Purchasing Power: Black Kids and American Consumer Culture

by Elizabeth Chin

What does it mean to be young, poor, and black in our consumer culture? Are black children "brand-crazed consumer addicts" willing to kill each other over a pair of the latest Nike Air Jordans or Barbie backpack? In this first in-depth account of the consumer lives of poor and working-class black children, Elizabeth Chin enters the world of children living in hardship in order to understand the ways they learn to manage living poor in a wealthy society. To move beyond the stereotypical images of black children obsessed with status symbols, Chin spent two years interviewing poor children in New Haven, Connecticut, about where and how they spend their money. An alternate image of the children emerges, one that puts practicality ahead of status in their purchasing decisions. On a twenty-dollar shopping spree with Chin, one boy has to choose between a walkie-talkie set and an X-Men figure. In one of the most painful moments of her research, Chin watches as Davy struggles with his decision. He finally takes the walkie-talkie set, a toy that might be shared with his younger brother. Through personal anecdotes and compelling stories ranging from topics such as Christmas and birthday gifts, shopping malls, Toys-R-Us, neighborhood convenience shops, school lunches, ethnically correct toys, and school supplies, Chin critically examines consumption as a medium through which social inequalities -- most notably of race, class, and gender -- are formed, experienced, imposed, and resisted. Along the way she acknowledges the profound constraints under which the poor and working class must struggle in their daily lives.

Genres: Nonfiction, Anthropology, Race, Sociology

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Bruce Grossman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A disappointment. Long on theory and jargon and wordplay-- short on interviews, vignettes, and images. But it was good to brush up on sociological lingo, especially concerning children, mass consumption, and race. And there were a few nuggets along with the dross. So I would recommend-- it's subject matter is unique. BUT IT SEEMS TO BE part of a growing series of books where the sociology Ph. D. candidate studies the 'hood, leaves the 'hood, nothing changes in the 'hood, but the sociologist gets her Ph. D. and a cushy job teaching in California and lives happily ever after. The End.

[DM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Consumption is structured by social inequality. My favorite section was the chapter detailing what the kids bought on the “shopping spree” and how these purchases related to their social worlds. The chapter on playing with Barbie was also great.

[Cindy Leighton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powerful look at how history, economics and societal attitudes influence the consumer lives of young, urban, poor minorities. Chin grounds her study in a discussion of slavery and how people were consumed, were property, were not allowed to have control over what little they did consume. She discusses the differing explanations of poverty - the result of individual choices and laziness vs systemic inequality. She spends two years interviewing young children in New Haven, Connecticut to determine what kinds of choices poor urban youth actually do make when acting as consumers. And she uses these interviews to counter the popular media images of young urban youth as "combat consumers" - people willing to kill to have "undeserved" material goods.

Her ideas are 5 star and I will definitely be using some of her chapters for my anthro class. I gave the book a 4 star rating because her language is convoluted and unnecessarily obtuse. Yes I understand it is an academic book, but the writing could be more accessible.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh dear. Anyone reminder of consumerism stealing innocence and just generally sucking the life out of our communities.

[Erendira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Main HC107.C8 C47 2001 (place on reserve for Fall 2011)

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good study--I found the sections about ethnically correct dolls and the mall to be most useful to my research.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite ethnographies