with Gwendolyn Brooks in Chicago in 1994; 8.) at the "Black Women and Magical Realism" conference in Jackson, MS, in 1992; 9.) at an event; 10.) on a panel with Joanne Gabbin and Sonia Sanchez in Atlanta in 1996; 11.) with Redmond and Loretta Dumas (widow of poet Henry Dumas) at the National Black Writers Conference in Brooklyn, NY, in 1988 ; and 12.) accepting an honorary degree from Jackson State in Mississippi in 1998.

Some notes on Redmond's poem: Walker was born in Alabama; lived in Chicago at one point, and later settled in Jackson, Mississippi. Her award-winning volume For My People was published in 1942, and she later published a novel Jubilee (1966). Redmond's poem references Cayton, Drake, and Wright as fellow scholar-authors, who like Walker, had spent time in Chicago. Walker new and collected poems were published in her volume This Is My Century in 1989.

Related content: Eugene B. Redmond and the EBR Collection

Kwansaba

A Kwansaba is a 49-word poetic form created by Eugene B. Redmond, along with assistance from members of the the Eugene B. Redmond Writers Club, in 1995. A kwansaba contains seven lines with no more than seven words in each line, and each word is less than seven letters. Proper nouns and some terms for different languages are exceptions to the seven-letter rule.

The word "kwansaba" is derived from "Kwanazaa," the African American holiday founded in 1966 by Maulana Karenga. Kwanzaa, a seven-letter, focuses on and celebrates seven principles Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity), and Imani (Faith) over the course of seven days from December 26 to January 1.

In an interview, Redmond explained

We, members of the Eugene B. Redmond Writers Club, being a community-based unit, wanted to express the origins and principles of kwanzaa—and Black Culture—via an aesthetic system with poetry at the center. Hence, the kwansaba which allows us to promote an “original” AA poetic form and celebrate the principles of kwanzaa through the “kwansaba candle lighting ritual.” Aware that the Arabic numeral “seven” has many meanings and implications for African peoples and others the world over—seven wonders, “seventh son” of DuBois—we think deeply about the astrological, numerological, and spiritual associations of “seven.” Numerous examples of the kwansaba are found throughout Drumvoices Revue nos. 11, 12, and 13.

Overestimating a Black Presence Pt. 2

For the Overestimating a Black Presence post, a commenter asked about percentages of other local and comparable universities. I do not have my list of SIUE's designated comparable universities on me. But I'll get it soon.

For now, I can give the percentages of African Americans at other local universities. The numbers I am presenting come from The Education Trust; 2007 is the most recent year that they have stats from universities.

In 2007:
9.1% African American out of 10,960 undergraduates at SIUE.

7% African American out of 10,383 undergraduates at St. Louis University (SLU).

16.9% African American out of 16,294 undergraduates at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC).

13.8% African American out of 12,459 undergraduates at University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL).

8.9% African American out of 7,386 undergraduates at Washington University.

6.1% African American out of 21,484 undergraduates at University of Missouri-Columbia.

6.8% African American out of 31,472 undergraduates at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

11.2% African American out of 3,888 undergraduates at Webster University.

7.6% African American out of 10,592 undergraduates at Eastern Illinois.

11.8% African American out of 6,068 undergraduates at Lindenwood University.

88.8% African American out of 1,868 undergraduates at Harris-Stowe University.

*************

In a previous post, I mentioned the graduation gap. Well, of the five schools listed, only Washington University, SLU, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and University of Missouri-Columbia have a 6-year graduation rate for African Americans above 50%.

This coming summer, a group of us associated with black studies are going to try to look at the issues behind some of these numbers a little closer. If you have thoughts on causes, trends, methods of improving the graduation rate, or ideas about suggested readings on the topic, please let us know. We're interested in learning more.

The Graduation Gap

A recent Newsweek article Minority Report notes that "American universities are accepting more minorities than ever," but they still have dismal graduation rates. According to the article

Studies show that more and more poor and nonwhite students aspire to graduate from -college—but their graduation rates fall far short of their dreams. The graduation rates for blacks, Latinos, and Native Americans lag far be-hind the graduation rates for whites and Asians. As the minority population grows in the United States, low college--graduation rates become a threat to national -prosperity.

Consider some of the numbers.

In 2007 (the last year for which Education Trust, a nonprofit advocacy group, has comparative statistics) the University of Wisconsin–-Madison—one of the top five or so "public Ivies"—graduated 81 percent of its white students within six years, but only 56 percent of its blacks. At less-selective state schools, the numbers get worse. During the same time frame, the University of Northern Iowa graduated 67 percent of its white students, but only 39 percent of its blacks

What do the numbers look like at SIUE?
In 2007, SIUE graduated 47.8 percent of its white students within six years, and 26.4 percent of its black students.
The 47.8% is certainly not good, but given our focus in this space, we have to wonder why black students graduate in such smaller numbers than white students.

Near the end of the article, the reporters note that "With effort and money, the graduation gap can be closed." We certainly need a broader discussion here about the efforts and resources necessary to close that gap.

Overestimating a Black Presence

When I ask people here about the percentage of African Americans at our university, they almost always overestimate. 50%? 30%? 20%? Nope. Nope. Nope. Try somewhere around 10%.

Some of that overestimation perhaps comes from seeing black people hanging out together around campus. A few black students are actively involved in student government, and several black students work in the university center, which gives black people a certain visibility. Ah, we also show up in disproportionately high numbers on the university web-pages and in publicity materials.

That tendency to overestimate the presence sometimes amuses me. But sometimes, it causes trouble. Or, I should say that some of the consequences can cause trouble.

When people on campus try to advocate for increased resources or more thoughtful consideration of African Americans, there is a bit of resentment that emerges. "Why help this group that seems to be doing ok," some ask or suggest. People unaware of just how small the numbers of African Americans here actually are probably feel less sympathy for the group.

In other words, overestimating the presence of black people in a given environment can cause us to under-value a number of challenges and experiences.

I suppose we should do more to figure out what motivates that overestimation. But then too, we also have to deal with its ongoing consequences.

EBR Discusses Maya Angelou

Among the thousands of photographs that Eugene B. Redmond has taken of well known artists, he has perhaps documented Maya Angelou, Quincy Troupe, and the late Katherine Dunham more than any others. Redmond's Angelou photographs constitute a remarkable visual history that spans about 40 years.

An early image shows Angelou opening a present at a small gathering for her birthday in 1976; and then, a 2008 image shows Angelou celebrating her 80th birthday at a spectacular party hosted by Oprah Winfrey. Between that 1976 party and the 2008 one, Redmond photographed Angelou thousands of times, at her home in North Carolina and all across the country as she gave readings, attended conferences, and relaxed with friends.

This week's video features Redmond reading one of his tribute poems, which focuses on Angelou.

Mood Maya Kwansaba

she feeds eyes, ears, & skies with
dancing loaves of poetry--baked in aware
nests of Stamps, St. Louis, San Francisco
& Porgy and Bess--then, fore-tasting
purple Alice (s) & blue Toni (s), she uncages
Dunbar's lyrical feasts in Nasser's Egpyt, Nkrumah's
Ghana, MLK's USA & Every Woman's Kitchen.



Some notes on the poem. First, it's a kwansaba, a poetic form created by the Eugene B. Redmond Writers Club in 1995. A kwansaba contains seven lines with no more than seven words in each line, and each word is less than letters, unless it's a proper noun.

Angelou was born in St. Louis, MO, and at the age of 8, she moved to Stamps, Arkansas. In her early teens, she moved to San Francisco. A dancer and actress, she toured Europe with Porgy and Bess in 1954 and 1955. Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of her literary influences; the title of her autobiography I Know Why the Cage Bird Sings comes from a line in Dunbar's "Sympathy."

Angelou lived in Egypt and Ghana, and Martin Luther King, Jr. appointed her Northern Coordinator for the prominent civil rights organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. "All those places and events," Redmond told me, "are somehow brought up in this little poem, this kwansaba."

Related content: Eugene B. Redmond and the EBR Collection

Practical Intelligence and Outliers

Extending his “Trouble with Geniuses” concerns, Malcolm Gladwell offers insight about those particular skills that give talented people the extra edge to become outliers. Too often, we assume, Gladwell suggests, that success is based purely on people’s intellect or physical talents. Genetics tend to play vital roles, but they are hardly the sole determining factors.

To describe the differences between a highly intelligent yet underachieving person and a highly intelligent and successful one, Gladwell highlights psychologist Robert Sternberg’s concept “practical intelligence,” which includes “‘knowing what to say to whom, knowing when to say it, and knowing how to say it for maximum effect.’” Practical intelligence is “knowledge that helps you read situations correctly and get what you want. And, critically, it is a kind of intelligence separate from the sort of analytical ability measured by IQ.”

The practical intelligence that Gladwell presents can also be thought of as a kind of “social savvy,” an ability to skillfully negotiate multiple communal and professional environments. Those high IQ folks whom Galdwell mentioned who seemed to squander their talents were actually people who lacked “a community around them that prepared them properly for the world.”

How did you respond to Gladwell’s ideas about the roles of wealth and parenting in the lives of those who are more likely to become socially savvy and/or highly successful?

Or, to take a different concern, in your opinion, what prevents larger numbers of SIUE students, in general, from developing higher degrees of practical intelligence during their time here?