"The Lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara is a story that shows me how the cycle continues. A mother and aunt are not educated and don't have a clue of what goes on in the real world. Therefore, the kids are living the dream of their parents. Living in a neighborhood infested with drug dealers, users and drunks. They live in a poor neighborhood where everyone is living on government assistance (food stamp) and the kids think they know everything about life. The neighborhood looks like a slum, people are standing on the street corners and asking for a hand out, which is all they see and know. Look around doesn't it remind you of areas in Detroit.
Miss Moore (an educated lady) lived in the neighborhood once upon a time, who decided to give back to the community. Miss Moore "She'd been to college and said it was only right that she should take responsibility for the young ones' education". She noticed a group of kids who looked like they were up to no good or just looking for attention, so she befriended them and took them under her wings teaching them about life. At first the kids were resistance calling her out of her name. "That nappy head ------ and her ------ college degree". Its summer, hot and school is out and its fun time, no kids want to be studying if they don't have to. Instead of book work Miss Moore decided to expose the kids to the real world. So she took the young adult to the toy store (FAO Schwarz toy store) somewhere they have never been before. I could only imagine the look on their face knowing they can go across eight (8) mile road to see how other people just like them are living.
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Miss Moore asked the question "do we know what money is? The kids were offended; she must think we are stupid. "I mean real money, she said," from that question you can tell they don't know what real money is. If you have asked the price of a toy sailboat you don't know what real money is. Poor people think that white folks are crazy because they spend thousands of dollars buying toys.
