>You said it yourself,
>I could not have put it any better. "SINCE WE GOT HERE ON
>SLAVE SHIPS". AIN'T NOTHIN' NEW". Think about what YOU just
>said. Was the institution of slavery designed to edify OR
>destroy our sense of family or community?

That's a rhetorical question. Slavery was designed to commodify human beings, not promote Black families.

>PRECISELY. VERY well put. We (Black men and women) MUST
>destoy the mentality of "if she's old enough to bleed, she's
>old enough to breed".(which was inculcated in us ever "since
>we got here on slave ships") As soon as young Black girls
>start to get some butt, hips and breasts, they immediately
>start getting viewed as sex objects...

Yep. When I was 17 my mother's ex-husband tried to cop a feel. I stood up for myself but I was disgusted. Fortunately, my Pops told me the deal before I went off on my own.

>and even sadder, many of
>our young sisters think that their sexuality is all they are
>good for.

Well, this lack of self-esteem and self-worth is actually something that many Black women have to deal with...often alone. It extends from childhood, into our teens and adulthood.

>Truly the SLAVE MENTALITY. And it is DISGUSTING
>that Black MEN participate in this horrible
>phenomenon...either that or give tacit support by sitting idly
>and letting it happen.

:-) Those are the guys who like to point the finger or pin the blame. Some of these guys complain on a Sunday when they know they were doing wrong on Saturday. Men AND women have to stop acting like this is not a problem.

>I applaud the fact that you are taking the time out of your
>life to mentor a young person...good to see that there are
>people out there willing to roll up their sleeves and get to
>work. But once again, you are proving my point. You said she
>has been in this destructive pattern SINCE SHE WAS 16.
>SIXTEEN. A kid. Having kids. Repeatedly. She may be 30
>years old, but where is she as far as maturity goes?

I don't know and I try not to judge her because I am not in her shoes but it makes me feel frustrated, anyway.

>Sounds
>like the only "adult" thing she can do is open her legs. I'm
>gonna go out on a limb and venture to say that if she had her
>nose in a book instead of her tail in some cat's bed having
>baby after baby, she would be a much more productive
>person...don't you agree?

Yeah, well, she likes being on the street more than anything. I used to see her on the corner outside of the place where I worked...every day. Most of the time she was the only woman out there, with a bunch of older men.