HEY COS: A woman at work who sits in the next cubicle from me recently went to see Bill Cosby speak at an urban church. As you might know, Mr. Cosby has been saying some blunt and controversial things lately about the need for African-Americans, especially young urban men, to pull up their own bootstraps. The woman in question also happens to be African-American and grew up in a low-income urban neighborhood, so her reactions were of much interest to me. I am grateful for her trust in sharing her impressions and opinions with an old white guy like me.

Ms. G (I’m tempted to say “Miss G”, following that quaint but charming Southern custom of addressing respected women as “miss” even when they are married) said that in her opinion, Cosby is on the money and is doing the right thing. She will be the first to tell you that there’s still plenty of anti-black racism out there on the part of whites (and maybe other ethnic groups too). But despite that, she sees a lot of black females from the inner-city (like herself) who have struggled to achieve a decent life and a responsible career, and expect their children to do even better. Like Cos, Ms. G believes that most every black individual today can overcome residual racist attitudes with enough work and willpower. But for whatever reason, too many young black men do not properly apply themselves, and thus become trapped in a world of gangs and crime and jail. Both Mr. Cosby and Ms. G feel that although our white dominated society still owes these men something, they’re long overdue for a wake-up call from within their own social community. As Ms. G says, “let’s keep it real”.

I take my hat off to Bill Cosby for what he’s doing. He’s taking some real risks and drawing some fire from black leaders who are probably afraid that a “pull your own bootstraps” message plays into the modern Republican agenda. I’ll be the first to agree that Cosby and his peers have to keep pitching for continued government assistance for the inner city. But there is a real problem regarding young black men in urban areas who leave the trajectory of education / career / family responsibility and follow a variety of meandering paths involving temporary jobs, crime, substance abuse, gang involvement, homeless shelters and jail time.

I’ve read a few research studies by well-intentioned academians who examine some Census statistics and crime surveys and employment reports and then conclude that the idea of the drifting, lawless urban black male is just a stereotype made up by bigoted Republicans. But Cos lived there and Ms. G still lives there, and they will tell you that it ain’t just a stereotype. I’ve driven the streets of inner-city areas on weekday mornings and early afternoons, and I too can tell you that there are way too many young men out there who should be in school or at work. And I can name more than one social worker who will tell you that you’ve got to get through to 8 and 10 year old boys, or else another generation will be lost (that’s exactly the way they put it).

I’ll readily admit that the starting end of the job ladder these days is like the proverbial “s*** end of the stick”. Back in my grandparent’s time, there were unions that gave factory workers some dignity and maybe even livable wages. Today, there aren’t any unions at most fast-food restaurants and health care institutions, so the low-end jobs there are generally unpleasant and low-paying. But I see a lot of immigrants taking those crummy jobs. They seem to know that you’ve gotta start somewhere to get somewhere.

I hope that Mr. Cosby’s message will bolster the attitude that already exists in the inner city neighborhoods among community pillars like Ms. G, that they will not quietly tolerate young men who drop out of school and assume an “alternate life track”. If the community backbone makes it clear that it disapproves of the “alternate life” (and there are a lot of good, hard-working, positive people living in the “ghettos” who form that backbone – that’s something that many white liberals and researchers fail to appreciate), then change is possible. Peer pressure is a very powerful thing. Let’s just hope that the pressure from Cosby and his supporters keeps up even when the alternate crowd accuses them of being Uncle Toms and Oreos, i.e. white inside. (Ironically, hip-hop artists love to exploit this line, even though they almost never live in the ‘hoods they chant of.)