Analysis Of The Book ' Living Color ' By Claudia Rankine

2011. “The New Jim Crow” Pp 217.-224 in Rethinking the Color Line, 5th Edition, edited by Charles Gallagher. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

In his essay, “The Souls of the Black Folk” Du Bois (1903) states that “the problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color-line,-the relation of the darker to lighter races of men in Asia and Africa, in America and the islands of the sea” (275). According to Appelrouth and Edles (2012: 269) “the color line is both a preexisting social and cultural structure and an internalized attitude”. In addition, they explain that the color line “addresses the historical and institutional (i.e., colonial) dimensions of race” (269).

Throughout American history, relationships between racial and ethnic groups have been marked by antagonism, inequality, and violence. In today’s complex and fast-paced society, historians, social theorists and anthropologists have been known to devote significant amounts of time examining and interrogating not only the interior climate of the institutions that shape human behavior and personalities, but also relations between race and culture. It is difficult to tolerate the notion; America has won its victory over racism. Even though many maintain America is a “color blind nation,” racism and racial conflict remain to be prevalent in the social fabric of American institutions. As a result, one may question if issues and challenges

The thesis of the book is that segregation of black and whites was developed later in life than it did when slavery was just introduce. In the earlier years blacks and white would live within the same residence and or property, sharing the same premises if not equal facilities. The black and white would attend the same church and sit in the pews. As life progress and economics and Political conflicts took place that’s when the segregation began.

Ruth Wilson Gilmore’s “Fatal Couplings of Power and Difference:Notes on Racism and Geography” speaks honestly of the current state of systemic racism in America and its possible causes using past historical trends. He argues that because racism is so ingrained into the defining moments of our past and so deeply rooted in our political, economic and social systems that it cannot be solved by the short-run remedies being offered. Gilmore accused geography of being the cause of racial issues in America, saying that, “a geographical imperative lies at the heart of every struggle for social justice,” (Gilmore 16).There is so much truth in this statement because without borders or normative behavioral practices there is no differential treatment

Today racial inequality is ongoing whether you are aware of it or not. We have come a long way from segregated seats to public transportation. The issue of race and race relations has really scarred the history of this nation and has been a constant reminder of the horrors people endured as a result of race relations in this country. The ideas from both of the readings explain how black Americans faced hatred and violence because they were viewed as less then. The writings also include how each leader is trying to change the world’s view of

Both racism and violence are large themes of not just, Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space, but also of America during the mid-1900’s. Unfortunately, there still exists the same themes in today’s world even though the population is becoming increasingly more educated. Hate and discrimination are taught evils, not innate ones, and in order to prevent the need for stories such as Brent Staples’ to be told, society as a whole must band together to eliminate the occurrence of such a destructive, devastating

The idea of racism has evolved and has become less prevalent throughout the last century. Schools and public areas are unsegregated, voting rights, racial slurs being considered as unacceptable behavior etc. American sociologist and race theorist, Howard Winant states that’s “The ensuing approaches increased recognition of racial injustice and inequality, but did not overcome the discriminatory processes” (Winant,2000)Although the United states has come a long way to try to end racism, one cannot ignore the fact that it still exists. It is something that may seem invisible in society, but everybody knows that it still thrives and that it’s racial attitudes affect the way our society functions. One of these invisible forms of

The misinterpretation of African Americans is very prominent in society. Claudia Rankine’s Citizen sheds light on the hyper-visibility of the African-Americans through stereotypes and invisibility of the Black body itself in an attempt to get readers to understand the inner conflicts of Black citizens. Citizen is composed of seven sections, which vary in length and content. The book is interspersed with photographs, sculpture, paintings, and other types of media. Rankine also draws from film and video, and various news media. Her descriptions of encounters between people of different races show how disconcerting words are and how they affect people. Though we often hear about deep-rooted institutional and cultural forces that contribute to racism, it appears that we less often hear about the psychological processes involved. Many would like to believe that racism is over, but society actions are a constant reminder of their true feeling about Blacks. Racial bias is prominent at all levels of the institution and it paralyzes the race as a whole. Rankine uses pronouns, anecdotes, and visual art to uncover the unconscious nature of racism and extend the conversation. The audience is both the eyewitness and the victim in this “post-racial” society that fails to teach us how to be a citizen. In allowing us, the readers and audience, to subject ourselves to this hurt, we experience, an understanding of true citizenship by identifying the wrongs and understanding the difference.

Racial disparities and inequality dates all the way back to slavery: when whites abused, raped, tortured and killed black people. “Slavery transformed America into an economic power; the exploitation of black people made the south the richest and most politically powerful region in the country” (ABS). Black people did not have any rights, instead they were forced

In today’s society it causes no alarm for people of various ethnicity to sit on a barstool at any counter and be served. When patrons walk into a public place, there are no signs that so white’s only or colored anymore. Yet, only a very short time ago in 1954 Brown v. Board of Education outlawed segregation in the public education facilities. Even though being served at a restaurant or using the same restrooms has changed in the last 50 years, it has not erased the racism that so many people still face as James Baldwin did in “Notes of a Native son.”

Systemic Racism sheds light on one of the most commonly referenced forms of racism in America today. Joe Feagin highlights several relevant points that contribute to discussion on the racial divide we see in our nation today. This work specifically targets societal and institutional manifestations of systemic racism, and the dual perspectives on subjects like slavery, legal segregation, and the contemporary racial realities we see

Reflection Precis 5, More Racial Oppression (04/22/18- 04/28/18) Part 1: Many can associate slavery and segregation with racial oppression, but we don’t always think about if and how it still exists today. Feagin mentions in chapter 6, “housing segregation today provides imperial evidence of the impact of past and present racial oppression”. This holds true in the small town I live in. There are people of color on the north side, but the south side is associated as being where the majority of them reside.

Although slavery and segregation laws are obsolete, racial inequality remains visible within our society. Throughout the course readings, one thing is for sure: the slave trade is the primary cause of racial inequality from 1500 to the present. Those sold into slavery become the property and a product of violence. Moreover, throughout the 15th to mid-18th centuries, slavery caused people to despise those who looked different from them, based on skin color. Slavery has caused numerous gaps among the privileged white community and minorities who have a history of slavery. This created a divided society based on skin color, with effects that continue to be a small part of our contemporary world.

Racism and the effects of racism can be seen anywhere. In the hallways of the high school, the streets, housing, neighborhoods, cities, and more, one thing is seen, and that 's segregation, which is ultimately caused by racism. Walking in the hallways at school, chances are that you’ll see a group of whites, a group of Hispanics, and a group of African Americans, but rarely do you see these three groups interacting with each other. Racism has been made a part of people’s everyday lives, a border posed by racism: segregation. Racism and its effects can not only be seen around us but can also be traced throughout countless readings in HWOC this year. Almost every literary work focuses on the topic or underscores at its effects, and today, you can walk into any library or bookstore and find something, whether it be a news article or chapter book, regarding racial conflict. This alone is evidence of how racism has integrated our society and continues to inform and manipulate our minds. The literature we have been exposed to this past year is a reflection of society, similar to a reflection in a mirror showing us the piece of hair sticking up in the back, literature is showing us the problem so it can be addressed.