Timothy Black

Mary Patrice Erdmans

On Becoming a Teen Mom: Life before Pregnancy

A WASHINGTON POST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Based on an unprecedented eighteen-year study, the center of this riveting book are three engaging streetwise brothers who provide powerful testimony to the exigencies of life lived on the social and economic margins. With profound lessons regarding the intersection of social forces and individual choices, Black succeeds in putting a human face on some of the most important public policy issues of our time.

When a Heart Turns Rock Solid

On the brink of humanity’s extinction, Nikola Tesla and a mysterious order of scientists known as the Tellurians revealed a bold plan to save a world ravaged by a disease that turned sane men into ravenous werewolves: the uninfected would abandon the Earth’s surface by rising up in floating salvation cities, iron and steel metropolises that carried tens of thousands of refugees above the savage apocalypse. Twenty years later, only one salvation city remains aloft, while the beasts still rule the world below. Time has taken its toll on the miraculous machinery of the city, and soon the last of the survivors will plummet to their doom. But when Elijah Kelly, a brakeman aboard the largest of the city’s Thunder Trains, is infected by the werewolf virus, he discovers a secret world of lies and horrific experiments that hide the disturbing truth about the Tellurians. When the beast in his blood surges forth, Elijah must choose between the lives of those he loves, and the city that is humanity’s last hope of survival.

Gearteeth

"In 2013, the New York City Public Health Department placed public service announcements on trains and buses and at transportation stops that showed photos of frowning or crying children saying such things as 'I'm twice as likely not to graduate high school because you had me as a teen' and 'Honestly, Mom ... Chances are he won't stay with you. What happens to me?' Campaigns like this support a public narrative that portrays teen mothers as threatening the moral order, bankrupting state coffers, and causing high rates of poverty, incarceration, and school dropout. These campaigns demonize teen mothers but tell us nothing about their lives before they became pregnant. In this myth-shattering and often deeply disturbing book, sociologists Mary Patrice Erdmans and Timothy Black tell the life stories of 108 brown, white, and black teen mothers. They expose the problems that cause distress in these young women's lives and that are often overlooked in pregnancy prevention campaigns. Some stories are tragic and painful, marked by child sexual abuse, partner violence, and school failure. Others are less devastating, depicting 'girl next door' characters whose unintended pregnancies expose their lack of contraception and unwillingness to abort. Offering a fresh critical perspective on the links between early childbirth and social inequalities, On Becoming a Teen Mom demonstrates how the intersecting hierarchies of gender, race, and social class shape the personal stories of young mothers"--Provided by publisher.

Life Before Pregnancy

On Becoming a Teen Mom

A WASHINGTON POST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR This provocative and compelling book examines how jobs, schools, the streets, and prisons have shaped the lives and choices of a generation of Puerto Rican youth at the turn of the twenty-first century. At the center of this riveting account–based on an unprecedented eighteen-year study–are three engaging, streetwise brothers from Springfield, Massachusetts: Fausto, incarcerated for seven years and in and out of drug treatment, an insightful and sensitive street warrior playing on the edges of self-destruction; Julio, the family patriarch, a former gang member turned truck driver, fiercely loyal to his family and friends; and Sammy, a street maven, recovering drug addict, father of four, straddling two realms–the everyday world of low-wage work and the allure of the drug economy–as he shuttles between recovery and relapse. Timothy Black spent years with the brothers and their parents, wives and girlfriends, extended family, coworkers, criminal partners, friends, teachers, lawyers, and case workers. He closely observed street life in Springfield, including the drug trade; schools and GED programs; courtrooms, prisons, and drug treatment programs; and the young men’s struggle for employment both on and off the books. The brothers, articulate and determined, speak for themselves, providing powerful testimony to the exigencies of life lived on the social and economic margins. The result is a singularly detailed and empathetic portrait of men who are often regarded with fear or simply rendered invisible by society. With profound lessons regarding the intersection of social forces and individual choices, Black succeeds in putting a human face on some of the most important public policy issues of our time. From the Hardcover edition.

The Lives of Three Puerto Rican Brothers on and Off the Streets

The 'good news' of Jesus, properly understood, will change the world. Jesus was clear: Love God, love your neighbor as you love yourself. We have separated the holistic teaching of Jesus into two categories, word and deed, creating a dualism that leaves neither side with the full story. The research is practical with a focus to help the Church see its role in the transformation of society by caring for its neighbors. It argues from many angles, looking at Evangelical and church history to guide the present, modern developmental practices to assist strategy and a socio-rhetorical examination of James 2 to anchor it all in Scripture. All in all, the goal is to encourage the church to retrieve its mantle and reach a lost world by holistically bringing transformation--both physical and spiritual--through the power of the gospel.

The role of the church in the transformation of society

The Gospel as Social Revolution

Sky Keyes

"The norms and expectations of father involvement have changed rapidly within one to two generations. Socially and economically marginalized fathers are being exposed to these messages through popular culture and the media, in state welfare, child protection, prisons, and probation offices, as well as in child support and family courts. Moreover, they are being told that it is up to them to make better choices, to get themselves together, and to be involved fathers. Based on life history interviews with 138 low-income fathers, Black and Keyes show that fathers have internalized these messages and sound determined. After all, there is social worth in fatherhood, hope for creating meaningful lives or new beginnings, the fantasy of leaving something of value behind in the world, and a stake in resisting stigmatizing labels like the deadbeat dad. Most will, however, fall short for several reasons: first, while the expectations for father involvement were increasing, state and economic support for low income families was decreasing; second, vulnerable fathers often lack viable models to guide them; third, living in dangerous neighborhoods compromises fatherhood and leaves fathers at odds with dominant institutional narratives about being nurturing fathers, and fourth, the dark side of poverty, inscribed on bodies and minds, leaves some struggling with childhood traumas and unhealthy routines to mitigate or numb these painful developmental disruptions. Consequently, the authors assert that without transformative economic, political and social change that would facilitate and support engaged and nurturing fatherhood, these fathers are being "set-up.""--

Timothy Black

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