There are no children here - Essay Example

Of the two boys, Lafayette assumes the responsibility of his family’s protection and care of his mother. The project is under the control of gangs that are a source of constant threat to the family. The gangs are drug sellers and from time to time, keep involving the residents of the project in their heinous crime. The gangs also possess weapons and have made a lot of children in the neighborhood sell the drugs. Because of the gangs, children living in the project are insecure. Even if they manage to escape the hold of gangs, their future otherwise is also quite vague.

The story is an excellent picture of the hidden truths of the lower class families in America. The reader is told how children in America as young and immature as thirteen years of age get involved in the business of drug dealing and violence. The story offers several points to inculcate robust understanding of the life of urban youth in America in the reader’s mind. The story covers many aspects of the social attitude and activities of juveniles and explains the underlying reasons of their involvement in the domestic violence.

The author has nicely conveyed the way urban youth in America is deprived of the innocence of childhood before the right age. The sort of life that prevails in the project makes the children rough and violent as the time passes. With the passage of time, their personal security becomes more important for them than to see whether the acts they involve themselves in are ethically justified or not. The story also tells that these deprived children can not be underestimated despite all of their sorrows and failures.

This is evident from the fact that Pharaoh shows considerable growth and excellence in his studies, when he is provided with a chance. The author has also pointed towards a harsh reality pertaining to the injustice in America. People in authority that are allotted funds for the improvement of the conditions of the housing project use the funds for personal gains, and do not do their job. Much of the mess in the project can be attributed to the insincerity and carelessness of the personnel representative of the Chicago Housing Authority.

Children of the project suffer because of lack of parental care and nonexistence of role models in their life. To conclude, the story sufficiently explains the effects of greed of the people in authority over the society. Alex Kotlowitz has revealed a unique side of American culture that is conventionally portrayed as very advanced culture with a well cultivated system of justice. This is true that children do require parental care at least for the period when they have not reached adulthood.

Lack of parental care exposes a child to innumerable social threats. Also, children who are not able to enjoy their childhood completely mature before the right age. Hence, they become susceptible to falling prey to various odds of the society. In order to grow children into responsible citizens as adults, it is imperative that they are offered adequate nurturing and grooming when they are in their learning and growing stage. Without the care and supervision of the adults, and with all the insecurity in the neighborhood of gangsters, future of innocent children can not be deemed secure, and they may end up becoming criminals.

The author has made use of reliable sources to make his argument that adds to the validity of information, and