The Boys Of Baraka Essay
In a documentary entitled, “The Boys of Baraka,” many sociological aspects, concepts, and theories were displayed. In the film, a group of twenty inner city African-American boys from a junior high school in Maryland were chosen to attend a boarding school in Kenya. Coming from the poverty-stricken streets of Baltimore, they were given this opportunity in hopes of securing a better future for themselves and their families. When watching this film from a sociological perspective, the idea behind it illustrates how socioeconomic status, race, gender, sex, and family can hold both negative and positive effects in one’s life. The beginning of the film set the stage for how socioeconomic status and race play a huge role in how society
…show more content…
The boys imitated these violent acts by pretending to get arrested and shot in the streets of Baltimore. The boys were presented with three options for what is expected to happen to them by the time they turn eighteen. Based on their race, gender, and socioeconomic status, they were told that they would either be in jail, dead, or high school graduates. In America, African-American men are already profiled and deemed as threats to society. Not only are the odds of society against these boys, but the social class of their parents, living in conditions of poverty, and the acceptance of institutional discrimination also have an effect on them as well. According to Schaefer, absolute poverty, “refers to a minimum level of subsistence that no family should be expected to live below (201)” and institutional discrimination, “refers to the denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and groups that results from the normal operations of a society (252).” With all of these standards of living that society has created and the fowl treatment of the poor, it makes it even harder for them to overcome that stereotype when it is the only thing that they are exposed to their entire lives. The Baraka school serves as a segway to better behaviors, influences and an overall positive environment for the boys. They now have a chance to lead better lives than they have been exposed to in
The boys imitated these violent acts by pretending to get arrested and shot in the streets of Baltimore. The boys were presented with three options for what is expected to happen to them by the time they turn eighteen. Based on their race, gender, and socioeconomic status, they were told that they would either be in jail, dead, or high school graduates. In America, African-American men are already profiled and deemed as threats to society. Not only are the odds of society against these boys, but the social class of their parents, living in conditions of poverty, and the acceptance of institutional discrimination also have an effect on them as well. According to Schaefer, absolute poverty, “refers to a minimum level of subsistence that no family should be expected to live below (201)” and institutional discrimination, “refers to the denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and groups that results from the normal operations of a society (252).” With all of these standards of living that society has created and the fowl treatment of the poor, it makes it even harder for them to overcome that stereotype when it is the only thing that they are exposed to their entire lives. The Baraka school serves as a segway to better behaviors, influences and an overall positive environment for the boys. They now have a chance to lead better lives than they have been exposed to in