soccerguy315 Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Cadet 2000, is that generalization accurate? so you can name one non-white person that marched in the last 15 years? I think you proved my point. Look at the picture in the signature block of the person you just called out. What do you see? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ranintothedoor Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Yes, it's true that kids who march in drum corps these days tend to be middle class white kids. I think that is unfortunate. However, many of these recent DCI age-outs (like myself) are music educators now, and we DO work in schools with at-risk kids in our schools. I've brought up the point before that the community drum corps model of the past hasn't gone away... the social function has just been passed on to the public school marching band programs. The lessons I learned from my time with Scenic City and then Cadets hugely influenced my teaching and world view. The kids I teach benefit from my experiences in DCI in a very real though indirect way. I push them hard, but they have a safe place to go... and many of those lost souls who may otherwise have fallen through the cracks of the school system end up having a home and close friends that they can lean on and be held accountable to. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 To get more corps related... why are there not more non-whites in corps, middle class or not? If we are talking about people mixing with others who are different from them sounds like that part of corps has been lost over the years. Or is the main difference now coming from other parts of the countries and accents..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 (edited) To get more corps related... why are there not more non-whites in corps, middle class or not? The most apt answer(s) might be found in the realms of geography & economics, imo. In the geographical realm, Drum Corps prior to DCI had a somewhat decent establishment in urban cores... ( higher than today, anyway ) where higher percentages of non whites live. When Drum Corps moved away from its concentration core base of the urban centers, it lost a sizeable percentage of the non white demographic that once participated in Drum Corps. Drum Corps participation began to take on a more " white, suburban " participation rate. There are still participants that march in Drum Corps that live in the large urban centers, but as a percentage of participation, their percentages are down from the pre DCI years. Also, the music programs in many urban centers that used to offer up( at least to a small degree ) prospects for Drum Corps participation have been eviserated over the years. Drum Corps today draw a higher participation rate of participants that no longer live in urban areas that tend to have higher concentration of non whites. A higher percentage of participants in Drum Corps today come from smaller towns, and the suburbs of urban centers... where " whites " tend to live.. I would however point out that there appears to me to be more Asian- American ( " non -white ") participation in Drum Corps today than in the pre DCI years as a percentage of overall demographic participation. I do not know this for certain, but just as a possible observation re. demographic perecentage of participation. In the economic realm.... this seems an obvious one. Drum Corps participation used to be a lot less financially costly for many youth that wanted to participate. Today, on the whole, it is much more costly for participants to finance their marching participation in the activity than in previous eras. This naturally has produced then a higher participation rate of the more affluent than in the pre DCI years. There are still economically challenged marchers who somehow find the financial means to participate ( and we applaud them for this quest ), but the percentages of the economically challenged that participate in Drum Corps today is far less than in the pre DCI years. Since " whites " as a demographic group tend to have higher disposable incomes than " non -whites ", this then is subsequently reflected over time in the participation percentage rates of the activity. Edited October 4, 2015 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Should have gone into more detail on my previous post. There are middle and upper class families that are non-white and wondering why those younger folks are not doing corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 (edited) Should have gone into more detail on my previous post. There are middle and upper class families that are non-white and wondering why those younger folks are not doing corps. It might not be as complicated as you think. It might be as simple as.... " Modern day Drum Corps, from my limited observations of it, is not appealing to me ". Absent this, I can't think of any other plausable reason(s) at the moment. Also, " non-white " participation rates is accelerating in the non North America realm. DCI has witnessed this trend, and has been encouraging this with added resources in the foreign markets ( more resources allocated of late than in the " non -white " core areas of North America as a matter of fact from my observation ). Also, Asian- American ( " non white " ) rates that are"middle class and upper class" as a percentage demographic of participation are probably UP today than in the pre DCI years, in my observations. So your premise might not be entirely accrurate insofar as Asian- American participation rate percentages are concerned anyway. All this must be seen in the context too that overall participation rates ( " whites" and " non whites " alike ) are way down from the pre DCI years. Edited October 4, 2015 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 (edited) You said "Most mass shooters are young white males." Gang crime? Crime in Chicago? Crime by terrorists? It seems to me shootings aren't just limited to young, white males...but evil is colorblind. Lack of respect for human life is colorblind. One race does not own the practice of making bad choices. Murders by firerarms per population is way, way down in America, even as firearm registrations have doubled during the same years ( 1990's to today ). Periodic, single shooter, mass homicide episodes like Oregon,as tragic and senseless as it is, notwitstanding. For perspective, ( source: Congressional Research Service, US Census, FBI Statistics).... The numbers of US firearms went from 192 million in 1994 to 310 million in 2009. As a result ( or non related if one is so inclined ) firearm murders in the US have gone from 6.6 per 100,000 of population in 1993 to 3.2 per 100,000 of population in 2011. So as firearms have doubled, murders in the US has been cut in half. Women, in particular, have been the fastest growing demographic of percentages that own a firearm. As a result, the national homicide rates of Women as a percentage of the population is way down from that of the 1980's, 1990's. The alleged " War on Women " that we oftentimes hear in the media, may or may nor be taking place, but the facts show that Women in the US are far safer today from homicide commissions upon themselves now... now that they are increasingly deciding to empower themselves to take the personal responsibility themselves for their own personal safety protection. As for Drum Corps participation, the facts here are pretty clear as well. Drum Corps participation does lead to life long valuable skills developments that serve both the individual and the US society at large very well. But I believe all of us here know this too. Its self evident to probably all of us here. So, would " loners " benefit from Drum Corps participation in their earlier years ? Yes.. probably so. But are " loners " likely to join groups like Drum Corps in the future in any measurable, substantive ways ? No. I don't believe so. It would become the classic oxymoron if they did. This is because " loners " by their very nature are typically not " joiners " of groups..... of any kind. So its unlikely that mentally unbalanced, single shooter, mass murderer " loners " like this, no matter if they are " white " or " non-white ", could be helped via Drum Corps. Its regrettable in that, but probably nontheless true. Edited October 4, 2015 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Drum corps is not as diverse as our nation, but we know that and have for some time.I'm sure a good number of young people in drum corps may be white and from upper class backgrounds, but I do not believe we have statistics that back this up. There are also may young people who know how much it costs to march, have earned the money themselves, or have generous backers. Also, if you look at many corps' rosters, you see a good number of Spanish names which I am assuming are Latino. Mandarins isdiverse. I also take quite a few photos at shows, including Allentown where I see each WC corps perform and there are many people of color. If you really want diversity, look at Academy's show this past summer. Can you get any more white than Mary Poppins" and Edwardian England? However, the corps is quite diverse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterA Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 You said "Most mass shooters are young white males." Gang crime? Crime in Chicago? Crime by terrorists? It seems to me shootings aren't just limited to young, white males...but evil is colorblind. Lack of respect for human life is colorblind. One race does not own the practice of making bad choices. Certainly, we need more young men in activities which promote true masculinity. Drum corps can be that activity, but we can't pretend like activity like drum corps is the "answer" to fixing a problem of evil and mentally ill crazies that go on these mass sprees. The mentally ill person who committed this shooting in Oregon specifically targeted Christians. Why not stop the attacks of Christians and people of faith in our country? I'd like to comment on the 2nd part of that statement. I think one of the amazing things about drum corps is that it doesn't force young men to be masculine. It allows some men to be more feminine if that is what they prefer. I think it is great that everyone, male of female is allowed to truly be who they want to be, which seems to back up the original posters train of thought that drum corps may be a big benefit to someone who is troubled. Drum corps brings together people from all different types of backgrounds. People of all races, religions, political parties, sexualities, with different types of backgrounds, come together and live together for several months, working their butts off to put the best possible perfomance during the summer. I think this is one of the most amazing things about drum corps. I don't think anything can benefit a young person much more than staying with 150 different kids for 2 1/2 months while working on a singular goal. I feel that this is something that could really help thousands of young men and women every single year. Back in the day, drum corps was an activity that did help keep kids off the streets during the summers. That was great, but unfortunately things have changed, and the day of the local drum corps is pretty much a thing of the past. Many of the kids that drum corps could have helped in the 60s, 70s and 80s don't have that opportunity today, as many corps are expensive, and difficult to get to with having to travel so far to get to a corps. But regardless of how many benefits drum corps may offer, there is no way of knowing what is going to happen to someone after they leave a corps. I think one of the saddest thing in the world today, is the bullying that goes on. And to some of these young people who are already feeling uncomfortable in life, and then people make fun of them and bully them, sometimes it just pushes them over the edge. I think drum corps could be an advantage to these young people, but I think if people were just nicer to each other to begin with, there wouldn't be quite as many problems as there are today. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 (edited) . Edited October 5, 2015 by Tim K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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