Du Bois and Frazier: A Sociological Look at the Quality of Life in the Black Family in America

Du Bois and Frazier studied the Black family from a perspective that integrated sociological and historical analysis. Du Bois and Frazier analyzed the progression of the Black family from slavery to emancipation to the Jim Crow era. In the late 1890's Du Bois looked at the social structure of the Black community and painted a picture of a group of people who were uneducated and poverty stricken. Frazier provided a more positive spin. He documented a change in the 1920's -1930's that showed upward mobility, more educational attainment, property ownership, better jobs, better living conditions, and a less segregated environment in the North.