Speaker

Seattle, WA May 6, 2017
Being black is not only dangerous, it's distracting

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a condition characterized by problems paying attention and difficulty controlling behavior. A large part of developing the condition is the environment a child grows up in: If the parents are stressed out or distracted and can't give the child the attention he or she needs to develop healthily, ADD can occur.

What does ADD have to do with being Black?

Well, Black people, on average, are over-represented in the US prison system, make a lower household income, and have much lower NET worths than other races. Factor in a culture where over 100 unarmed Black men can be killed in a year, like in 2015, and you have the kind of stressful conditions that are ripe for developmental issues in children.

So... what can we be doing right now, to fix the situation? How bad is it, really? And what happens if we don't do anything?