The Influence On The Media

Jumping back into the past, Gregory Orr tells the incident when he and a group of five hundred of men, women, teenagers, and old folks assemble in Jackson, Mississippi. In Jackson for a peaceful demonstration, Gregory Orr and the rest of the group were arrested and taken away “to the county fairgrounds” (128, 1). Where they was beaten by officers of the law, Orr stated, “I emerged into the outdoors and the bright sunlight and saw them-two lines of about fifteen highway patrolmen on either side. I was ordered to walk, not run, between them. Again I was beaten with nightsticks, but this time more thoroughly, as I was the only target” (129, 2). Once freed from his captors, Gregory Orr gets in his car to head back north, but on his way back he was pulled over by flashing lights. Thinking it was the police; Gregory Orr pulled over and was approached by two white men. One of the white men said, “Get out, you son of a bitch, or I’ll blow your head off” (133, 3). The two white men takes Gregory Orr’s wallet and tell him to follow them, Scared for his life, Gregory Orr did exactly what the two men told him to do. After following the two men, Gregory Orr is back in jail in Hayneville. “Already depressed and disoriented by the ten days in jail in Jackson, I was even more frightened in Hayneville,” (136, 1) stated by Gregory Orr.

Lemann discusses the life of George Hicks; native of Clarksdale who eventually works his way to the upper-middle class society of Chicago. George's childhood was ingrained in Clarksdale's southern style of harsh plantation life. He and his fellow black citizens were harassed and even arrested for fabricated charges. George himself was beleaguered by police officers for no legitimate reason and

In Brent Staples’ “Just Walk On By: Black Men and Public Space” he forces women to recognize the feeling of estrangement from the surrounding public that he has endured. He first took notice at the age of twenty two, when his own self-judgement resulted from scaring a woman when solely walking at night near his college, the University of Chicago. He maintained his dejected attitude when he wrote that a few years later, his own work mistook him for a thief instead of a journalist. Brent Staples heightened his frustration by mentioning a black male journalist who was blamed as a killer in a murder, instead of the writer reporting it. In portraying two versions of his story, he proves that this was a rather common and difficult occurrence for not only him, but others of his race. To attempt to resolve this, he decided to attempt to cross the street or sing classical songs to portray innocence. In this article, Staples’ forces his audience to encounter the hypocrisy in which all black men are dangerous. He concluded the essay with the realization that you can't change what people think, only attempt to show them who you are. Brent Staples appeals to the audience through his emotionally charged language with the use of his experiences with unconscious prejudice.

Have you ever been too filled with hate and pride to see the obvious truth right in front of you? The year was 1935 in the small town of Maycomb Alabama. During this time an important trial would be taking place. The trial of Tom Robinson, an African and American who had been promptly accused of rape by the one man who had seen the incident. Bob Ewell a despised person throughout the community and the father of the victim, Mayella Ewell, Bob’s abused, lonely, unhappy daughter. Though one can pity Mayella because of her overbearing father, one cannot pardon her for her shameful indictment of Tom Robinson.

Author and editorial writer for the New York Times, Brent Staples, skillfully uses both his educational and racial background to exemplify and reflect on the harrowing times black men faced during the mid-1900’s. Growing up the oldest of 9 in 1951, he pushed himself through primary schooling and against the predications of most, was accepted into college where he earned his B.A, and eventually, a coveted Ph.D. His anthology of literary works focus on politics and cultural issues and popularly include, Parallel Time: Growing up in Black and White, which won the Anisfield Wolf Book Award, An American Love Story, and the piece in mention, Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space.

In Staples essay “Black Men and Public Space”, big issues are explored and described in a way that we can relate to without getting

These arrests showed the villainy of the Union and their intimidation of unarmed citizens. The second account was published on Oct. 14th. This article reported that the Daily Richmond Enquirer had received a letter from an informant in Missouri. The letter, as quoted, stated that, “In short, our citizens are being murdered by hundreds, imprisoned by thousands and robbed and plundered of their property by the hundreds of thousands, and this you may report as truth, and nothing but the truth.” All three of the detailed accounts by the daily had helped reinforce the already present resentment that existed between the Union and the citizens of Richmond. They resented the North because the Union was pillaging their fellow Southerners. They felt that they were being vandalized and victimized by the North.

An African American writer for the New York Times, Brent Staples, in his article in Harper’s Magazine, “Black Men and Public Spaces”, elucidates the stereotypes and racism that he endures out in the public. Staples’ purpose is to inform his audience of events that he has encountered regarding his race in public areas, In his essay, he uses juxtaposition and imagery to address the uncomfortable situations he had to face.

The judge of his trial had been at his job for over 31 years and carried great weight over the town. As a result, he had a hand-picked, all white jury that would agree with anything he said or did. In James’s defense he had John S. Robinson, a 30 year old white lawyer, who believed that Richardson’s case was being handled unfairly as the judge constantly claimed James as guilty without a second thought and all the jurors were handpicked by the judge. Despite John Robinson’s best effort, he was unable to secure James an equitable trial. Against Richardson were three of his cellmates that he had met in the De Soto county jail.

The book assigned to all incoming freshmen of the College of Charleston to read over the summer was a poignant look into the prejudice-scarred past of the American south. Named for those few months in 1964 that redefined freedom and equality in America, it included many noble and inspirational characters, and choosing one to write about was no easy task. However, reading Freedom Summer, I found myself drawn to one character in particular: Chris Williams. The youngest of those who ventured into the heart of bloody Mississippi that summer, this 18-year old boy grew into a man by the time that summer was through with him. I cheered him on as he left his comfortable home, his high school diploma, and even his hippie hairstyle in Massachusetts. I was in awe of

Staples, Brent. “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space.” 50 Essays: A Portable Anthology, Third Edition, edited by Samuel Cohen, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 383-386.

A Little Rock banker, Virgil C. Pettie, was head of the Arkansas Advancement Association, a group that had been trying to put together at least two hundred reasons to justify the nickname of Arkansas as the Wonder State. In words just as cutting as those of Mencken, Pettie described the Baltimore journalist as “sufficiently obnoxious to a majority of the American people to warrant deportation.”7

During the mid-1970’s, people perceived African-Americans as physically more dangerous, despite the white and black male being equal in size. One black male in particular, author Brent Staples, wrote “Just Walk On By”, published in Ms. Magazine in the year of 1986, and argues that he has held “the ability to alter public space in ugly ways” because he appears to be of the African-American race(1). The purpose behind this excerpt is to notify the audience of how struggles due to stereotypes are contemporary in a black man’s life without a logical motive. Brent Staples, accomplished writer of “Just Walk On By”, builds his credibility with personal facts and sources while effectively triggering the emotions of his audience through the broad use of ethos. pathos. diction, and tone to portray the stereotypes that black males have to deal with. Staple’s audience is both the victimized black men who have experienced the same situations as him and the individuals who fear harmless pedestrians without reason. Staples reaches his audience in his claim that the black male will always be alleged violent and troublesome which is a “hazard in itself”(1). Brent Staples thrives in signifying the unceasing negative viewing of society’s black men.

Chesnutt provides the character Belmont as a bridge from the more idealistic Carteret to the largely tactless McBane, Chesnutt’s characterization of Belmont as having a knack for flattery is exemplified in the generalization of his encouragement of Carteret’s place as editor of The Morning Chronicle, “…you Carteret, represent the Associated Press, Through your hands passes all the news of the state. What more powerful medium for the propagation of an idea? The man who would govern a nation by writing its songs was a blethering idiot beside the fellow who can edit its news dispatches” (53). Chesnutt’s use of the term “edit” which is a synonym for the term “manipulate” functions here as a promise of Belmont’s ill intentions as he is manipulating Carteret by flattering him in. Chesnutt depicts the way writers used their connection to the public namely, the media, to support their own narrative, infiltrating the minds of the more vulnerable white public, and instilling fear of the African American “threat” into

To start, the day of the court case between the black Tom Robinson and Mayella Ewell, had almost the entire town present. The people were very divided by skin colour, white people sitting together in the grand seating and blacks up within the balcony seating, as this was the way of the world in the 1930s. Among the people was a man by the name of Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Mr. Raymond was a white man but he lived with the blacks and even had kids with a black woman. His choices were not overlooked by the community, they had a strong opinion for his actions and the town had a reason to stick to, Mr Raymond always carried around a brown paper bag with a straw sticking out of at, drinking it often and appearing as though he was a drunk.