Why?

Conducting interviews with African Americans to have a better understanding of their relationship with their siblings is extremely important because much of the literature surrounding development and siblinghood lacks the diverse and unique experience of African Americans with their siblings. Furthermore, African Americans experience siblinghood differently due to social strains such as poverty, culture, and even social institutions such as incarceration. Previous works such as thehistorymakers.org , which  is a national 501 (c ) (3) non-profit research and educational institution committed to preserving and making widely accessible the untold personal stories of both well-known and unsung African Americans, only provide sources from older African Americans reflecting on their childhoods. We aimed to intentionally capture the experiences of younger subjects who either currently live with siblings or have lived with siblings within the past few years with hopes that it will help African-American siblinghood be captured in an accurate and complex way. Additionally, understanding African-American siblinghood will give us further insight into African-American family structures’ diverse dynamics and functionality. Overall, capturing and understanding African-American siblinghood will help us better understand how society disadvantages these siblings and how their relationships develop, operate, and thrive despite the unique adversities they face.