Media/texts

Essay #1

Leaving Identity Issues to Other Folks 

by Phyllis Allen

(excerpt)

"Now, it’s a brand new millennium and the bling-bling, video generation ain’t about me. Everything changed when I turned 50. Along with the wrinkles, softened muscles, and weak eyesight came the confidence that allows me to stick to a very small list of beliefs. I’ll leave those identity issues to other folks. I believe that I’m free to be whoever I choose to be. I believe in being a good friend, lover, and parent so that I can have good friends, lovers, and children. I believe in being a woman — the best that I can be, like my Mama said." (Allen)

Brief Analysis

In her short essay, Phyllis Allen recounts some of her past experiences and reflects on how society influenced her beliefs regarding her identification while growing up Black in the late 20th century. She explains that with each new decade came new labels, and that society never truly settled on just one—they were ever-changing. Because her mind was still in the state of maturing, Allen was easily influenced by her surroundings which were constantly evolving; this naturally lead to her personal identity being altered with time. This meant that Allen was constantly adapting to identify with the labels she was given by society and played her role to conform to its expectations. Regardless of what she chose to identify with at the time, Allen still faced the pressures of society to conform to their labels on Black people. Eventually, she learned to settle with her own beliefs. At the age of 50, Allen gained the confidence to identify herself, and govern her own identity. As a person of colour, Allen’s essay reminds us of the importance of discovering one’s own identity and not basing the entirety of it off of society’s labels. It also effectively brings meaning to the notion that, with whichever she chose to identify as a Black person, she had a set of values that remained true to her all while facing the freights of society.

POdcast

Reparations And The Elusive Definition of Black Identity

Code Switch / NPR

(excerpt)

"And I would agree that the police don't ask you where you're from if you're black. You know, there's no question that all black people are weighted by the freight of American white supremacy, but the degree to which people are freighted by that is somewhat different." (20:27)

Analysis

In this podcast episode, journalists discuss identity as a Black person in America. They explore subjects including stereotypical identifications in schools, immigration, anti-blackness, the racial wealth gap, political viability and reparations. Taking a deeper observation into what it means to identify as a Black American in the 21st century, the journalists look into how broad this ethnic group truly is. Some may choose to identify with the Black community as a whole or in a more distinct manner. They explore how different Black ethnicities in America think about and identify with one another, the distinctions between “native Blacks” and “Black immigrants”, and how one’s method of identification can influence their educational and economic values and outcomes. Regardless of their choice, however, one journalist mentions that all are weighted by the freight of white supremacy—but the degree to which they are freighted can vary depending on how they identify themselves as part of this melting pot of identities. Whatever they choose to identify with, all Black ethnic groups share similar values which vary according to how they choose to identify. At the end of the day, they’re still Black, they share the same roots and blood as anyone else of that ethnic group, and are all impacted by the weight of racism and discrimination within their country.

From coming face-to-face with stereotypes at school, to realizing how their race can determine access to social capital, safety and unfair pay, then learning about the racial wealth gap, health outcomes and more—this podcast covers a lot. But, all of these factors have links to personal identity. There is a broad spectrum of “Black”, as the term is used as a more universally-accepted label. How someone might identify themselves on this scale or spectrum is totally up to them. For example, Demby explains that, “Darrick said he liked negro because it's linked to slave descendants in the U.S. and this history of oppression.” (21:45) He also explains that there are distinctions between “native Blacks” and “immigrants” and that, once again, Black people have the choice to identify themselves with whichever they feel is the best fit. Darity adds that native Blacks are descendants of someone brought to America against their will and immigrants are people who immigrated/descended from immigrants in America. (12:22) There are many ways to identify yourself as a Black person, it all depends on what you feel works best with you and what you’re comfortable with. I personally like to identify myself simply as “Black” because I’m “Black passing”, meaning that regardless of my Asian side I physically look like a person of African descent, so it’s easier for me to just identify myself that way. Someone else might identify themselves as Black rather than African-American, for example, because they are unable to trace their lineage that far.

Regardless of what we might decide to identify as on the “Black scale”, as Darity mentioned, we “all are weighted by the freight of white supremacy”, but “the degree to which [we] are freighted by that is something different.” (20:35) We have a set of values that are exclusive to our ethnic group, despite all of the troubles we might face as individuals. The overall text of this podcast was effective in demonstrating how different Black people might identify themselves, as listeners are able to hear different ideas from different co-speakers, allowing for a more diverse set of identities to be portrayed.  Whether we choose to be identified as a negro like Darrick, or just Black like myself, this all brings truth to the concept at hand: regardless of what extent to which we choose to identify as Black people, we all still share similar values and nuisances concerning society. 

Poem

The Negro Speaks of Rivers 

BY LANGSTON HUGHES

(pasted in entirety)

I’ve known rivers:
I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I’ve known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers. (Hughes)

Annotation

In his brief but eloquent poem, Hughes manages to encapsulate the historical travels of an African-American and identifies himself with his ancestors dating all the way back to the construction of the pyramids. He brings light to his African roots, explaining that these bloodlines traced back into an ancient world “older than the flow of human blood in human veins.” Hughes strongly identifies with his ethnic background, and recognizes that they were the blueprint of his current identity. Abruptly, he makes reference to American accounts; Mississippi, Abraham Lincoln, and New Orleans, which one can assume would relate to a racist and discriminatory past, with experiences of slavery and mistreatment. Hughes assures that he can recognize and identify the journeys of his travelling peoples—their functioning lives in the heart of Africa and the struggles they face upon arrival in America.  He values his significant past, and still is able to address the social burdens that he shares with many other people of Black ethnic groups from all over the world.

(taken from the Annotated Bibliography)

Short story

Everyday use 

by Alice Walker

(excerpt)

"When I looked at her like that something hit me in the top of my head and ran down to the soles of my feet. Just like when I’m in church and the spirit of God touches me and I get happy and shout. I did something I never done before: hugged Maggie to me, then dragged her on into the room, snatched the quilts out of Miss Wangero’s hands and dumped them into Maggie’s lap. Maggie just sat there on my bed with her mouth open." (Walker)

Annotation

Walker’s short story requires a deeper analysis for one to truly understand the message she is trying to portray through different characters and symbolism. The story explores themes such as character development, vanity as downfall and identity crisis. The narrator, who her daughters refer to her as “Mama”, develops the most within this story. One of her daughters, Dee, struggles to identify with her African heritage at the beginning of the book- they currently live in America. Being the more successful child, Dee is used to having everything handed to her in life and upon her return home from college, she demands that her mother gives her this prized quilt that was saved after their older home had burnt down. Originally, the quilt was to be given to Dee’s sister Maggie, who, throughout her life was neglected and fell into the shadow of Dee. Maggie had a deep understanding and profound identification with her African heritage whereas Dee had only suddenly found an appreciation for it and merely wanted to flaunt it for her own vanity. It is up to their mother to decide who is more deserving of the quilts, depending on their identity with their African roots and understanding of the heritage.  Although the two sisters are so different, and identify themselves to different extents on the "scale", they both acknowledge their heritage and share a set of values, bringing truth to my original argument. 

(taken from the Annotated Bibliography)

Essay #2

Being content with myself

by Kamaal Majeed

(excerpt)

"I am now in my junior year of high school. I still take all Honors courses. My wardrobe still consists solely of clothes that are appropriate to my proportions. My music library spans from rock to pop to techno, and almost everything in between. When it comes to choosing my friends, I am still colorblind. I continue to do my best work in school in order to reach my goals; and yet, when I look in the mirror, I still see skin of that same shade of brown.

My skin color has done nothing to change my personality, and my personality has done nothing to change my skin color.

I believe in being myself. I believe that I—not any stereotype—should define who I am and what actions I take in life." (Majeed)

Annotation

Majeed describes his past experiences of racially-oriented stereotypes throughout his high school career. From being taunted for attending Honours classes to wearing proportionately-appropriate clothing, he disproved many of his classmates’ stereotypes against Black people. Majeed did not allow these stereotypes to alter his identity in any way. He lived according to his own personal beliefs on what it meant to be Black and chose not to conform to his classmates’ expectations. Near the conclusion of his essay, Majeed explains that his skin colour and personality are two different commodities that he lives and identifies with, but never allows the two to interfere with each other. Relating to my first source, both writers learn to value the importance of discovering one’s own identity and not forcing oneself to conform merely due to societal labels.  Majeed had a set of values regarding his confidence in his own skin as a Black teen at school. He faced the taunting and stereotypes but was confident to identify himself how he felt was appropriate to him. 

(taken from the Annotated Bibliography)