
Freedom Child essay
It has been argued that the confusion of
African American child rearing techniques with abuse is at least partially responsible for the fact that
African American children are grossly over represented in the foster care system across the United States (2). While they make up only 15% of the population
African American children comprise approximately 27% of the reported cases of abuse. Furthermore, as they progress through the system their over representation increases. Currently about 50% of the 250,000 children in foster care are
African American . This means that while only 9% of the white children reported for abuse ends up in foster care, 24% of the
African American children reported for abuse ends up in foster care. If we take into account that
African American children are reported at a rate almost double their representation in the population in the first place, the result is that
African American children are being removed from their families at a rate that is almost five times higher than that of white children.(2) The literature also indicates that, in addition to coming into care more _frequently,
African American children remain in care longer and may receive fewer desirable placements than white children (2). McCray's book "Freedom's Child" argues that the
African American preference for physical discipline not only leads to a higher rate of reported cases of abuse, and thus a higher rate of initial contact with social services than white families, but that the cultural nature of the
African American preference for physical discipline results in an unwillingness on the part of
African American parents to alter their parenting styles.