# Why are groups of black teenagers so loud? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 24, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055 "2011-05-24T19:53:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![gurujulp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ba9def/32.png) [@gurujulp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gurujulp)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/21 "2011-05-24T21:41:49Z")
I have been a loud teenager who was kicked out of malls and other public spaces. I am not black. I do, however, when hearing loud cursing in public areas, most often either see crazy homeless people, or a group of african-american youth. I think it is just being crazy teens, and that most white loud crazy teens are not where I am. They are off getting drunk in trailer parks and parking lots, and fucking. I don’t know why the black teens are just wandering the streets, yelling, but if I was a parent, (wait, I am!) I can tell you which I would rather have my child doing… ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/22 "2011-05-24T22:19:21Z")
> [@J\_Cubed](#): > > 1. Have yet to fully develop their prefrontal cortex, which regulates self-control And that doesn’t full develop until one is in their 20s, sometimes even later. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/23 "2011-05-24T22:19:46Z")
Didn’t we do a/many thread(s) about why black people were always the loud talking interrupters in movie theaters? I seem to recall that there was a universal consensus that that was the case. Why is everybody getting their underwear in a bunch about black teenagers talking more loudly than white teenagers? I’m sure that there are some actual racial (ruffle a few feathers?)-cultural differences between the two groups. May as well feel free to discuss them. Best wishes, hh ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/24 "2011-05-24T22:37:02Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Thanks to **Argent Towers** , I now have a fun and enlightening new pastime: Typing “why are \_\_\_\_\_\_ so” for various kinds of people into Google and seeing what autocomplete comes up with. I got this why are americans so fat why are americans so ignorant (a few more fat variations) why are canadians afraid of the dark why are canadians called habs why are white people so racist why are white people so attractive why are mexicans so annoying ---
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/25 "2011-05-24T22:51:26Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Do white teenagers just walk into traffic with the expectation that cars should stop for them? My experience is that youngish urbanites tend to largely ignore auto traffic. By youngish, I mean “don’t usually have grey hair.” I think it’s the same phenomenon that makes people who live in high risk natural disaster areas rather blase about the possibility of those disasters happening. I’ve seen or read that people who live close under big dams tend to think much less of the possibility of the dam giving way than people who live further away, but in the possible path. People deal with ongoing but fairly low-level threats by ignoring them. They get their panties in a bunch from unusual threats, even when they are much less likely to occur. For example, in the months following 9/11 many people were terrified of flying, even though even if we had a similar event every month or so, it would still be safer to fly than it is for them to, say, drive to the airport. We seem to be wired that way - we ignore the usual dangers, but fear the unusual dangers. So, yeah, most urban teenagers of any background tend to walk into traffic. Around here, you’ll also see young kids riding their bicycles or tossing a ball around in the street at twilight and after dark. For a driver, it’s a white knuckle experience. I’ve noticed that different cultures seem to have different tolerance for ambient noise, but around here, pertty much all teenagers (and younger kids as well) are really noisy. It’s a pretty even mix of white, black, and Latino here. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/26 "2011-05-24T23:32:37Z")
**ecoaster** , if there is a factual answer \*at all \*to your question you won’t find it here. Personal anecdotes aren’t evidence. And I wouldn’t hold my breath for an unassailable study on the subject. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/27 "2011-05-24T23:36:47Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > why are teenagers so stupid > why are teenagers so mean > why are teenagers so moody > why are teenagers so tired > why are teenagers so angry > why are teenagers so lazy > why are teenagers so rebellious > why are teenagers so depressed > why are teenagers so difficult > why are teenagers so disrespectful Kids! Oh, _what’s_ the matter with kids today? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/28 "2011-05-24T23:38:28Z")
> [@Oy](#): > > My experience is that youngish urbanites tend to largely ignore auto traffic. > > … > > So, yeah, most urban teenagers of any background tend to walk into traffic. Around here, you’ll also see young kids riding their bicycles or tossing a ball around in the street at twilight and after dark. For a driver, it’s a white knuckle experience. That’s not the behavior I am talking about. These teenagers are not just careless or inattentive of traffic. The ones I am talking about walk deliberately into traffic and _look you in the eye_ as they walk in front of your car, daring you to hit them. ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/29 "2011-05-24T23:45:20Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Kids! Oh, what’s the matter with kids today? Get off my lawn!!! ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/30 "2011-05-25T00:04:00Z")
Maybe it’s better to reframe the question. Each culture tolerates various levels of noise from groups in public. I don’t know what the extremes of loud and quiet are, but it’s safe to say there is a range. “Culture” is, of course, a broad term, and each culture can be broken into smaller groups. Americans, in general, are tolerant of louder voices and behaviour in public than, say, your average British person. While I’m sure you’ll find exceptions, I think that’s generally the case. Why it is so is harder to answer, but partly because “quiet” just isn’t considered a virtue. That varies with class; poor people can’t afford the luxury of acres of quiet space around them. Within the group “Americans,” several subsets have been noted in this thread as particularly loud: - teenagers - urban dwellers - males - African-Americans and my - lower socio-economic class I think to answer the OP’s question properly, we’d have to isolate the various factors of {American} {“lower” class} {urban} {black} {male} {teenager} and assess which factors contribute and by how much. My guess is that of these six factors, black is simultaneously the least relevant and the most visible (to other Americans, anyway). ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/31 "2011-05-25T00:44:54Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Thanks to **Argent Towers** , I now have a fun and enlightening new pastime: Typing “why are \_\_\_\_\_\_ so” for various kinds of people into Google and seeing what autocomplete comes up with. > > For example, “why are teenagers so” yields > > why are teenagers so stupid > why are teenagers so mean > why are teenagers so moody > why are teenagers so tired > why are teenagers so angry > why are teenagers so lazy > why are teenagers so rebellious > why are teenagers so depressed > why are teenagers so difficult > why are teenagers so disrespectful > > Yikes! It’s interesting that, contrary to the protestations of most of the posters in the thread here, “loud” wasn’t one of the suggested searches. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/32 "2011-05-25T00:50:22Z")
I don’t think “loud” really is a stereotype of teenagers at all. It’s the opposite that’s said of them: they’re sullen, introverted, gloomy and generally “emo,” to use a more recent phrase. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/33 "2011-05-25T00:52:08Z")
It’s not racial bigotry to say that different cultures have different standards. What is impolite to one may be normal to another. A typical black church service is going to be nothing like a white one. We’ve had threads about different groups’ actions in theaters, too. To some, a theater experience is vocal; you talk back to the screen and yell and scream as called for. Others feel that is too low class. It’s all a matter of perspective. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/34 "2011-05-25T00:54:07Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > why are americans so fat > why are americans so ignorant > (a few more fat variations) > > why are canadians afraid of the dark > why are canadians called habs > > why are white people so racist > why are white people so attractive > > why are mexicans so annoying Why Snoop be draggin’ his mink along the floor? That’s pimp shit baby, it’s something you’ll never know. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/35 "2011-05-25T01:38:04Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > It’s not racial bigotry to say that different cultures have different standards. What is impolite to one may be normal to another. A typical black church service is going to be nothing like a white one. > > We’ve had threads about different groups’ actions in theaters, too. To some, a theater experience is vocal; you talk back to the screen and yell and scream as called for. Others feel that is too low class. It’s all a matter of perspective. Yeah, but “cultural” does not necessarily equal racial. My wife taught in public schools for 35 years. One thing she and her co-workers were infallable at was being to identify a “city kid” from a “county kid.” Black, white, male, female, rich, poor, native-born, immigrant family – it didn’t make any difference. My wife said city kids were invariably louder and more “in your face” than their suburban classmates. Cultural, yes. But not necessarily racial. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/36 "2011-05-25T02:10:26Z")
Opinion thread, moved from GQ to IMHO. **samclem** Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/37 "2011-05-25T03:07:11Z")
Impossible to have a discussion on any topic critical of any non-white group on the SDMB. You’ll be bombarded by the PC army telling you you are crazy and what you see isn’t true. Then they’ll bury you under cite requests. For what it’s worth having lived all over the US I can agree with you. Groups of blacks are mOre aggressive/louder than other groups. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/38 "2011-05-25T03:18:35Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > Yes, as I keep pointing out, before you can ask WHY something is true, you need to demonstrate that it IS true. “This is something I seem to notice” doesn’t really qualify. Unfortunately a lot of people hate that step in the process, and it doesn’t help that this thread is turning into a proxy fight about political correctness and such. Different subcultures can have different views on politeness and I think it’s possible that white cultures in the U.S. place a higher value on keeping to yourself and not bothering other people, for example. But I don’t know that that’s true and I can’t say if my observations or the OP’s have any merit. > [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I don’t think “loud” really is a stereotype of teenagers at all. It’s the opposite that’s said of them: they’re sullen, introverted, gloomy and generally “emo,” to use a more recent phrase. Once you get a group of teenagers together, they tend to be loud. The sullen thing is typically what you see when they’re stuck with their parents. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/39 "2011-05-25T03:32:38Z")
Absolutely the loudest kind of people you can get in a group is a bunch of middle aged white women. Old ones can be pretty loud too, but if I see a large table of female friends at a restaurant I ask to be seated as far away as possible. If they aren’t loud right away, they’ll be screaming within thirty minutes. Nobody ever starts threads about that. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055/40 "2011-05-25T04:08:07Z")
When I was in the twin cities, I noticed this phenomenon. Back home, I notice the same phenomenon with Arab and Somalian kids. I would presume, much like my answer in “why don’t blacks drink white wine?” that,\*\* if this were somehow falsifiable and provable\*\* (which I doubt), then it would likely be a socio-economic factor, rather than a racial one. I noticed this “loudness” riding the bus and light rail; the black men in my grad program, or the ones I play squash with, aren’t very loud at all. \ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-groups-of-black-teenagers-so-loud/583055.md?page=3)