The Old School Journal™ seeks to bring clarity to the discussion of historically divisive social issues in the United States. Among the social issues that most divide Americans, TOSJ focuses on poverty, racism and sexism. Americans often find themselves divided along socio-political or socio-economic lines or both when it comes to the issues of class, gender and race. Many times, an attempt to eng
age in a constructive dialogue of such social conundrums devolves into a quagmire of finger-pointing and emotionally-charged reiterations of past injustices. This continuous cycle works to undermine the intellectual quality of such discussions and, thereby, diminishes the social value of engaging in the very conversation for many otherwise socially-conscious Americans. TOSJ believes the divide occurs due to gross misunderstandings. More specifically, we see a lack of agreement on how to identify instances of discrimination. For example, discussions about race rarely result in any sustainable solutions because people fail to agree on what constitutes an act of racism. TOSJ bridges the divide by first building consensus on what racism is, what an act of racism looks like and what beliefs or actions make a person a racist. The Old School Journal™ (TOSJ) provides real talk with respect to the issues of the day reflected in the lives of everyday Americans. The Old School Journal™ seeks to inject the voice of the Hip Hop Generation—i.e. women and men born from 1968 to 1984—into the prevailing forums that influence the very evolution of American society. The Old School Journal™ offers news, commentary, poetry and prose through our primary weblogs, other Internet publications and constituent web properties. TOSJ also seeks to restore the fundamental social values that gave meaning to the phase: "I give you my word", provided relevance to the proverb that "it takes a village to raise a child", and made the promise of "until death do us part" the rule rather than the exception.
