ABSTRACT
As the focal socializing agency, especially in the early years of a child's life, the family plays a crucial role in the process of social reproduction. Boo-Boo also has lived in Clarendon Heights for his entire life. He and his older brother have a different father than his younger brother. Both fathers live out of state and very seldom venture to Clarendon Heights. Frankie's family lived in the Heights for thirty years, and although his mother recently moved to another project in the city, Frankie spends nearly all of his time in the Clarendon Heights community. His mother and father both grew up in separate working-class neighbourhoods in the city. Slick and Steve are the only members of the Hallway Hangers whose family has moved recently to public housing. Although their mother grew up only a few blocks from the Heights, the family lived in a neighbouring city until they moved to Clarendon Heights about six years ago.
