Acknowledgments

Introduction

You Must Act as If It Is Impossible To Fail: Challenges in Raising African American Teenage Sons

If We Stand Tall It Is Because We Stand on the Backs of Those Who Came Before Us: African American Families and the Manchild

No One Can Uproot The Tree Which God Has Planted: Spirituality and Religion in Raising Our Sons

The Bell Rings Loudest in Your Own Home: Positive Parenting, Love, Communication, and Discipline

Education Is Your Passport to The Future, for Tomorrow Belongs to The People Who Prepare for It Today

When I discover Who I Am I'll Be Free: Black Kids in White Schools and Communities

Our Future Lies Chiefly in Our Own Hands: The Journey to Manhood and Peer Pressure

We Cannot Silence the Voices That We Do Not Like Hearing: Rap, Media Influences, and Hoop Dreams

Children Make Foolish Choices When They Have Nothing To Lose: Sex and Sexuality

A Man Who Stands For Nothing Will Fall for Anything: Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Force Against Force Equals More Force: Violence and Gangs

If You Are On A Road To Nowhere, Find Another Road: Taking Our Sons Back from the Streets

The One Who Asks Questions Doesn't Lose His Way: Getting Past the Fear of Counseling

Keep Your Eyes On the Prize. Hold On: A Parent's Survival Guide

Index