Curriculum Review of Growing Up Black and Proud

By Sarah Barton, Sagamore Institute Faith in Communities, 2004

Growing Up Black and Proud:  A Guide for Teenagers is a prevention workbook that it is designed specifically for African-American youth.  Its goal is to prevent alcohol and drug use by black youth by helping them to develop a positive racial identity and sense of community.  In addition, it is aimed at helping them gain the knowledge and skills they need to move into adulthood free of drugs and alcohol.  This curriculum can be used by youth individually or in small groups.  The topics covered, with the aid of interesting exercises and illustrations, will do a great job of stimulating discussion in a group setting. 

The first several chapters of the workbook focus on issues relating to the development of a positive racial identity and how it can be affected by the surrounding culture and its prejudices.  Topics included are:  Identity; How Are Blacks Viewed?;  Stereotyping; The Impact of Integration; Cultural Boundaries; African-American Male-Female Relationships; and Racism and Its Impact.  Youth are guided into thinking about how they are unique, how their race influences who they are, how their interactions with other blacks may differ from interactions with whites or other groups, and how to react to racism.

The next four chapters provide youth with information about chemical dependency and its impact.  These chapters include the following topics: 

·       What is Chemical Dependence?

·       How Does Someone Become Chemically Dependent?

·       How Chemical Dependence Affects Friends, Family and You, and

·       How Chemical Dependence Affects the African-American Community. 

The exercises and information included in these chapters will help youth to determine if someone they know is chemically dependent, to identify the effects and impact of chemical dependency, and to develop coping mechanisms to deal with someone else’s chemical dependency.

The remaining chapters equip African-American youth with the skills needed to stay free of alcohol and drugs.  The topics in these chapters are:  Communicating; Dealing with Feelings; Making Decisions/Solving Problems/Resolving Conflicts; and Dealing with Peer Pressure.  These chapters provide exercises and information that will help youth to learn these essential life skills and provide examples of what can happen in their absence.

To assist group leaders, the Growing Up Black and Proud:  Facilitator’s Guidebook and the Growing Up Black and Proud Video are also available.