Manhood Impossible: Men's Struggles to Control and Transform their Bodies and Work by Scott Melzer

Author:Scott Melzer [Melzer, Scott]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, General, Men's Studies, Gender Studies, Psychology, Social Psychology, Sociology, Marriage & Family, Human Sexuality
ISBN: 9780813584928
Google: Jvy9DwAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 36411496
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Published: 2018-08-31T00:00:00+00:00

Part II

The Breadwinner Dilemma

5

Non-breadwinners

Unemployed Men and Stay-at-Home Dads

It’s a moderate Autumn day in Southeast Michigan, sunshine and comfortable temperatures concealing the long winter ahead. The sounds of Detroit-area radio fill my car as I travel east on I-96 toward a job fair. I scan the FM spectrum until it lands on a Motown station. Smokey Robinson is crying the “Tears of a Clown” for a lost love. I exit the highway onto Greenfield Road, having missed the expressway split that allows for local exits. This error takes me through the Fishkorn neighborhood of Detroit, a predominantly African American area struggling to survive years of tough times, like much of the city. No snow yet means it’s still construction season. The middle lane is being resurfaced, but the harsh weather and what looks like years of neglect leaves the street pockmarked with potholes and generally unforgiving to the dutiful Motor City procession of American-brand cars. Rundown buildings house small businesses and chain fast-food restaurants. Auto repair, hair care, men’s clothing, and tire and rim shops are nestled by gas stations, a dollar store, a county agency and low-cost apartments. Many of the businesses are closed, some permanently, and others only curiously so during business hours, as the weekday lunch hour approaches. Steel fencing and bars protect business windows from being smashed and imprison cars awaiting repair in auto shop lots. This section of the city looks like what I imagine most rustbelt areas of the country do: battered by decades of deindustrialization and disproportionately suffering from the lingering effects of the Great Recession.

Another scan of the radio and the tuner finds a station playing gospel music. Kirk Franklin sings “I Smile,” dedicating his song to “recession, depression, and unemployment.” He tries to lift the spirits of those in Fishkorn and everywhere else, sharing their struggles, singing of better days ahead, telling them to remember that God is working for them, encouraging them not to give up despite how difficult their lives seem. He asks them to smile even though they hurt.

Abruptly, without turning, I enter the city of Dearborn. The roads, buildings, and landscaping suddenly and dramatically improve. Well-maintained businesses flank the smooth streets. A right turn onto Ford Road opens up a newer and shinier world. Big-box stores and national chain restaurants accompany a shopping center that can compete with most upscale malls; their website offers the tagline “You have the right to remain fabulous.” I envision Kirk Franklin smiling ironically.

I pull into the hotel parking lot where today’s job fair is being held. Staring back at me across the highway is Ford Motor Company’s sprawling headquarters, glistening in the sun, looming as a reminder of why Dearborn’s streets and businesses contrast so starkly with Fishkorn’s. But the imposing glass buildings emblazoned with the Ford emblem also tell another story. They are a reminder of the decline of the auto industry and U.S. manufacturing. For so many listening to Kirk Franklin (and, more so, their parents and grandparents), Ford’s headquarters

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.