There Truly Ain't No Makin' It

Ain’t No Making It by Jay McLeod is one of the most fascinating books I have ever read. I was deeply enthralled by his exploration of Clarendon Heights and the two groups of boy’s, the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers, lives and sociology of why they live and behave the way they do. There is an elegant way to which he mixes social theory with the kid’s words and all sorts of research; political and social. This book refuses to cut corners and is not apologetic as it delves deep into the roots of social inequality and what its like to face it in America, asking can any child really become president?

McLeod creates this book that uses a small number of boys from two inner-city social circles to reflect and portray the inequality of America and the inability for social mobility in our society. He includes many scholarly sources of modern day and of the classic social theorists such as Marx. He uses these sources to help explain reasons for the behavior of his subjects, the Brothers and the Hallway Hangers. He also interviewed the groups extensively, recording their conversations. Through the use of these kids, we can see how exactly the theories of social inequality are formed and how they limit or warp each of these kid’s lives.

In his research, he finds the two groups have many things in common. They are both from the same area, same economic status, same educational opportunities, and similar genealogy when it comes to occupational status and education. However, there is one thing that is not the same; aspirations. The Hallway Hangers seem to accept what seems to be a predestined outcome for their lives as they have little in the way of goals and give absolutely no effort to try to climb the social ladder as they feel like there is no point. The Brothers, on the other hand, dream big, hopes, and aspirations, expressing that all things are possible as long as you work hard.

Ultimately, some achieve moderate success but none have a “Andrew Carnegie story” that...