1.1 Black Male Spiritual Expression in Celebrations of Life and Homegoing
African American funeral practices have adopted a celebration of life quality for two important reasons. First, they are extensions of elaborate African cultural funeral practices. Second, African Americans have a history of sudden and violent death stemming from oppression, and for many African Americans, passing on represents transitioning to a new existence free of pain and suffering (Bordere, 2008). In order to glean information that might helpful beyond the clinical setting, Bordere (2008) explored cultural rituals that might aid the grieving process for Black males. Young people who participate in funeral rituals are less likely to have symptoms associated with the grieving process.
Second-lining (New Orleans Jazz-style) funerals date back to slavery, when Black people celebrated the passage of their deceased in extravagant celebrations, building on West African funeral practices (Bordere, 2008). Second-line processions usually consist of a small band, family, friends, and passersby. The band plays upbeat music while the procession follows doing a dance-style strut, passing by the home and favorite places of the deceased (Bordere, 2008). But second-lines are not restricted to funerals. They are also done as celebrations for Mardi Gras, birthdays, and other events. Unlike so-called traditional funerals where women are the primary mourners, males have been identified as the primary mourners at second-lines (Bordere, 2008). Bordere (2008) found that at second-lines, Black males reported receiving messages that death is a celebration for remembrance and unification. The expression of emotion through dancing and a happy demeaner creates an emotional climate for viewing death another way. Dancing at second-lines is a way of unifying the physical and spiritual realms to remember those who have passed on. It is important to note that most of the males expressed their wish to have both “regular” funerals and second-lines.
Bordere (2008) also observed the way Black males communicated messages through clothing—suits, shorts, and other styles. However, Bordere found that Black teenage males mostly wore t-shirts as a cultural symbol of remembrance and honor, with the t-shirts featuring the faces of the deceased and/or their birthdate, a quote (such as “Gone but not forgotten”), or symbols of unification. Males may be participating in second-lining more than women because these events offer more ways for men to express a greater range of emotion (Bordere, 2008). At second-lines, people can become traveling monuments to the people who have passed on (Bordere, 2008).
In other cases, African American males and females engage in certain non-verbal cultural forms of mourning death. In her study, For All the Brothas Who Ain’t Here, Flagg (2013) investigated African American roadside memorials as material culture. Family and friends of victims use plush toys, flowers, balloons, written messages, and other items to mourn, commemorate, and honor persons who have died. Flagg’s (2013) work demonstrates how the analysis of material culture, among people of African descent, very often includes the spiritual meaning attached to such materials.
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Time
Time is a key element of African philosophy (Mbuvi, 2009b). African conceptualizations of time are human-centered, and not a thing that is separate from the human experience or dictates the human experience. Tishken (2000) explains that across African cultures, time is something to be lived, not measured. As Tishken (2000) explains, “In most African societies, a period of rest occurred around ←21 | 22→midday when the sun was directly overhead. Whether the sun reached its apex at 12 noon, 1 p.m. or precisely at 12:08 and 30 seconds was of no importance. What was of importance, was that the sun reached its apex and when it did, one rested” (p. 76). Mbiti (1970) explains African conceptualizations of time as cyclical and not linear, based on the cycles of life. Somewhat differently, yet building on Mbiti’s understanding, Tishken (2000) explains that African ideas of time are actually more of a spiral due to the fact that they combine linearity and circularity. For example, in many African societies, great importance was placed on the ability to recall the names of succession in lineage—grandfather was preceded by another ancestor, and so on. However, many African people understand that the same people who have died are still alive and active in the present as ancestors, thus reflecting a circular conceptualization of time. Nobles (2006) explains that even African calendars were based on significant natural and human experiences (seasons/harvest) instead of purely mathematical moments.
African American males have been found by social scientists to be present/past time oriented (Jones, 1991b; White & Cones, 1999). Among African Americans, the cliché, “colored people’s time,” is often used to refer to this phenomenon. This social orientation of time speaks to a reality where it is acceptable for events to begin when people arrive and end when they leave, instead of being rigidly based on precise mathematic times. Rubin and Belgrave (1999) conducted an investigation measuring differences between African American and European American college students in relative and mathematical time orientations. They found African Americans to use time in a more flexible way compared to European Americans. In the study, research participants gave responses about when they were more likely to arrive at events such as a meeting with a professor, a job interview, or a social dinner. African American participants were more likely to respond with descriptive and approximate times (very early, early, late, very late) instead of mathematical times (i.e., 15 minutes late, five minutes early, etc.), for formal and informal events.
Improvisation
Jones (1991a) identifies improvisation as a distinguishing characteristic of African and African American cultures. It is defined as “expressive creativity under pressure of immediacy” (Jones, 1991a, p. 623). Improvisation is both expressive and instrumental. It is expressive because it allows people to demonstrate their unique character or style, and it is instrumental because it also involves using one’s presence of mind and knowledge and skills to achieve the desired goal, meet a challenge, or solve a problem. Jones (1991a) explains that African American male improvisation is often celebrated in music and athletics but is by no means limited to just those social spheres. Because traditional routes to achievement have been unavailable, limited, or made difficult due to discrimination in the U.S., improvisation has been a necessary approach to achievement in general, including education, family, and religion-related pursuits. According to White and Cones (1999), African American males have been taught to be resourceful and innovative due to a limited range of life options. Successful improvisation requires imagining possibilities that are not entirely apparent, devising a plan to make them a reality, being willing to risk failure, learning from setbacks, and maintaining motivation (White & Cones, 1999).
African Americans have placed high value and praise on the ability to perform skillfully and stylishly in situations where the demands are not known in advance, whether it involves starting a business, becoming a president, a professor or a preacher. However, it could also involve creating off the dribble in a basketball game, freestyling, or dancing partiality for individuality should not be read as individualism. Gifford and Kochman (1989) explain it as an African American cultural value that says, “tell me what to do, but not how to do it.” (p. 297)
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Power Distance
Power distance refers to the extent to which the less powerful members of a society, institution, or organization expect and accept that power is distributed unequally (Hofstede & Hofstede, 2005). High power distance environments are associated with authoritarian values in parenting, work environment, and education. Moreover, collectivist cultures tend to have higher power distance values. In low or small power distance business environments, employers engage in a more consultative style of decision making with their employees. In low power distance classrooms, teachers address their students as equals, there is less deference to teachers as authority figures, and students are expected to ask questions and find their own intellectual path. In low power distance cultures, parents are more permissive and treat their children more like equals, children are less dependent on parents, and have less deference for their parents compared to those in high power distance cultures.
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