The generation of African Americans that came of age during the ’60s and ’70s was taught that having the American dream—a job, a house, a car—was the pinnacle of success. They used every tool at their disposal, and demanded those that weren’t, in the struggle to achieve that goal. And now that they’ve achieved it, those now-parents, most of them nicely settled into middle-class life, are teaching that same definition of success to their children.
