← Back to Our Journey
From Our Archives

Dead or in Jail: The Burden of Being a Black Man in America

InterventionalBeing black in AmericaInmatePrisoners
Dead or in Jail: The Burden of Being a Black Man in America By Wilbert L. Cooper - Vice.com

"The day you were born, there was a pine box and a prison cell built with your name on it."

Throughout my childhood and adolescence, my father said that to me countless times, especially just as I was walking out the door. The first time I remember hearing those words, I had to have been about six or seven; I was so young I didn't really understand what he meant. I had yet to grasp the burden that comes with being young and black and male in America. It just sounded scary, and after hearing it—given what little I understood about race at the time—I was left with the distinct feeling that I was cursed.... Vice.com

Read more, click on link below...

Read the article at Vice →
Preserved historical post: This article is part of Beyond the Curve’s original blog. It is shown for reading only and has not been rewritten to reflect the current website’s mission.

Original Comments

No archived comments are available for this post.

This post is preserved as it appeared in the old blog archive. There is no active comment form on this page.