##rtance Of Colorism In Letter From Birmingham Jail And Martin Luther King's Invisible Man

The civil rights movement was a very important part of not only the United States but also the 20th century in general. Even today many people believe that the civil rights movement is still going on. The bravery of men and woman during this period in the 1960s; some important figures included Martin Luther king Jr., John Lewis, Malcolm X, Bayard Rustin and Angela Davis. The letter from a Birmingham jail by MLK, Malcolm X’s The black Revolution, and Angela Davis’s I am a Revolutionary Black Woman are very important pieces of the civil rights movement in the united states for many reasons. The letter by MLK was created to response to criticism to the eight clergy man. The black revolution was a speech made to persuade the audience to follow Muslim. Angela Davis’s piece also was one of controversy, not only was she black and a woman but she was also a communist.

Racial discrimination has a great impact on people of various races. Throughout the past generations, many people have faced discrimination because of the way that they look. People have been hated, beaten, killed and made fun of. Many people have been put down because of the way that they look. Adults, teens and even children began thinking less of themselves after the incidents. Many African Americans started considering themselves inferior to whites, which lead them to perform worse in school and daily activities. Looking at the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the video experiment Brown Eyes and Blue Eyes performed by Jane Elliott, it is evident that African Americans faced discrimination for hundreds of years, which lead them to consider themselves inferior amongst all other people.

“Among African Americans, skin tone is an important physical characteristic that creates divisions in the community and affects the quality of life. Like gender, a person’s skin tone is a visible physical trait that others immediately notice during social interactions and use to form judgments” The Light skin versus Dark skin issue that has been haunting the black community for centuries is deeply rooted from the times of slavery. Because of the influence of white supremacy, mixed race children received better treatment which resulted in the formation of a social stratification within the black community that impacted how they were treated by white people as well as the way they were treated within their own community.

Much like in today’s society, people have been blinded by racial stereotypes when confronted with differences and disagreements. These confrontations lead to hate and misunderstandings between those of different races or cultures. Even within the same culture there are differences that cause individuals to misjudge one another and discriminate against those who are like them. “Racist whites sarcastically project undesirable traits upon black bodies (Hsu).” Hsuan Hsu states that “as a result of such racial projections, blacks are susceptible to both the over-identification with white ideals which Ellison’s protagonist often feels and the counter-identification which fuels the racial nationalist crusade against any interaction whatsoever with whites (Hsu).” The words of the Invisible Man’s grandfather follow the protagonist throughout his life and serve as a reminded to him that he should not let the white men that tower over him control him. He believes that in order to survive without betraying his own race one must be underhanded in the way that they live their life. Due to conflicting ideals and frames of mind the Invisible Man is tossed about his life without proper direction. Unknowingly, the protagonist of this story is one that is taken advantage of easily due to his naivety and willingness to obey those that he perceives to be superior to him.

Destructive images and negative rhetoric became powerful representation of blacks that began to disseminate across the world as early as the colonial years of settlement of the late 16th century. The Negro’s representation of being destructive and negative was by far the catalyst that fueled whites with hatred for the African and these representations are considered powerful because it is the images themselves that further made it possible to allow white people to justify the cruel treatment of the Negro in America. Throughout history the Negro has also suffered from vagrancy laws, the black codes, and Jim crow (segregation) but nothing seemed to compare to the black image of inferiority that proved to be the most successful tool of propaganda within the institution of racism. Images such as servile, primitive, and simpleminded just to name a few were used to degrade Africans and it is these images that have influenced the dialog of the black leaders throughout history. My argument will discuss the psychological effects of such negative imagery of the Negro and its powerful effect on black leaders such as Dubois, Washington, and Woodson.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is one of the most monolithic pieces of racial justice literature in American history. His words, written some 53 years ago, still echo in modern writing and sentiment on the subject. No argument however, is revered without reason, and this letter is no exception. His writing stands firmly and persuasively through the march of time not because it was so thoroughly accepted and widely endorsed. In fact, many still rejected his efforts and the letter would not become popular until much later, when it was truly recognized as a masterpiece. No, Dr. King’s letter stands because of his remarkable usage of argumentative speech. His writing weaves a web of pathos, ethos, and logos, each piece lending themselves to strengthen the other. Not only does he use these forms near flawlessly, he is able to clearly and exactly refute the claims and positions of his opponents and use them to further his own argument.

Injustice has been an issue that has plagued our country for decades in many ways. Whether it was injustice against African Americans in the 1960’s or injustice within the court’s judicial system in the 1990’s, injustice has continued to exist within our nation. In Letters from a Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. describes the various injustices against citizens of African American descent, and describes the need for actions to be taken against them. Similarly, in Trial by Fire, David Grann describes the injustices within the judicial system about falsely incriminating inmates and convicting innocent people of the death penalty. Both authors use various types of rhetoric including telos, kairos, pathos, logos, and ethos, to help

The oppression of black lives is more vivid and real than one could ever imagine. However, not being black makes it hard to see and feel such vivid realities. As we as a society look at the issues of racial prejudices, the problems we see are taken for less than what they are and approached from an unrealistic perspective. In our current times with the vast amount of racial issues coming to a head it is critical to have an understanding of the ways in which we contribute to the metanarratives that exist in our communities, and the ways in which we can offer counter narratives. In the readings Skin Deep; Reliving 'Black Like Me ': My Own Journey into the Heart of Race-Conscious America by Joshua Solomon, The Ten Worst Ideas Held by White People About Black People, from: Race Manners by Bruce A. Jacobs, and the article on Joshua Solomon, that was presented in Jet Magazine, there were several connections to the concepts discussed thus far that will be examined.

The Africans who were forcibly brought to America as slaves were taught that they were less than; demeaned because of their darker complexions, kinkier hair and rounded features. The origin of colorism in America started when slave owners gave preferential treatment to the fairer skinned slaves. During and over the period of slavery white masters would often rape their female slaves, often resulting in pregnancy. If impregnated, the product of that rape would result in a lighter-skinned child called a mulatto. Even though their masters didn’t claim them as family, since they contained white blood mulattos were allowed to work in the house and were awarded with better living conditions, better clothes, and more food: privileges that the darker skinned slaves lacked thereof. Added to that slave traders focused on gender and skin color to lure potential buyers into purchasing human merchandise, placing higher value on women of lighter skin tones deeming them as “Negroes fit for domestic service” within the homes of their masters. Due to this special or preferential treatment, the slaves, both light and dark learned head on that the lighter they were the more they were valued or accepted. The psychological impact of this form of oppression resulted in the passing down of that false sense of thinking from generation to generation resulting in the internalized racism and

Ralph Ellison novel, Invisible Man, affected the mindset of Americans. He separates himself from the authors before him by introducing a character that experiences the American marginalization. The original view on marginalization was that all colored people did not need a voice in society, and society itself did not need laws to enforce separation. Colored men were considered invisible to society. It can easily be seen in Brown vs. the board of education where “Brown was not directed at de facto segregation, which means segregation arising from such private actions as housing choices” (Armor 40).

The ideas of racial bias and discrimination have been a huge and important part of American history. Because of the issues surrounding this idea in society, many people took it upon their own hands to provide social commentary and even criticize society in many different ways, especially writers and poets. In the novel, Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison provides social commentary on the issues regarding racial bias in the 1930s by utilizing the protagonist in such a way that he goes through several negative experiences. Along with Ellison, other writers and poets, such as Malcolm X and Maya Angelou, also provide their own opinions and social commentary on the issues regarding racial bias through their own separate works. The works that were specifically

In the article, “The Continuing Significance of Colorism in the 21st Century,” JeffriAnne Wilder explains what colorism is and how it affects African-American women. Colorism is described as the unequal treatment of people based on their skin tone, facial features, and hair. The author starts off with exerts from different black women who state they have been judged and affected by the color of their skin tone. She explains that she is a light-skinned black woman and that although she is happy with her skin, she has always had people compare her skin color to material objects. She further describes how she began to research skin tones in college. She learned about colorism and how people are discriminatory towards African-Americans, based on

Most people have expectations to live up to and guidelines on how they should act. These expectations and guidelines vary from person to person, but often members of the same race are subject to the same expectations. Ralph Ellison’s novel Invisible Man explores the intersections of race and power, especially in a society that is very community oriented, as seen when the actions of an individual are reflected on other members of the race as well. Although Ellison’s protagonist “the Invisible Man” and other black men described in the novel, on several occasions behave how they are supposed to, however their superiors are never quite satisfied and often their actions are in vain. Due to this repeated occurrence, Ellison’s novel analyzes the social hierarchies that are present within the races of black and white, how these expectations are insatiable.

In Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison, the protagonist struggles through a series of events that surround the idea of racial justice. As a black person living in society, the narrator finds himself unable to avoid the effects of such discrimination and unfair treatments. As the narrator starts to acknowledge his identity, he slowly begins to see the faults in the system in which he lives in. With the different types of struggles and circumstances surrounding his journey towards finding his own identity, the narrator comes to face to face with injustice on many occasions. As a result, the narrator can be seen responding to the injustice of his society in many different yet significant ways.

There has been a hidden conflict of prejudice that occurs within a race that has recently became common topic of everyday conversation. In 1982, Alice Walker, a well-known author gave it a name; colorism. Walker defined colorism in “In search of Our Mother’s Gardens” as “prejudicial or preferential treatment of same-race people based solely on their color”. Colorism has been a significant factor in the creation of self-hatred between people of light and dark hue. Within this society, a dominant ideology has been created which in turn causes the parts of the population with non-dominant features and characteristics to be made to feel inferior. One of the races is the African American race. The color in between light and dark skin complexion has created a division in the black community in America, and though blacks have come a long way since slavery, they have yet to come to unification amongst one another when placed in the situation of skin differentiation.