Make These Young Men Visible

The Pittsburg Post Gazette is doing a series on the plight of young black males entitled Invisible Men
The first article recites the negative statistics on black men nationwide then focuses on Pittsburgh.

* Black male achievement begins to decline as early as the fourth grade. By high school, black males are more likely to drop out; in 2001, only 42.8 percent graduated from high school, compared to 70.8 percent for their white counterparts.

Like their white and Hispanic counterparts, young black males are not born as criminals, prisoners or dropouts.
Once they leave the cradle, though, something happens to push a large percentage of black men toward such negative consequences, sociologists say. The factors most cited as causes are fatherlessness, a pervasive negative entertainment culture, racism and multi-generational poverty that leaves families without the tools to make structural change.

University of Pittsburgh studies show that black Americans in this city are worse off than in 70 comparable cities across the nation

The series is an effort to put names and faces to these young men and let them tell their own story.

A group of Post-Gazette reporters conceived of the Invisible Men series as a way to let the subjects of so many studies and articles and hand-wringing speak for themselves.

Even though no Pittsburgh schools were represented at The Gathering of Leaders, the schools that were there are a great source of stories of young black men who are making it, and their story should be heard.

We need your help. Please call at 412-263-1410 or email us at invisiblemen@post-gazette.com with your stories of young black men who struggle with being a school dropout, unemployed or disconnected from family. Let us also know about the young black male who has succeeded against the odds to enter college, start a business, maintain a positive presence as a young father or who was mentored by an individual or program you'd like to brag about.Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania)