Collection:LPB

Genre: Newsmagazine

Place Covered: Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana

Copyright Holder: Louisiana Educational Television Authority

Date Issued: 1986-11-16

Duration: 00:26:22

Subjects: Marriage | Single women | Dating (Social customs)

Contributors:

• Masingale, Sonya Host
• Tillotson, Lacey Interviewee
• Jackson, Rosemary Interviewee
• Robinson, Beverly Interviewee
• Burchell, Felicia Interviewee

This episode of the series “Folks” from November 16, 1986, features the first part of Sonya Masingale’s report on the shortage of black single men. This part of her report focuses on the impact of the shortage on single black women over the age of 30. She first interviews students on the campus of Southern University in Baton Rouge, who discuss their views on the shortage of single black men and the ideal marriage age. Next, Masingale interviews people at Derringer’s Tavern, a singles bar in Baton Rouge, who discuss their views on dating. Lastly, Masingale conducts an in-studio interview with three single professional women: Rosemary Jackson, a financial consultant; Beverly Robinson, a chemical analyst at Allied Chemical; and Felicia Burchell, a communications specialist at the Southern University College of Agriculture and Home Economics. They discuss: the impact of the male shortage on their daily lives; the competition with younger women; not putting their lives on hold until they get married; whether men get a better deal out of marriage; the difficulty in finding partners as a woman over age 30; the qualities they look for in a man; where they meet men; and their irritation with men who are afraid of dating a professional woman. Masingale also interviews Lacey Tillotson, an associate professor of social work at Southern University, who discusses the sociological impact of the shortage of black single men.