Like the rest of the country, I couldn't help but notice the occurrence of black teen '"flash mobs" around the country. For those who haven't been made hip to the game, flash mobs are random groups of people who get together and do "stuff."
The acts committed by flash mobs can be naïve and cute, like singing the Star Spangled Banner on one leg while drinking a Pepsi. They can also be nasty and violent, like beating down anyone who happens to be passing by.
We can leave it to teenagers to find creative and potentially frightening ways to use the amazing power of social media. Black teen flash mobs have been formed throughout the country, with many of them being designed to break the law in some way.
The most recent incident involved the 60-second robbing of a 7-11 store in Maryland. A group of teens got together on Twitter/Facebook/email/Myspace/text message and agreed to walk in the store, grab things off the shelves, and then walk out.
Another series of incidents occurred in Philadelphia, leading Philly Mayor Michael Nutter to put the entire city on lockdown with a 9 p.m. curfew for all citizens under the age of 18. Mayor Nutter went so far as to appear in a church in Philadelphia to proclaim that these young people had "damaged" their own race. Nutter is certainly correct that it's difficult to excuse the behavior of flash mobs, especially those who engage in violence.
I can't help but notice how the creation of flash mobs is probably the first time in recent memory that black teenagers have gotten this much attention from media or public officials. Rather than focusing on the teenagers who are doing great things with their lives, the media loves to put a spotlight on the few scary looking black kids who decide to rob a store on a Saturday night. In spite of the media bias, there are quite a few reasons that the media, Mayor Nutter and the rest of us could have been paying attention to black teenagers in the past.
We could have spent time addressing the 40 percent unemployment rate of black teens all across America. Public officials seem to forget that an idle mind is the devil's workshop... when you combine a hot summer with nothing productive to do, teenagers are going to find their own ways to use that free time.
Mayor Nutter and other critics of these errant teenagers could have also taken note of the fact that Philadelphia has the most racially segregated public school system in the entire United States. Suburban kids are getting all they need to build a great future, while inner city kids are only learning how to join flash mobs.
Finally, there could have been a spotlight shed on the dramatic rise in black teen homicides in Chicago, Philadelphia and other major urban centers across America. But of course, this doesn't make the news because it's not an inconvenience to everyone else. Also, politicians who might decide to change gun laws to curb the violence would miss out on financial contributions from gun manufacturers.
So, in all of his righteous outrage, I would ask Mayor Nutter this: Who is a greater embarrassment to their race? The teenager who is led astray because adults have neglected him, or the black political figure who silently administers and maintains the most racially segregated school system in the entire country?
I dare to point out the irony of any elected official (not just Nutter) who ignores the serious social diseases of black teen unemployment, violence and improper education and then has the audacity to complain about the symptoms of the disease that he/she has allowed to fester. Black teen flash mobs are our society's creation: if we'd chosen to give these kids something to live for, many of them wouldn't be out finding ways to self-destruct.
Since flash mobs are the new fad, perhaps politicians should join in the fun. Political leaders could form a flash mob where they all actually get together and do something for the American people, instead of taking care of themselves and their corporate partners.
Politicians could form another flash mob in which they pass a few pieces of legislation designed to create jobs for teens so they have something to do during the weekend that doesn't involve robbing people. In another flash mob, Mayor Nutter and his friends could desegregate the educational system so that thousands of kids aren't leaving high school without being able to spell the word "NBA."
Teen social deviance has been around for as long as there have been teenagers. But it is also universally true that young people respond more effectively to love than to hate. When we remind our children how much we hate them and how little we care, we can't act surprised when they are equally reckless.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.
Follow Dr. Boyce Watkins on Twitter: www.twitter.com/DrBoyceWatkins1
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Could be too late on the job front (thanks to illegal immigration and the crummy economy). However, it's never too late to obey the law. Anything less makes us (as Blacks) look like babies who need to coddled in order to get us to behave.
Finally, if these kids have it so tough, where are they getting money for cell phones and other digital devices?
Sounds like a good definition of child-rearing. Where are the parents of those children and why are they allowing their children to roam the streets at night? The segregated school system is most certainly a problem. Ignorant children grow up to be unemployed, underemployed, and unemployable adults. On that matter of public responsibility we agree.
Isn't there a law already in place that reads "Parents can be sued/held responsible for the willful misconduct of their children?
2) You can't discipline you children without someone knocking on your door threatnng yo with an arrest...
3) The schools no longer have any discipline for our children and they don't teach kids like they did when I was in school, in the 70's...My wife has to do most of the teaching now, so why do we send our kids to public schools?
This is what is wrong with this Country! they have taken our God away, our parenting rights away and they have stopped teaching our kids, now they are reaping what this foolish government has made. These parents are responsible for their children but to a certain point and then they are the States children, if you don't believe that whip your child and let someone see it or say something that they think is against policy and see how fast they take them from you. people this is not Black and White this is an American problem and we better get a grasp on it before we are living in a country that you can't walk on the street or say what you feel, its coming and the problem is much more than a Flash Mob!!!!!!!!
Persecuted, unemployed, marginalized teens and young adults in Egypt used this type of social media to organize, protest, and overthrow a dictator. The fact that teens here have chosen to use flash mobs as a way to terrorize others says more about their character and lack of vision.
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2011/08/19/cops-to-be-out-in-force-for-air-water-show/
Best line: "Police don’t want a repeat of the mob attacks that plagued North Avenue Beach on Memorial Day."
Mob attacks?! What mob attacks?!? I thought it was the HEAT that made them close that beach down on Memorial Day!
Fortunately, it seems like the media is finally starting to be a bit more honest about these things.
Just like many adults, some teenagers think they are "owed" something. Instead of working for what they want, they think they can just take it from others.
There are also far too many parents who just let their children come and go without any supervision or guidance. I can't count how many nights I've been on my way home from The Village or Times Square after dinner and a movie with friends only to see kids half my age (at that time 15 and under) getting out of the subway ready to party for the night. Every single time my first thought was "where are their parents"?
I never shined shoes or collected bottles for extra money, but I did work summer jobs. My parents and grandmother also supervised my activities, and you better believe I wasn't hanging out at Times Square at 1am when I was 14y/o, and I certainly wasn't robbing gas stations or 7-11's.
"If these kids had a family background where a dad was bringing home a paycheck and instilling parental control, this wouldn't be a problem,"
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/courts-police-and-fire/2010-09-28/former-tv-weatherman-victim-unprovoked-attack.html
And yet, when the kids were arrested for this attack, the ringleader turned out to actually HAVE a dad, and a more or less middle-class background. In fact:
"The boy's court-appointed attorney, Assistant Public Defender Amanda Riess, said the youth lives with his parents and siblings, is a sophomore at Central High School who makes As and B's, attends school regularly, and is currently in weight-lifting training trying to get ready for basketball tryouts."
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/courts-police-and-fire/2010-10-01/16-year-old-arrested-beating-champaign.html
So he actually HAD something to live for. He wasn't "looking for a way to self-destruct". He was just a bad person. Like a lot of people out there are. All the programs in the world aren't going to fix them.
As far as cold-hearted goes, well, I've never beaten up anyone in a parking lot. Your adjectives seem misdirected to me.