In the beginning of Between the
World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates paints a picture of America that we gloss
over in our history classes. We have been taught to focus on the facts as
they are presented to us. Our country is presented as a great nation
where its people are free, where opportunity is plentiful, and where all
men are created equal. The unbecoming issues that America has made are
simply footnotes in history. Internment camps during World War II, the
TSA’s racial profiling, and the difference in incarceration time and punishment
severity between black and white offenders are some examples throughout
history.
The conception of America (and many other countries) began with colonists
imposing the “white man’s burden” on non-white inhabitants, such as the Native
Americans and black slaves. Colonists would impose their beliefs on
people they believed to be less civilized than them, although they had their
own culture that the colonists simply never attempted to learn. Instead,
they forced any group of people to conform to the religion, practices, etc.
that they believed to be superior or “right”. This was the start of a
blind eye being turned to racism in our country, something that still happens
today.
Considering movements such as Black Lives Matter and the events leading up to
this, it has become obvious how far we are from equality in our country.
It has been a painfully slow process since racism is not as outright as it once
was. This has caused much of the population to believe that because every
American citizen has the right to vote or because there is no more segregation
that we have become a country where we are all equal, but that is not the
case. Throughout this section, Coates addresses his young son and how the
deaths of young, black men had affected them both especially as the killers
walked free. The death of an innocent person somehow justified in the
eyes of the law.
Throughout this section, Coates brings up his body constantly and how easily it
could be taken from him. He could easily be beaten or killed if he were
in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a fear instilled in him by
his parents when he was growing up to keep him safe. Coates then did the
same to his son but in an alternative way. It’s obvious from the passage
that his upbringing was much different than his son’s.
I found the section where Coates called his son the ring in the relationship
between him and mother of his child deeply moving. Many people get
married after an unplanned pregnancy, but becoming bound legally means nothing
in cementing a relationship. They watched as their peers had children and
married and the obligation of a being a spouse or a parent was not enough to
make them stay. In the case of Coates and his (now) wife, they stayed
because of their love for their son, Samori, and each other, not because of a
ring or anything else. I thought that was beautiful.
The book is written if he is speaking to Samori, which makes you feel as though
you are intruding on a deeply personal conversation between father and son.
Yet, what Coates was saying is something anyone should have to hear.
Regardless of race or upbringing, his story about his formative years shows an
eye-opening experience most people have when they transition from high school
to college. He spoke of how he needed to master the streets to survive
and that meant conforming to what his peers were doing. Then, when he
went to college he was presented with a diverse group of people who he had
never thought of complexly before. I think that is something that all of
us go through as we enter a new phase of our life. We naturally change
who we are to adapt to this new environment. In his situation, he had to
learn to be tough to protect himself and the people he loved, but when he went
to Howard he met the girl who showed him a new way to live and love.
Being there also made him question his upbringing. From why his father
was so quick to punish him physically to why there was so little representation
of black people in media. He questioned the world he lived in and
wondered why it was not better.
Honestly, reading this book made me feel disappointed in the world as it is
now. I am frustrated by the fact that so many people have fought and died
to ensure that all people can enjoy the comforts of equality, yet we are still
so far from obtaining that.
I think we don't always realize that things like that are constantly happening. My sister one year adopted six children at once. Most of them were black and the stories that followed them were terrible. A couple of them were alcohol syndrome babies. One had scars on his brain so bad from his parents doing alcohol, drugs, or just plain abusing him.Most of them had mental problems because of all the physical abuse including cigarette burns on their body when their parents got bored. One of the children was told that since she was black she wouldn't amount to anything so the school refused to even teach her. The thought she was deaf until my sister took her to a doctor and found out she had tubes in her ears that doctors forgot to take out. She learned to talk after that because she could hear. She still was mentally disabled but learned a huge vocabulary fast. A couple of them got so bad anger wise that the doctors sent them to hospitals and said they may be in them the rest of their lives. These children could have turned out so much better if their parents had shown them protection and caring.
ReplyDeleteI think what you said in your opening paragraph is really important. We gloss over history and focus only on what we have been taught. I don't think people are even aware of the censorship in America. One of the biggest examples I've noticed in my own life is the story behind Thanksgiving (which is coincidentally today). In elementary school and even middle school I was taught that on Thanksgiving the Indians and the pilgrims had this great dinner and joined together and lived among each other peacefully and as friends. It wasn't until high school that I really started to learn about what actually happened. I get that telling a first grader the whole story isn't the best idea because it is so morbid, but to basically lie to students and tell them such an altered version of history isn't right either. The fact that I didn't even realize how politically incorrect it was to call Native Americans "Indians" until middle school is shocking to me now, but that has a lot to do with what I was taught.
ReplyDeleteThere is still a lot that I don't know and that most of us don't know. This is especially relevant to the black lives matter movement. I see so many people rolling their eyes and arguing "all lives matter." Which yes, they do, but not all lives are as subject to discrimination and hate and violence. But a lot of people don't realize that, which has a lot to do with what we have been taught. In school I'd learn about black history and was told how far we've come and basically that we live in perfect harmony today but we don't. It's hard to take in the truth, especially when you've been told lies and fabrications your whole life.
- Halle Martin
Tabatha,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the messages of love in the first part of Coates novel. Even though he writes so much of fear, he also writes of love and how love had driven so much of the positive growth in his life versus the fear driven negative growth of many of his black peers.
He emphasizes the difference between his youth and his time in college, and how love really changed his perspective on much of the world.
As fear and love both have played major influental roles in his life, I think that is a really important contrast within his writing. He shows how fear rules the ghettos and all those who reside there (along with those that go from there to being incarcerated), and loves drives all those searching for an underdstanding of their world at the college.
More importantly, Coates explains this to his son. I absolutely agree with you that this intimacy in story telling seems very intrusive on part of the reader, but helps to convey how important this story is for a father to be telling his son. And I really think this helps to imprint Coates' message to the reader.
--Dani Peterson
It’s very easy, as high school graduate, to look back at what I learned I history class. You are exactly right in saying we learn the ‘glossed over’ versions of things. Yes, we learn about things that didn’t go right in history, but are we really learning about the unforeseen truths? It’s very easy to think racism has improved in today’s society, because it absolutely has not. Where you live, your race, and your beliefs all impact your view on racism and whether or not it exists. I also agree this misconception of racism being solved, is due to the fact racism is not as outright as it was in the past.
ReplyDeleteI think it’s interesting how Coates refers to lack of control of this body. It’s a very understandable way to look at it. I think the point of the book is for Coates to be able to tell his son about his experiences in order to change his son’s interpretation of the world. It was definitely touching to read about his family’s relationship and connection to each other. I really enjoy the fact that the book is written towards Samori AND the outside world as well. It’s especially interesting to me since I was brought up in a completely different setting than Coates. The majority of colleges are undoubtedly more diverse than people’s home situations. I agree, that as a whole, we are not any closer, but rather further from eliminating racism from our world. You’d think as the world became more diversified, especially here in the United States, racism would eradicate.
-Brianna Kolman
I really enjoyed your post. It was in depth and helped address some of the downfalls of the education system right off the bat rather than stating the education system is failing and moving on. You seem to have some background knowledge on this issue besides just the book and it really helped with your analysis of the book and drive home your arguments.
ReplyDeleteI agree the system is against minorities, and also really enjoyed the perspective that Ta-Nehisi Coates gave by writing to his son rather than giving a narrative on black history and addressing the issues with the system as a third party. Instead, his emotion came out which made it more relatable.
I understand being frustrated. I too felt that way not only with the book but also in relation to the events going on in our world today. With friends of many nationalities, the aftermath of the presidential election really took a toll on me and the book helped me realize there was more to the story than just some white hate. To me, the white hate towards minorities that was broadcast by many people during the election was simply the tip of a huge iceberg I was unaware existed. White hate and racism is something I have seen in my days, and seem to have a fairly decent grasp on it and how to handle it. But what I was so surprised about was how even the same race can be against each other. Now I do know that many different tribes have been known to discriminate against other tribes around the world, but I had no clue that even within the same city people could be against each other. For me, that opened my eyes to my own judgements.
Thank you for sharing!
-Emma Schmidt
I definitely agree with you. We were always taught in class and around us what the image of America should be but not what it actually is. Everybody should be treated equally and I think instead of black lives matter it should be all lives matter.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post, Tabatha. I can relate with the conclusion of your essay. There definitely is a feeling of disappointment in me as well. One would think that our nation would be one of equality as it is. I want to believe we are slowly making progress toward that dream, but it may just be a figment of my imagination.
ReplyDeleteYou've summarized the first part of the story really well, and you've also added a touch of your own emotion to it beautifully. I, too, felt as if I wee intruding on a deeply personal conversation between Coates and his son, especially when Coates brings up the names of Samori's relatives and close friends. I am honored that I get to see through a small window into the lives of two breathing, living, writing, black men that are influencing the world today.
I agree in the fact that America is not as great as most Americans boast it is. That's one of the things that bothers me about the United States is that a majority of Americans are blind to the problems of society. Therefore I think this book is something that people should read. It gives a different perspective on issues like racism. The problem people might have with the book is that it is sometimes hard to understand due to the complex language that is used.
ReplyDelete-Amelia Kofler
I agree with you that America isn’t quite where it needs to be in terms of providing equality for everyone. Citizens of other countries do view the United States as free, opportune, and equal. But this isn’t completely the case. You pointed out that right from the start of America, colonists imposed their beliefs on others who had different opinions. These people already had their own culture. This can still be seen in America today, which is wrong. We have even been through the extreme of innocent people being killed because of their views. People should be entitled to their own beliefs without being in fear of danger.
ReplyDeleteIndividuals are not treated equally when they are murdered because of their skin color. Which is something that cannot be controlled or changed. It is simply who someone is. No one is greater or less because they are white or black or any other color. And everyone should be treated as such. But sadly, not everyone agrees with this statement. This is why racism exists. It is disappointing that not everyone realizes that racism still occurs today in America. Like you said, segregation is still an issue, meaning that not everyone is being treated equally. These problems are just not as prevalent as they have been in the past.
Racism creates fear. The author, Ta-Nehisi Coates, of Between the World and Me constantly talks about the fear in other black people that he has witnessed throughout his life. He also discusses the fear of losing his body and how easily it could happen. Fear could be seen by him everywhere, and it was a result of racism.
You did a really nice job overlaying the part we read. There was a lot going on in those 70 pages.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree things were very glossed over in history class growing up. And on the topic of how do teachers address such matters as racism in history class in grade school, maybe teachers could start with the importance of not being a bully or to not judge a book by its cover.
On the aspect of we should be farther along in the realm of equality – Yes, we should. But when you look at a timeline these events really didn’t take place THAT long ago. And the intensity of what was done to people, those kind of things don’t just go away overnight. There needs to be more conflict resolution, morals and values taken into account.
No one can literally walk in another’s shoes but I think that is something that makes this book so special – we get such an intimate, inside look as to how Coates’ view of the world changed and morphed into what it is today, and how he chooses to relay that information to his son so as to help guide him in what seems like such a lonely, treacherous journey at times. The first part of the book has been very touching in heartwarming and gut-wrenching ways.
- Heather Walschinski
Wow outstanding blog post, It was really well wrote and you put a lot of thought into it. I do believe it is going to take years maybe even centuries to resolve this issue that has been going on since 1776. Look at the pay scales today. Woman and still not equal compare to men. And its the 2016, what is going on with us? Our nation needs to pull their head out of their **** and start making things right, its not about what you support blue or red or green. It's about making this country amazing and that still is not. When I was overseas on my many deployments talking to the Iraqi or Kuwaiti people they think we live like it in the movies. They don't understand that the U.S has problems nor see it. Look at how Muslims are treated since the wars? The color of skin makes you bullied or picked on. Our society needs to get it together or we will start WWIII and after that this planet might just start over.
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