Neal - New Black Man

This chapter shed a lot of light on black stereotypes and how people from different races respond to these stereotypes and reputations. Neal talks about the "talented tenth" which is the small portion of elite, educated black population that continues on to be successful in the job sphere. This concept reminded me of an interview with Magic Johnson. In this interview, Johnson encouraged black teenagers to stay in school and not be so focused on finding other quick-fix routes to success. He talked about how the majority of publicized success stories in the black community concerned athletes or hip-hop moguls and this leads black teens to think that they can only be successful through athletics or hip-hop music. This relates back to Neal's point (of the "Strong Black Man") that when a stereotype is thrust on a community, many people will fall in to the reputation of that stereotype simply because that is how they think they should be acting. The concept of the "strong black man", as Neal describes, is progressive and aimed towards bettering the perception of the black male, but it leaves very little room for flexibility. Thus, a very rigid template is constructed for black male masculinity, which effectively stigmatizes black homosexuals or other identities within the black community.