Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Struggles of the Black Family in Northern Cites

Describe the challenges facing the urban, Black family in the Post-Civil Rights era. Would you describe the Claudine, the main character, as a proud women?

5 comments:

Emanae Smith said...

The challenges that blacks faced were the need for money having to work displeasuring jobs just to get by and survive, being on government funds like welfare and having to worry about then always coming to their houses inspecting them, if they have a job, if they have a love life right now and being deducted from their money if they do have someone their dating and they're buying them and their family things even if its a little 25 cent ice cream or a bag of chips or something basically not being able to be free like they should be because they have no money and are barely making it. I believe Claudine actually is a proud black woman. She is a single mother raising six kids, Charles, Charlene, Patrice, Paul, Francis, and Lurlene and she does this on her own while working for a white family who don't pay her much anyway and where the womn of that house is always hasseling her when she is late and making her stay even longer to make it up and getting money from welfare just to get by and they hassel her too on if she has a job, if she has a man, when she buys new things, and more. Although she has to lie to welfare because she has a job and is on welfare at the same time and isnt suppose to be and was at first afraid to tell roop where she lived I don't think that makes her "un-proud" at all. I think she is a proud woman and I think she's brave because she is doing all of this nd suffereing from it on her own and she does what she has to do to take care of her family while also finding a bit of happiness of her own.

Nia Thomas said...

Post Civil Rights era, African Americans faced hard times. Especially hard economic times. Blacks had to work unpleasing jobs just to make it and had to work long and hard hours but not for much money. The money they received from their jobs was not enough to get by or to take care of a family, so blacks were forced to settle for welfare [financial aid from the government]. After watching the movie Claudine, I would describe Claudine as a proud women. Simply because although she did not have much, she still found a way to take care of her family. I felt like she was proud of who she was and proud of all of her six children although they did not always make the right decisions. Even though she was on welfare and fought with the government, Claudine still stood for what she believed in. Claudine fell in love with a garbage man name Roop. I think the scene that made me realize that she was proud of who she was was when she introduced him to her family on the night of their first date. She allowed herself to be free around him and her children, except Charles seemed to loved him. Claudine still does not seem to depend on Roop for money or any thing like that, so in my eyes she is a strong black woman who can stand on her own and support herself. They last thing that showed me that Claudine was a proud woman was towards the end when she and her family all were arrested for a protest started by her son Charles.

April Balobalo said...

During the Post-Civil Rights Era, black families face many challenges such as finically. Claudine has to lie about her life style when the welfare comes to check her house and her budget. She has to hide everything that is “expensive” in their eyes, and also hide her current boyfriend. She faces many challenges with her six kids, trying to raise them up, while she hides that she has a job from the welfare. She finically needs help, so while she is on welfare she hides that she has a job to pay for her family’s expenses. I do see Claudine as a proud woman. She doesn’t hide that she has six kids, especially to Roop. Also when she stands up to the welfare, she becomes even more proud when she says what she does. She is not ashamed to be on welfare, and to have a job by lying to the welfare. She faces many challenges, but with those challenges she doesn’t hide who she really is. Claudine is a strong woman with six kids, and who is on welfare. She does everything she can to raise her children, even if it is lying to the government.

Dao Tang said...

During the Post-Civil Rights Era, many black families faced struggled with financial needs. It was even harder for single mothers like Claudine, having to take care of six children. Although her life isn’t the “American dream”, she still remains by it like a proud woman. Claudine struggled between her work, her children, and on top of that, her lies; fearing that she will not have enough food or money to provide for her children, Claudine lies to her social worker about being unemployed and single. Even when she meets Roop , who she eventually falls in love with, Claudine still remains by her lies. In other words, it shows that Claudine wasn’t ashamed to be seen as a single mother who doesn’t depend on men for their money, but rather for their love. In addition, I also agreed with April on the fact that Claudine introduces her six children to Roop when they first met which also revealed that she isn’t afraid of men judging her based on her background.

Suhaylah Stones said...

Describe the challenges facing the urban, Black family in the Post-Civil Rights era. Would you describe the Claudine, the main character, as a proud women?

Black families during the post civil right era didn't have many oppurtunities in life. There was a lot of police brutality and ongoing lack of job openings.The society that they lived in made it hard for them to get buy on just the minimun. A lot of black families were on welfare do to their low income, inability to pay bills, buy food , e.t.c. The main character Claudine was, like many other black women at the time , single mothers leading their households income. I would say she's a proud women because she was never ashamed of being on welfare or being a single mother. She was all about her family and she did what she had to do to take care of them. At her high point she and the rest of her children got arrested with her eldest son to show that she supported him no matter what he choose do with his future, thats what showed me she was a proud woman.