DG - Raising Bertie · heavily on industrial fields—farming and manufacturing. Per-due, one of...

Raising Bertie

A Film by Margaret Byrne

Community Engagement & Education

DISCUSSION GUIDE

www.pbs.org/pov

POV

|2DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

LETTER FROM THE FILMMAKER

I originally came to Bertie County in 2009 to make a short film about the Hive House,

an alternative school for boys. I fell in love with the place and I saw value in a part

of the country that the rest of America seemed to ignore.

After visiting the Hive, I knew there was an important story to be told about African-

American boys growing up in Bertie. When talking to the students, I observed that

they had one thing in common: they all felt misunderstood. We planned to follow

three young men at the school for one year, but early into filming, the Hive was

closed down by the board of education because of budgetary shortfalls.

Instead of abandoning the project, we continued to film Junior, Bud and Dada as

they returned to public high school. I wasn’t sure where the story would lead, but I

did know that the perspective of the boys was worth sharing. People would ask me,

why are you filming them? First and foremost, I saw their value and I recognized

that they were often overlooked and pushed to the side. I also saw that the major-

ity of youth in the community were experiencing struggles similar to theirs, and I

knew I didn’t want to focus on stories of the exceptions.

Though our appearances and upbringings were different, their struggles felt famil-

iar to me. At the time, I was married to an African immigrant who faced many of the

same challenges that the boys did. Not only did he endure the negative stereotype

of being black and poor, but despite having a high school diploma, he could barely

read. None of this defined him. I knew what a strong man he was when he was in his

element. I recognized similar passion and potential in Junior, Bud and Dada.

This film has been a labor of love. As a single mother on public aid, I’m not a typical documentary director. My daughter

stayed with me in Bertie and came with us on shoots. She was 2 when I started this film and has grown up with these fami-

lies, who are now like family to us. Over the last seven years, we have maintained close, trusting relationships with each fam-

ily in the film. I love them and am honored that they trusted me, gave me an unfiltered window into their lives and believed

what we were doing was important.

In editing this story, there were competing pressures: to fight against stereotypes, to tell an exciting story, to tell a story of

unexpected success and to prove that a filmmaker can communicate an honest story about a culture that is not her own. The

truth is, I made a film about three kids I met and cared about. I knew their story needed telling. The individuals in this story

are representative of their community and they matter.

Margaret Byrne

Director, Raising Bertie

Filmmaker Margaret Byrne.

Photo courtesy of Jon Stuyvesant

|3DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

2 Letter from the Filmmaker

4 Introduction

5 Potential Partners

5 Key Issues

5 Using This Guide

6 Background Information

6 Bertie County

7 Economic Challenges

9 Transportation

10 Education

11 Technology

12 Health

13 Housing

15 What is Institutional Racism?

16 It’s Expensive to Be Poor

18 Selected People Featured

in Raising Bertie

19 General Discussion Questions

20 Discussion Prompts

27 Taking Action

28 Resources

29 How to Buy the Film

Writer

Faith Rogow, PhDInsighters Educational Consulting

Background Research and Reporting

Ione BarrowsAssociate, Community Engagement and Education, POV

Guide Producers, POV

Eliza LichtVice President, Content Strategy and Engagement, POV

Alice QuinlanManager, Community Engagement and Education, POV

Design:

Rafael Jiménez

Copy Editor:

Natalie Danford

Thanks to those who reviewed this guide:

Margaret ByrneFilmmaker, Raising Bertie

Ian KibbeProducer, Raising Bertie

Corianne Payton Scally, PhDSenior Research Associate, Urban Institute

Vivian SaundersCEO, The Hive House

TABLE OF CONTENTS CREDITS

Raising Bertie is an intimate portrait of three African-Amer-

ican boys as they face a precarious coming of age in rural

Bertie County, North Carolina. Like many rural areas, Bertie

County struggles with a dwindling economy, a declining

population and a high school graduation rate below the

state average. This powerful vérité film weaves the young

men's narratives together as they work to define their iden-

tities and grow into adulthood while navigating complex re-

lationships, institutional racism, violence, generational

poverty and educational inequity. Raising Bertie asks us to

see this world through their eyes, and to appreciate their

dreams and their substantial will to succeed in a world that

seemingly prefers to imprison or ignore them.

INTRODUCTION

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Raising Bertie

Davonte "Dada" Harrell.

Photo courtesy of Margaret Byrne

Raising Bertie is well suited for use in a variety of settings

and is especially recommended for use with:

• Your local PBS station

• Groups that have discussed previous PBS and POV

films relating to coming of age, African-American

culture(s) or rural America, including American

Promise, Only the Young, All the Difference, 15 to

Life: Kenneth’s Story, Up Heartbreak Hill and

Where Soldiers Come From.

• Groups focused on any of the issues listed in the

“Key Issues” section

• Grassroots organizations like the Hive House that

provide resources

• High school students, youth groups and clubs

• Faith-based organizations and institutions

• Civic, fraternal and community groups

• Cultural, education, art and historical organi-

zations, institutions and museums

• Academic departments and student groups at

colleges, universities and high schools

• Community organizations with a mission to

promote education and learning, such as local

libraries

Raising Bertie is an excellent tool for outreach and will

be of special interest to people looking to explore the

following topics:

• achievement gap

• African-American boys/young men

• alternative schools

• coming of age/manhood

• education/education policy and reform

• graduation rates

• inequity (educational, economic)

• job skills/job training

• North Carolina

• poverty

• race

• racism

• resilience

• rural isolation

• rural youth

• school-to-prison pipeline

• unemployment

• workforce development

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Raising Bertie

USING THIS GUIDE

This guide is an invitation to dialogue. It is based on a belief in the power of human connection, designed for people who

want to use Raising Bertie to engage family, friends, classmates, colleagues and communities. In contrast to initiatives

that foster debates in which participants try to convince others that they are right, this document envisions conversa-

tions undertaken in a spirit of openness in which people try to understand one another and expand their thinking by shar-

ing viewpoints and listening actively.

The discussion prompts are intentionally crafted to help a wide range of audiences think more deeply about the issues

in the film. Rather than attempting to address them all, choose one or two that best meet your needs and interests. And

be sure to leave time to consider taking action. Planning next steps can help people leave the room feeling energized and

optimistic, even in instances when conversations have been difficult.

For more detailed event planning and facilitation tips, visit www.pov.org/engage

POTENTIAL PARTNERS KEY ISSUES

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

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Raising Bertie

Bertie County

Bertie County is less than two hours’ drive from Raleigh, but

it could not feel more remote from North Carolina’s thriving

capital city. Rural and majority African-American, Bertie res-

idents are at the intersection of two demographic groups

that have been economically disadvantaged throughout

American history.

Although North Carolina has recovered from the nationwide

recession that began in 2008, the state’s economic gains

have been unevenly distributed. Unemployment and poverty

remain major challenges in Bertie County. Many of those

who are employed work in positions that are low-paid and

unstable. As in rural areas across the country, manufacturing

was once a pillar of Bertie’s economy, but these jobs have

been disappearing due to changes in industrial technology.

Bertie has also suffered population loss in recent years,

which has made it harder to sustain a vibrant local economy.

Bertie County’s struggling economy has a domino effect. A

school system dogged by budget problems lacks the re-

sources to prepare many students for higher educa-

tion or the workforce, especially those with special

needs. Even in a healthy economy, children born into

poverty face significant barriers in the transition from school

to career. In addition to job scarcity, Bertie residents are held

back by costly transportation, unaffordable housing, limited

access to loans and a lack of proper infrastructure, such as

well-maintained roads and high-speed internet.

Despite these obstacles, the Bertie community is tight-knit.

Strong leaders such as Vivian Saunders, CEO of the Hive

House—teachers, mothers and mother figures—have pooled

their resources to help Bertie’s young people make the most

of their challenging circumstances. To quote Saunders:

“Bertie County’s most valuable resource is its people.”

Source

North Carolina Justice Center. “Manufacturing Decline Explains North

Carolina's Lagging Job Creation.” Apr. 29, 2013.

www.ncjustice.org/?q=budget-and-tax%2Fmedia-release-new-report-

manufacturing-decline-explains-north-carolinas-lagging-job

Bertie County, North Carolina.



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Raising Bertie

Economic Challenges

Over the past decade, the jobless rate in Bertie County has

been persistently higher than the state average. Bertie resi-

dents face disadvantages in the job market related to

changes in industry, regional economics and racial prejudice.

While unemployment among North Carolina whites is now

lower than it was before the 2008 recession, the rate for

African Americans is higher—and over twice the rate of

whites. A long history of labor exploitation has taken its toll

on the African-American community. From slavery to Jim

Crow-era agricultural practices to mass incarceration, insti-

tutional racism has contributed to Bertie residents’ economic

difficulties (see pop-out, “What is institutional racism?”).

Jobs that do not require specialized education or skills are

increasingly rare in Bertie County. Many of North Carolina’s

new jobs are in urban, highly skilled sectors, such as tech-

nology. Meanwhile, Bertie’s economy has depended more

heavily on industrial fields—farming and manufacturing. Per-

due, one of the largest poultry suppliers in the United States,

remains a major employer in Bertie. However, as compa-

nies turn to technology and overseas labor to cut

staffing costs, manufacturing employees are being

laid off and Bertie workers have struggled to find new jobs.

There are limited job training programs to help workers

make the transition from factory work to higher-skilled po-

sitions.

Bertie County’s unemployment rate does not tell the whole

story. During the recession, Bertie suffered population loss

as some residents moved to other counties. With fewer

workers and buyers, Bertie’s economy has suffered. The job-

less rate does not account for those who left Bertie, or “dis-

couraged workers” who have dropped out of the workforce

altogether. It also does not include residents who were seek-

ing full-time employment and settled for part-time positions

instead.

With the decline in industrial jobs, an increasing number of

rural Americans are working in the service industry: for ex-

ample, in food service, nursing and housekeeping. Bertie res-

idents such as Cheryl Askew (Reginald Junior’s mother)

have taken service positions, and many work multiple part-

time jobs. This work tends to be more precarious, lower paid

Junior going to work at a pork processing plant.



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Raising Bertie

and less likely to be unionized than work in other sectors. In

2015, the median household income in Bertie County was

$31,967, significantly lower than the statewide income of

$47,884.

Americans in rural communities tend to have lower incomes

and are more likely to be poor than urbanites. In addition to

this regional trend, rural African Americans are on average

more poor than their rural white counterparts. In Bertie, for

example, the poverty rate for African Americans is over

three times the poverty rate of whites (30.1 percent com-

pared to 9.6 percent); over one third of Bertie children live

in poverty. Across rural America, the poverty rate for mi-

norities is more than twice the rate of whites. Just like

wealth, deep poverty is often passed down through the gen-

erations.

Sources

Budget & Tax Center. “County Quick Facts: Economic Snapshot:

Bertie County.” Apr. 2017.

http://www.ncjustice.org/sites/default/files/BTC/County-Economic-

Snapshot/2017/BERTIE_%202017%20County%20Snapshots_Final.pdf

Doran, Will and David Raynor. “NC Economy a Mixed Bag.” The News

and Observer, Oct. 8, 2016.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-

politics/article107009877.html

Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise. “Blueprint for

Bertie: A Community Economic Development Plan.”

http://www.ncgrowth.unc.edu/wp-

content/uploads/2014/08/2014_08_BertieReport.pdf

FRED Economic Data. “Unemployment Rate in Bertie County, NC.”

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NCBERT5URN

Knight, Sadaf. “Unemployment Disparities Persist in North Carolina.”

Carolina Small Business Development Fund, May 26, 2016.

Bud harvests cotton.



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Raising Bertie

https://carolinasmallbusiness.org/2017/05/unemployment-disparities-

persist-in-north-carolina/

Stanford, Jessica. “Examining Decline in North Carolina’s

Municipalities.” UNC Carolina Population Center, July 5, 2017.

http://demography.cpc.unc.edu/2017/07/05/examining-decline-in-

north-carolinas-municipalities/

United States Census Bureau. “Small Area Income and Poverty

Estimates.: Bertie County, North Carolina. Under Age 18 in Poverty

(1997-2015).”

https://www.census.gov/did/www/saipe/data/interactive/saipe.html?s

_appName=saipe&map_yearSelector=2015&map_geoSelector=mhi_c&s

_county=37015&s_state=37&s_measures=u18_snc&menu=trends

United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Local

Area Unemployment Statistics.”

https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LASST370000000000003

Transportation

Transportation is an additional challenge for rural communi-

ties such as Bertie County. Three quarters of employed

Bertie residents work outside the county. Public tran-

sit options are both limited and expensive: nation-

ally, only 11 percent of rural residents have access to public

transportation. Residents who own cars are saddled with the

high costs of fuel and vehicle maintenance. Rural areas often

lack the funds to maintain infrastructure, and experience

worse road conditions, on average, than urban residents.

Even when jobs are available in Bertie, many residents can-

not access them because of their locations.

Sources

American Public Transportation Association. “Rural Communities:

Expanding Horizons: The Benefits of Public Transportation.”

http://www.apta.com/resources/reportsandpublications/Documents/R

ural-Communities-APTA-White-Paper.pdf

Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise. “Blueprint for

Bertie: A Community Economic Development Plan.”

http://www.ncgrowth.unc.edu/wp-

content/uploads/2014/08/2014_08_BertieReport.pdf

Bertie County, North Carolina.



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Raising Bertie

Education

Some Bertie residents are unable to find work due to the

“skills gap”—available jobs require specialized education or

training they do not possess. In 2014, over 26 percent of

Bertie County adults (25 years and older) lacked a high

school degree, and fewer than 10 percent had a bachelor’s

degree—compared to 28.4 percent statewide. A state com-

mission recently found the Bertie County school system in

“significant financial distress.” Rural school districts across

the country share these financial challenges. Since rural dis-

tricts spend more of their per-student expenditures on

transportation, they have less funding for instruction and

special needs services. This means that rural students may

be less likely to have access to quality teachers, supplies, and

extracurricular programs.

Sources

Budget & Tax Center. “County Quick Facts: Economic Snapshot: Bertie

County.” Apr. 2017.



Doran, Will and David Raynor. “NC Economy a Mixed Bag.” The News

and Observer, Oct. 8, 2016.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-

politics/article107009877.html

Hinchcliffe, Kelly. “Bertie County Schools in ‘Significant Financial

Distress,’ State Report Finds.” WRAL.com, May 3, 2017.

http://www.wral.com/bertie-county-schools-in-significant-financial-

distress-state-report-finds/16680686/

Davonte "Dada" Harrell.



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Raising Bertie

Technology

Another barrier to employment, economic growth and qual-

ity of life in rural areas is limited access to broadband Inter-

net. Broadband is a faster wireless Internet connection that

the federal government defines as necessary to access

“high-quality voice, data, graphics and video” services. This

connection requires certain infrastructure that many rural

areas lack. In an era when job searches and other important

communications take place online, 39 percent of rural Amer-

icans lack access to high-speed Internet; by contrast, only 4

percent of urban Americans lack access. Rural areas tend to

only have one internet provider—with no competition, the

provider companies drive up prices and make Internet ac-

cess less affordable.

Sources

Federal Communications Commission. “2016 Broadband Progress

Report.” Jan. 29, 2016. https://www.fcc.gov/reports-

research/reports/broadband-progress-reports/2016-broadband-progre

ss-report

Hertz, Thomas, et al. “Rural Employment in Recession and Recovery.”

United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service,

Oct. 6, 2014. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-

waves/2014/october/rural-employment-in-recession-and-recovery/

Bertie Public High School.



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Raising Bertie

Health

Rural residents often have limited access to healthy foods,

which has contributed to the obesity epidemic that dispro-

portionately affects low-income and rural Americans.

Processed foods are higher in sugar and saturated fat, which

are linked to obesity. However, these “junk foods” are also

cheaper and more accessible in rural areas. One reason for

this is that agricultural policies such as farming subsidies are

favorable to the agribusiness companies (that is, large agri-

cultural and food manufacturing businesses) that produce

processed food. In addition to obesity, rural communities

have a higher incidence of “preventable conditions,” such as

substance abuse, chronic illnesses and injury. Due to geo-

graphic isolation, rural families are less likely to have consis-

tent access to healthcare, especially preventative care that

may avert the development of more serious illnesses.

Sources

Matthews, K. A., et al. “Health-Related Behaviors by Urban-Rural

County Classification-United States, 2013.” Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention, Feb. 3, 2017.

http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.ss6605a1

The National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services.

“The 2011 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Services

Issues.” March 2011.

https://www.hrsa.gov/advisorycommittees/rural/2011secreport.pdf

Rural Health Information Hub. “Rural Health Disparities.”

https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/topics/rural-health-disparities#health-

status

Bud at home.



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Raising Bertie

Housing

Housing is less expensive in rural areas, and rural residents

are more likely to own their homes than urban residents.

However, rural Americans were hit hard by the foreclosure

crisis that began in 2007 (see box below, “What was the

foreclosure crisis?”). Rural homeowners with mortgages paid

a heavy cost during the recession: between 2009 and 2015,

according to a report compiled by the Housing Assistance

Council, “at a minimum hundreds of thousands” of rural

homeowners lost the houses they had invested in for years.

Rental housing is limited in many rural communities, and

rural renters are much more likely than homeowners to live

in poor-quality housing. From 2011 to 2015, an average of

61.4 percent of renters in Bertie County had unaffordable

housing (that is, they spent more than 30 percent of their

income on rent). Even before the economic crisis, housing

affordability was a challenge in rural America. For years,

Bertie County residents have lacked sufficient finan-

cial services. Without access to affordable credit,

Bertie families and business-owners are less able to invest in

real estate.

Sources

Budget & Tax Center. “County Quick Facts: Economic Snapshot: Bertie

County.” Apr. 2017.



Housing Assistance Council. “Taking Stock: Rural People, Poverty and

Housing in the 21st Century.” Dec. 2012.

http://www.ruralhome.org/storage/documents/ts2010/ts_full_report.p

df

National Rural Housing Coalition. “Barriers to Affordable Rural

Housing.” http://ruralhousingcoalition.org/overcoming-barriers-to-

affordable-rural-housing

David "Bud" Perry.

Photo courtesy of Jon Stuyvesant

What was the foreclosure crisis?

Economists refer to the period leading up to the 2009 crisis as the

“housing bubble.” Home values were rising and millions of middle class

Americans were encouraged to buy real estate, which was seen as a re-

liable investment. Mortgages (large home-purchasing loans and home

equity loans) were widely available, but an increasing number of these

loans were “subprime.” Subprime loans were more flexible but imposed

higher risks; often they were structured with interest rates that increased

over time, and frequently multiple loans were issued using a single house

as collateral. Such loans were often allocated to lower-credit households.

Due to a complex investment structure involving the mortgage market,

many homeowners got stuck with unaffordable payments at the same

time that the values of their homes plummeted. This meant that families

owed more on their mortgages than the properties were worth, and they

could not sell or refinance. If homeowners started missing their pay-

ments, their homes were foreclosed—reclaimed by the lenders—with

some homeowners going bankrupt, as well. Ultimately, the foreclosure

crisis resulted in the loss of millions of homes and trillions of dollars

worth of home value and left the American economy devastated.

According to a report by the Housing Assistance Council, the foreclo-

sure rate in rural America is “difficult to determine” due to a lack of reli-

able data. Rural homeowners were more likely to own their homes

without mortgages than urban and suburban residents, but “hundreds of

thousands of rural households were, or continue to be, impacted by the

foreclosure crisis.” Further, the crisis had an outsized impact on com-

munities of color. Rural minorities received a larger proportion of high-

cost loans: 10.6 percent, compared to 8.6 percent for rural whites. This

trend reflects the disproportionate impact of the housing crisis on peo-

ple of color in both rural and metropolitan areas. One study found that over the course of the recession, African-

American borrowers were 76 percent more likely to have lost their homes to foreclosure than white borrowers.

Sources

Bocian, Debbie Gruenstein, et al. “Foreclosures by Race and Ethnicity: The Demographics of a Crisis.” Center for Responsible Lending, June

18, 2010. http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/research-analysis/foreclosures-by-race-and-ethnicity.pdf

Boesel, Molly. “Foreclosure Report Highlights: 10-Year Retrospect of the US Residential Foreclosure Crisis.” CoreLogic, March 14, 2017.

http://www.corelogic.com/blog/authors/molly-boesel/2017/03/foreclosure-report-highlights-10-year-retrospect-of-the-us-residential-

foreclosure-crisis.aspx#.WZxtpXeGPY1

Henry, Ben, et al. “Wasted Wealth: How the Wall Street Crash Continues to Stall Economic Recovery and Deepen Racial Inequality in

America.” Alliance for a Just Society, May 2013. http://allianceforajustsociety.org/wp-

content/uploads/2013/05/Wasted.Wealth_NATIONAL.pdf

Housing Assistance Council. “Taking Stock: Rural People, Poverty and Housing in the 21st Century.” Dec. 2012.

http://www.ruralhome.org/storage/documents/ts2010/ts_full_report.pdf


|14DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Junior.


What is Institutional Racism?

Institutional racism is different from racially biased in-

teractions between individuals. It takes place at the

level of institutions: systemic policies or practices that

disadvantage certain racial groups, usually in ways that

are not explicit or overt. The term was coined in 1967

by the racial justice activists Kwame Ture (formerly

known as Stokely Carmichael) and Charles Hamilton,

who wrote:

When white terrorists bomb a black church and

kill five black children, that is an act of individual

racism, widely deplored by most segments of the

society. But when in that same city—Birmingham,

Alabama—five hundred black babies die each year

because of the lack of proper food, shelter and

medical facilities, and thousands more are

destroyed and maimed physically, emotionally and

intellectually because of conditions of poverty and

discrimination in the black community, that is a

function of institutional racism. When a black

family moves into a home in a white neighborhood

and is stoned, burned or routed out, they are

victims of an overt act of individual racism which any people will condemn. But it is institutional racism that

keeps black people locked in dilapidated slum tenements, subject to the daily prey of exploitative slumlords,

merchants, loan sharks and discriminatory real estate agents. The society either pretends it does not know of

this latter situation, or is in fact incapable of doing anything meaningful about it.

One definition of institutional racism is “the systematic distribution of resources, power and opportunity in our soci-

ety to the benefit of people who are white and the exclusion of people of color." American history includes many ex-

amples of institutional racism that have deprived certain groups of resources: for example, slavery, uneven

enforcement of laws that overlooked white supremacist violence, discriminatory labor and lending practices that ex-

cluded or exploited African Americans and mandatory minimum sentences for different types of drug crimes. In the

¡words of one anti-racist group, “Institutional racism is a direct cause of poverty. To address poverty, we need to ad-

dress racism.”

Sources

Hamilton, Charles V., and Kwame Ture. Black Power: The Politics of Liberation. (New York: Vintage, 1967), 4.

Solid Ground. “Definition & Analysis of Institutional Racism.” http://www.racialequitytools.org/resourcefiles/institutionalracism.pdf


|15DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

During production.


It’s Expensive to Be Poor

“Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows

how extremely expensive it is to be poor,” wrote James

Baldwin in 1960. Almost sixty years later, this is still the

case. Poor people must pay more for the basic goods

and services needed for survival.

Food Insecurity

Low-income people are more likely to live in “food

deserts”—areas that lack grocery stores with affordable

fresh food. Large stretches of rural America are “food

insecure”: an estimated 98 percent of America’s food

deserts are in rural areas. With much of rural farming

dedicated to industrial cash crops, locally grown food is

scarce, and grocery stores have high prices due to

transportation costs and lack of competition. When

families have to drive 45 minutes to get to the grocery

store, they spend money on gas and are not able to buy

many perishable foods, such as fruits and vegetables. In

Bertie, for example, there is only one major grocery

store, and it is located twenty miles or more from many

parts of the county.

Health Care

Health care is a significant cost for low-income Ameri-

cans, but rural residents have the additional disadvan-

tage of living far from many healthcare providers. When

routine visits to the pediatrician, dentist and ophthal-

mologist require a long drive, the transit time and cost

of fuel are a burden for low-income families, and be-

cause of this they may miss out on preventative care.

Lack of regular health care often results in more serious

health problems, which require costly treatments.

Taxes

The poor pay a larger portion of their income in state

and local taxes than wealthier Americans. In 2015, the

poorest fifth of Americans paid on average 10.9 percent

of their incomes to state and local governments, in-

cluding sales tax on essentials and fees for tax prepar-

ers. Meanwhile, the top 1 percent paid on average 5.4

percent of their incomes.


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Raising Bertie

David "Bud" Perry.



|17DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Access to Financial Services

Low-income and rural residents are more likely to lack

bank accounts—to be “unbanked”—which means that

they must pay exorbitant fees both to cash checks and

to purchase money orders to pay monthly expenses.

Unbanked consumers spend 4 to 5 percent of their pay-

roll checks just to cash them. According to one esti-

mate, such fees can amount to $40,000 over the career

of a full-time worker. It is also more difficult for low-in-

come people to build up credit and acquire loans, and

when they do take out loans they often pay higher fees

than wealthier borrowers and are more susceptible to

predatory lenders. Payday lenders, for example, carry

an average interest rate of 322 percent, while a typical

credit card charges 15 percent. Rural areas are espe-

cially impacted by lack of financial services: 85 percent

of the poorest counties in the United States are both

rural and “bank deserts.”

Sources:

Baldwin, James. "Fifth Avenue, Uptown: A Letter from Harlem.” Esquire, Oct. 16, 2007. http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a3638/fifth-

avenue-uptown/

Beard, Martha Perine. “In Depth: Reaching the Unbanked and Underbanked.” Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Winter 2010.

https://www.stlouisfed.org/publications/central-banker/winter-2010/reaching-the-unbanked-and-underbanked

Coleman-Jensen, Alisha, et al. “Household Food Security in the United States in 2015.” United States Department of Agriculture Economic

Research Service, Sept. 2016. https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/79761/err-215.pdf?v=42636

Glinska, Gosia. “Fighting Financial Exclusion: How to Serve 88 Million Americans Who Have No Bank.” Forbes, June 5, 2014.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/darden/2014/06/05/fighting-financial-exclusion-how-to-serve-88-million-americans-who-have-no-

bank/#359b72052a5c

“It’s Expensive to Be Poor.” The Economist, Sept. 3, 2015. https://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21663262-why-low-income-

americans-often-have-pay-more-its-expensive-be-poor

The National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services. “The 2011 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human

Services Issues.” March 2011. https://www.hrsa.gov/advisorycommittees/rural/2011secreport.pdf

The opening of the Bertie County Hive House.


SELECT PEOPLE

|18DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Reginald “Junior” Askew – applies for jobs but no one will

hire him; works on his car (and when that fails, his bicycle);

visits his father in prison; drops out of high school but

eventually lands a job at a meat processing plant a couple of

hours away

Davonte “Dada” Harrell – interested in becoming a barber;

plays football; is a big brother/father figure to his nephew, Kiki

David “Bud” Perry – works with his father in a landscaping

business; is interested in dressing well and works to control his

quick temper.

Vivian Saunders – founder and CEO of the Hive Alternative

School and the Bertie County Hive House, and an advocate for

Bertie County youth

Selected People Featured in Raising Bertie

Immediately after the film, you may want to give people a

few quiet moments to reflect on what they have seen or

pose a general question (examples below) and give people

some time to themselves to jot down or think about their

answers before opening the discussion:

• If a friend asked you what this film was about, what

would you say?

• Describe a moment or scene in the film that you

found particularly disturbing or moving. What was it

about that scene that was especially compelling for

you?

• Did you see anything familiar? What do you have in

common with the people in the film?

• Were you surprised by anything in the film? Was

there a particular new insight you got from viewing?

• If you could ask anyone in the film a single question,

whom would you ask and what would you ask

them?

At the end of your discussion, to help people synthesize

what they’ve experienced and move the focus from dia-

logue to action steps, you may want to choose one of

these questions:

• What did you learn from this film that you wish

everyone knew? What would change if everyone

knew it?

• If you could require one person (or one group) to

view this film, who would it be? What would you

hope their main takeaway would be?

• Complete this sentence: I am inspired by this film

(or discussion) to __________.

GENERAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

|19DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Renovating the Hive House.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|20DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Rural Life

What do the young men in the film have in common with:

- urban African-American young men?

- white rural teens?

- female peers?

What’s different?

Junior is ambivalent about life in Bertie: “I want to leave be-

cause it’s boring. But I don't like the idea of going out on my

own because, I think, I feel like I’m lost. Around here, people

know me. I know them. I feel safer. I go out on my own, I’ve

got to make all new friends.” What do you see as the posi-

tives and negatives of life in a place like Bertie?

What core values are being conveyed to these young men

by their:

- mothers?

- fathers?

- peers?

- school?

- community?

How do you know?

A school administrator says, “In a way, Bertie is unique. The

population’s 80 percent black. If it is our people that are in

the driver's seat, we have to be careful that we change the

story here.” Why do you think he says they have to “be care-

ful”? What’s the danger? In your view, what role do race and

racism play in the story of Bertie?

Peanut Farming, Bertie County.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|21DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Vivian Saunders observes, “We are a quarter of a mile from

the jail. And I often tell the boys you got a choice: you can be

educated at 117 County Farm Road [the school] or you can

be educated at 230 Country Farm Road [the jail]. Take your

choice.” Who benefits from the large number of jails and

prisons in and around Bertie County? What did you learn

from the film about why disproportionate numbers of

African-American men end up in jail? What could communi-

ties like Bertie do to decrease the likelihood that their young

men end up in the justice system rather than the school sys-

tem?

School

Junior says he hated school. Dada says, “The teachers give

you the work and explain it one time and just expect you to

do it… but I don’t work that fast.” And Bud’s school experi-

ence is filled with frustration and posturing. Are any of their

reactions to school familiar to you? What was (or could have

been) done to improve the situation?

According to the school district, the Hive was not re-

funded because its services could be provided by

the traditional school “just as well if not better for the same

or a lesser cost.” Did the traditional public school fulfill this

promise?

In the film, students listen to President Obama as he exhorts

listeners not to be deterred by “challenges in your lives right

now that can make it hard to focus on your school work…

Maybe you don't have adults in your life who give you the

support that you need. Maybe you live in a neighborhood

where you don't feel safe… But at the end of the day, the cir-

cumstances of your life—what you look like, where you come

from, how much money you have… that’s no excuse for not

trying.” How do the family stories featured in the film influ-

ence your view of the president’s message? What do you

suppose the takeaways are for Junior, Dada and Bud?

Most students understand the relationship between aca-

demic performance and college success. What did you learn

from the boys’ college visit about the role that culture plays?

Bud at his high school graduation.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|22DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

All the boys seem serious about eventually earning a good

living, but they don’t connect working hard at school to that

goal. In your view, what’s responsible for the disconnect?

The head of the traditional public school says, “The role of

teachers in an environment like this is to be dream makers.

They help you to go down paths that maybe even your par-

ents can't help you to go down.” Have you had any teachers

who were “dream makers” for you? What did they do that

made a difference?

Alternative School

What does the Hive provide to students that they didn’t find

at their traditional public school? What strategies does the

alternative school use to increase students’ chances to suc-

ceed? In what ways are those strategies especially well-

matched to the needs of African-American boys?

Why do you think the Hive calls everyone Mr. ____ instead

of using first names?

The Hive asks students to recite a Power Pledge:

I believe in myself and my ability to do my best.

I am intelligent.

I am capable of greatness.

I will think, I will feel, and I will reason.

I will read and I will write.

I will do all these things.

If you were writing a pledge, what would you include? What

commitments are most important for you or the young peo-

ple in your community?

When the Hive loses its funding, Vivian Saunders urges fam-

ilies to get active: “You cannot allow these folks to take our

program from us.” What could families do to save their al-

ternative school? Why would it be important for entire com-

munities to get involved rather than leaving the task to

leaders like Saunders?

Dada visits Grace College of Barbering.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|23DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

The Hive’s curriculum includes anger management and re-

sponding to provocation (real or perceived). Do you think

all schools should require such courses? Why or why not?

Becoming a Man

What messages have you learned about what it takes to be

a “real” man? How did the messages you learned about man-

hood compare to the messages being conveyed to the

young men in the film?

Junior appreciates that his girlfriend, Tomekia, “don't let me

rule her, you know what I'm saying? But she let me feel like

I'm a man.” What do you think he means?

When Bud is caught with a shank, he explains why he carried

a weapon: “I don’t want to get jumped no more… I keep it

real with you, on my good side, but you f**k with me on my

bad side, it's hell to pay. [That’s] why I try to keep people on

my good side.” Later, Junior explains a neighborhood fight:

“Lil P owed Block money… He didn't have the money, had

to be done.” What was it that had to be done? Why do

these boys see violence as an inevitable response?

What are the sources of the idea that “real” men use violence

to defend their honor?

Vivian Saunders explains, “African-American males have had

the perception that they have to prove themselves... So we

had to de-brainwash them that you don't have to prove

yourself to anybody.” Where in the film do you see evidence

that the boys feel like they have to “prove themselves”?

What are the consequences of their efforts? How do people

like Saunders “de-brainwash” young men and is “de-brain-

washing” a good idea?

Junior complains, “It’s like you ain’t even here.” What makes

him feel invisible? What happens to young men, their fami-

lies and their communities when they feel invisible?

When Dada’s older brother is locked up again, Dada re-

sponds, “I already know I'm not going to see my brother for

the next seventeen years, so what's the need [to] keep talk-

ing about it? I'd rather forget about it. I see him when I see

Dada cuts his nephew's hair.


him.” Based on what you see in the film, what’s the impact of

high incarceration rates of African-American men on the

boys they leave behind?

Junior moves out of his mother’s home because her new

boyfriend “got too much mouth. We don’t get along… I had

to move out my house because I ain't have no money and

move in my grandpa’s, like who wants to say that?... Billions

of people is going to look at this. And everybody is going to

have their opinions. And at the same time, well f**k them,

man. I don’t want to ever be looked down on.” As one of

those “billions” of viewers that Junior worries about, do you

see him as less than a man because he moved in with his

grandfather? What do you think Junior learned from his

mother’s boyfriend about what it means to be a man?

Fathers and Fatherhood

How would you describe the role of fathers in Bud’s, Dada’s

and Junior’s lives?

Junior’s mother describes his father: “He was my husband...

but I was afraid of him. He would throw cigarettes at me and

they burn me. He would smack me down in front of his fam-

ily. I left him right after Reginald was born. And I found out

that he had killed a girl and shot the sheriff's bailiff. He beat

the girl in the head with a butt of a shotgun. I often thought

that could happen to me.” In your experience, how are chil-

dren affected by witnessing domestic violence? What do

they learn about men and what to expect from husbands or

wives?

DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|24DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Junior visiting his father in prison.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|25DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Bud tells the story of being kicked out of elementary school:

“People say something to me, I just flip on them. It got so

bad, my daddy come out there and beat me… all the time till

I would pee on myself. I be thinking like I see why he done it,

cause I just be wild.” What did Bud learn from his childhood

about parenting?

Dada believes his father prioritizes drinking over him. What

do you notice about the role of alcohol in the film’s families?

Dada says that the first time his father ever cried in front of

him was at his grandmother’s funeral. He wanted to ap-

proach his father but didn’t, because “he had his girlfriend

beside him.” What do you think Dada learned about father-

hood in that moment?

Kiki, Dada’s nephew, lives in their home because Dada’s

brother is in jail and the family doesn’t want Kiki to go into

foster care. In your experience, why is it important for men

like Dada to step up and build mentoring relationships with

younger boys?

Junior says that he knows he’ll be a “good daddy” be-

cause he won’t beat up his child. What does that tell

you about what he has learned about what it means to be a

father?

Like all the boys, Junior thinks about what sort of job he

wants: “I wanted to be like a policeman or work on cars, like

a, what do you call it, like a mechanic. Or I could be a secret

agent, yeah. That would be fun. Yeah, agent. I want to be

rich some day.” Ultimately, he decides that he just needs em-

ployment: “If I can get any type of job, I can make it. You

know what I’m saying?” And he does eventually land a job

earning several hundred dollars a week at a meat processing

plant. How does the ability to earn a living fit into his vision

of being a man? What happens to boys’ self-images when

they are taught that being a provider is an important part of

manhood but there are few jobs available?

Junior reads a letter he wrote to his father.


DISCUSSION PROMPTS

|26DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Mothers

How would you describe the difference in roles of mothers

as compared to those of fathers in the film?

Junior seems to have trouble filling out job applications with-

out his mother’s help. He expects that someone will always

be there to guide him. His mother eventually refuses to help

saying, “You got to learn how to do some stuff on your own.”

What do the mothers (and mother-figures) in the film do to

encourage the boys to be independent?

Bud’s mother describes the challenge of parenting saying

that sometimes “you raising your children, and you did all

you could do and they still go the other way. You just still

got to pray for them. I would say to him, don’t give up. Be-

cause he can make it. I’m not going to put my hopes and

stuff down on him about him graduating. I told him, ‘Say, I

know you going to graduate.’” How do children benefit from

having someone in their life who believes in them, no matter

what?

Junior says, “I thought about selling drugs [to get rich], but

I never want to sell them because Mom says she'll break my

neck.” In your experience, what role do mothers play in in-

stilling morals or character? How does their role differ from

the role of fathers?

When Dada’s paternal grandmother dies of a heart attack,

Saunders escorts him to the funeral because his mother isn’t

invited. He says, “Ms. Saunders just like my momma so, I felt

all right going with her.” Have you ever had a woman in your

life whom you would describe as “just like my momma”?

How did that relationship benefit you? How does Dada’s re-

lationship with Saunders benefit him?

Saunders asks Dada about his father: “He ain’t called or any-

thing? You know your dad is doing what he's doing [be-

cause] he's angry at your mom. He's trying to take it out on

you. You know what I’ve taught you. You know what your

momma’s taught you. I don’t know about your momma, she

might’ve said punch him in the face… Don’t listen to what

momma wants. Say this is what momma two said today, you

know? Anytime you don’t feel comfortable, you say, ‘Ms.

Saunders, let’s ride.’ And we’ll get up and bounce.” What did

you think of her analysis and advice?

Junior's mother laments, “Sometimes he won't go to school

because he be sleeping. Or he goes to school and goes to

sleep in class. I am trying to do 100 percent to help him. I’ve

taught him manners. Taught him how to be responsi-

ble. Taught him that this is what life is all about. It

seem like to me, I failed as a mother.” Do you see her as a

failure? In your view, would it be reasonable for her to ex-

pect some support from others, or are parents on their own?

The Future

Notified that her program won’t be funded, the Hive’s direc-

tor, Vivian Saunders, wonders, “What in the world is going to

happen when I can’t put my hands on these boys. Have we

given them the tools to be able to survive without getting

into trouble?” How would you answer that question? Do you

think the young men are equipped to succeed in school and

in life? What strengths do they bring to the task? What tools

do you think they need that they haven’t yet acquired? What

else could be done to help them thrive?

At graduation, a speaker says, “Bertie will always be your

home. This community is prepared to make sure that there

are jobs here for you to come back to once you have gone

away to school and become skilled.” Does this ring true to

you? What would it take for communities like Bertie to pros-

per?

“I am what time, circumstance, history, have made of me,

certainly, but I am, also, much more than that. So are we all.”

This quote from James Baldwin’s Notes of a Native Son

opens the film. Why do you think the filmmaker chose to

open the film with this quote? What, if anything, about this

quote resonates with you and your experience?

Additional media literacy questions are available at:

www.pbs.org/pov/educators/media-literacy.php

Taking Action

• Convene a study group to examine the impact of proposed national and state education reforms (e.g.,

school choice, vouchers, property tax funding) on rural youth. Share your findings and your opinions with

legislators and policy makers.

• Create a teen exchange or partner program with a rural community. Visit them and invite them to visit

you. Talk about the unique joys and frustrations of life in each community.

• Raise funds to support alternative schools in your community. If your community already has a well-

established alternative school, consider adopting a rural community and helping them establish the

educational opportunities needed by their youth.

• Identify organizations working to end the school-to-prison pipeline and work with them to provide

alternatives to incarceration for young people. Include in your work a comparison of incarceration rates

for African-American young men and others. Consider what needs to be done in your state to eliminate the

inequity.

• Create a college or university program that works with nearby rural students every year, beginning in

elementary or middle school, to help kids along the pathway to higher education.

• Consider establishing or contributing to a scholarship fund specifically for rural youth of color who need

tuition assistance for college or for apprenticeships, trade schools or internships.

• Identify community leaders and organizations in your community or nearby rural communities that are

working to support and mentor young people. Learn about the unique challenges they are facing. Consider

volunteering, mentoring a young person or supporting them in their efforts.

|27DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Dada graduates from high school.


ADVANCING THE SUCCESS OF BOYS AND MEN OF

COLOR IN EDUCATION

http://diversity.utexas.edu/projectmales/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/POLICY-REPORT-8-29-141-copy.pdf

A joint project of seven research centers, this report

summarizes issues and makes policy recommendations.

AMERICAN GRADUATE

www.americangraduate.org/about/about-dropout-crisis/

This PBS initiative to increase high school graduation rates

does not exclusively focus on rural issues, but includes

research on dropout rates and links to local stories.

CAMPAIGN FOR BLACK MALE ACHIEVEMENT

www.blackmaleachievement.org

Focused on leadership and mentorship to address

disparities, mostly in urban areas, this organization also

provides resources relevant to all young black men,

including issues related to fatherhood, education, and

criminal justice.

DIGNITY IN SCHOOLS

www.dignityinschools.org

The site of a national coalition of parents, youth,

organizers, advocates and educators dedicated to

dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline provides fact

sheets, event listings, news and other resources

(searchable by state) to support the transformation of

public policy, schools and communities.

NC CHILD

www.ncchild.org

This is the website of an advocacy group for issues faced

by North Carolina’s children. Of special interest are

statistics about Bertie: http://www.ncchild.org/wp-

content/uploads/2017/05/bertie.pdf.

RESOURCES

|28DISCUSSION GUIDE

Raising Bertie

Original Online Content on POV To further enhance the broadcast, POV has produced an interactive website to enable viewers to explore the film in

greater depth. The Raising Bertie website—www.pbs.org/pov/raisingbertie—offers a streaming video trailer for the

film; an interview with the filmmaker; a list of related websites, articles and books; a downloadable discussion guide;

and special features.

FILM-RELATED WEB SITES

RAISING BERTIE

www.raisingbertie.com

For additional information on the film, including a film synopsis, filmmaker and producer

bios and press coverage, visit the film’s website. www.facebook.com/RaisingBertieFilm

HOW TO BUY THE FILM

To order Raising Bertie for home use, go to http://raisingbertie.com.To order Raising Bertie for educational use, go to http://store.cinemaguild.com/nontheatrical/product/2543.html.

The See it On PBS logo is a trademark of the Public Broadcasting Service and is used with permission. All rights reserved.

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Front cover: Junior and his car. Photo courtesy of Margaret Byrne

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