The Issues and Assets of African Youth on Staten Island's North Shore:

Table 2: Adult Literacy in West AfricaCountry Female(% 15+)1995-2005Male(% 15+)1995-2005HumanDevelopmentRank(out <strong>of</strong> 179countries)Liberia 45.7% 58.3% 176Sierra24.2 % 46.7% 179LeoneGuinea 18.1 % 42.6% 167Ghana 49.1 % 66.4% 142Nigeria 60.1 % 78.2% 154Source: UNDP, http://hdr.undp.org/en/Economic dem<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> limited optionsMany <strong>African</strong> parents have very limited time available tointeract with their children‟s teachers, after-school programleaders, <strong>and</strong> others because <strong>of</strong> the financial dem<strong>and</strong>s onthem are large compared to their earning power. <strong>The</strong>y aresupporting not only their family in the United States, but alsoimmediate <strong>and</strong> extended family back home. Many work longhours <strong>and</strong>/or multiple jobs.A significant number <strong>of</strong>parents work in the homehealth field. <strong>The</strong>se jobs<strong>of</strong>fer relatively competitivewages <strong>and</strong> opportunity forovertime for individualswithout a high level <strong>of</strong>formal education, <strong>and</strong>social networks provide alink to jobs.“Kids are left alone inapartments to care forthemselves while theirparents are out working.Some <strong>of</strong> these parentsdo live-in [work] <strong>and</strong> aregone for days.”Parent focus group, 3/24/09.Home health jobs play a vital role in the economic well-being<strong>of</strong> the North Shore <strong>African</strong> community. However, the relianceon this sector strains families <strong>and</strong> the community. Homehealth jobs are physically dem<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>and</strong> characterized byvery long hours, overnight shifts or live-in arrangements.Some assessment participants reported that home healthemployers exploit their <strong>African</strong> employees, who they knowhave limited job options.Some parents may prioritize work over being involved intheir children‟s activities because <strong>of</strong> their life experience.Many who lived through war or in refugee camps wereseparated from their families <strong>and</strong> had to find ways to supportthemselves <strong>and</strong> others at an early age. One fatherconcluded that the war‟s impact on Liberia parents whenthey were young is having secondary impacts on theirchildren on the North Shore:“…Most <strong>of</strong> the kids who traveled to the USAfrom various refugee camps were left aloneto take care <strong>of</strong> themselves, or the entirefamily. <strong>The</strong>refore most <strong>of</strong> these kidsbecame adults before they were even kids.And this is all due to the civil war in Liberia;this is also affecting even the kids that areborn today to parents who parentedthemselves during the war, <strong>and</strong> in refugeecamps around the world. During the warparents could not afford to support theirfamily, so their young girls became thebreadwinners for the family, they used theirbody for money; I am talking about girlsages 10 <strong>and</strong> above, sleeping with grown upadult men who could be their fathers. Thosevery kids are adult today <strong>and</strong> having children<strong>of</strong> their own, <strong>and</strong> because <strong>of</strong> theirupbringing, they cannot raise kids <strong>of</strong> theirown.” 4444 Parent focus group, <strong>African</strong> father, March 24, 2009.26