Abstract
There is a long-standing history of distrust of law enforcement by the Black community. This distrust dates back to slavery, when slave patrols and night watches, which later evolved into modern-day law enforcement agencies, used force, intimidation, wrongful arrests and murder to control the behaviors of Black people. Black males were specifically targeted because of the fear White men had of their wives sleeping with the Black slaves. Newspapers and other media sources began a concerted effort to dehumanize Black males, which created laws and policies such as the Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow laws represented the legitimization of anti-black racism which relegated Blacks to the status of second-class citizens. The mental and physical scars from slavery, discriminatory housing policies and later, the war on drugs have all contributed to the pain and poverty the Black community has endured. Racial socialization, particularly preparation for bias, discrimination and intimidation, is a long documented strategy employed by Black families to prepare their children for racist encounters, especially with law enforcement. This strategy, known as “The Talk”, is a universal desire by Black parents to keep their children safe. The purpose of this study is to explore how journal articles and media sources (newspapers, blogs, published interview transcripts, videos, news programs) cover and address “The Talk” and its importance, prevalence, and cultural context as represented in these different sources of information. Historically, the portrayal of Blacks in movies and television is less than ideal. The media sets the tone for the morals, values, and images of our culture. Perpetuation of Black, especially, Black males as dangerous has been embedded in American society not only by words and images in literature and books, but also by a wide variety of other media and entertainment sources, including the Internet, movies and video games. Many people in the U.S., some of whom have never encountered Black people, believe that the degrading stereotypes of Blacks is based on reality and not fiction. A qualitative, exploratory, research design was used, based on a content analysis of scholarly peer-reviewed articles and other media sources to understand why “The Talk” holds such importance in the historical background of people in the Black community. Additionally, other materials and media sources were studied in an attempt to understand and explain why Black males are perceived as a threat by law enforcement and society in America, even at an early age and portrayed negatively in the media. This study identified the troubling link between media portrayals, negative public perceptions and lowered life chances for Black males in the U.S. Black males were often discussed in connection with criminal acts of violence, and conversely, police often were discussed with language that embraced sympathy and/or justification. Additional findings were there is minimal research regarding the use of “The Talk” as a community-defined practice in the Black community. Additional research should be completed to understand the components of “The Talk” and if Black children, specifically, Black males who have received “The Talk” have increased positive outcomes when they interact with law enforcement officers. Lastly, The study indicates historical misrepresentation, discrimination and misunderstanding of the Black community by society, which is bolstered by negative media reporting of the character, values and ethics of the Black community.