This week’s readings included a story by Toni Morrison from 1983 titled “Recitatif.” Although our society has eliminated some ways of discrimination, prejudice, and racism, it is still prevalent, today. Throughout the 1980s, racial minority groups, especially Blacks, were looked down on and treated differently even though there were equal rights between all races. As Toni Morrison describes the events in her story, it is almost like we are reading something of our own time.
Tony Morrison goes into detail about events occurring in that time period much like they were in real life in the 80s and, unfortunately, today. She focusses on the relationship between two people of different races and how certain events shape society and the relationship between races. As the two girls grow up, there are several encounters where racial stereotypes and inequality are present. For example, Whites refusing to shake Blacks hands just because they have a different skin color than them and think that they are superior (Morrison, pg. 4). Another example is assuming the social and economic classes of Whites and Blacks. Morrison automatically puts the White family into a higher social and economic class than the Blacks by describing the amount of food that was brought by the mothers of the two girls, assuming low income for the minority group (pg. 5).
As you consider these examples, you can see that these problems, stereotypes, and assumptions are still prevalent, today, in our society. Blacks are undoubtedly treated differently than Whites. Take job inequality for example. Blacks are less likely to get hired when competing with its White counterpart. Blacks, also, are more likely to work in the service sector rather than Whites “with compensation at $12 per hour, $9 of which was for wages” and no benefits added (PRB, 2001). Therefore, Blacks make less annual income, putting them in a lower social and economic class compared to most Whites. Additionally, Blacks are most likely to get arrested than any other race. Since Jim Crow Laws had been established, NAACP states, “Since then, African American communities have continued to be under surveillance and targeted by police, including, but not limited to, the era of War on Drugs and mass incarceration” (2020). Not all police single out Blacks, but it has been a common occurrence, today, like it had been in the late 1900s after the Jim Crow Laws had been passed.
All in all, racial inequality, stereotypes, and assumptions have not changed much since the 80s. We still see mass amounts of discrimination, prejudice, and racism. It seems like we are stuck in a society where they value people less because of the color of their skin, and it is extremely unfair and just plain wrong. There are many examples of Blacks and other minority groups being treated differently not only in America, but all around the world as well. We cannot seem to get out of this horrid cycle of repeating the past since the 80s…or well before the 80s.
Sources:
Criminal Justice Fact Sheet. (2020). Retrieved September 11, 2020, from https://www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/
Morrison, Toni. (1983). Recitatif.
Racial Inequalities in Managerial and Professional Jobs. (2001, February 1). Retrieved September 11, 2020, from https://www.prb.org/racialinequalitiesinmanagerialandprofessionaljobs/
Very nice presentation. It is interesting and very devastating how relevant these topics remain. In reading this story I was also making lots of comparisons to our modern world, and how inquest our social and economic world can be for black people.
What I find so interesting is that even though Morrison never specifically states the race of each of the girls, our minds assume the lower class, ill dressed, ill fed women are Black. While I 100% agree that there are so many inequalities that need to be fixed in America, especially between races, we need to start by training ourselves to not associate worse conditions with Black people or any minority. This is a judgement we so easily and quickly make and don’t even realize we are doing it have the time, just like in the assumptions in the race of the girls in Recitatif. Why couldn’t the woman holding a bible, well fed and dresses also be Black?
This is a really interesting point! While we can clearly pick out racial injustices in society, we must start with ourselves and our assumptions that society has placed on us. When we can push away stereotypes, we are better equipped to fight for racial equality.
The blog post was informative, and made a lot of clear ties between inequalities then and now. It’s important to understand how these injustices have evolved or changed from from then to now.
Your list of examples of the constant friction between the black people and white people really gives me a clear insight into how blacks have long been treated. The racism has permeated every corner of our lives, it is easy to realize the problems but hard to bring out the action. We should reflect on why the historical period Morrison described is similar to modern time.
I agree with you the potential injustice still exist in today’s society in US. In statisitc, black are in generally a low economic status and other aspects. Phychologically, studies also shown that people got implicit preference to employ white worker rather than black. This result root from the historically injustice black receive and need to be changed gradually by educations and stragegy that helps minority groups.
Inequality and injustice has been always an issue no matter for the past or now, no matter for the races or gender. There are always things or people that cannot be treated equally. It seems that things are getting better, where the issue of injustice seemed fading away. However, it exists in a different way.
This was an interesting comparison between racism in the 1980’s and the racism we observe today. However, I would like to add that America has come a long way since then. I would argue that this country has never been more equal. The laws that govern our society have abolished segregation and put an end to systemic racism. African Americans are not targeted by police, employers do not pay African Americans less, and minority groups are not treated differently because of the color of their skin. America is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world and is a leading example of inclusivity and tolerance. Morrison’s Recitatif is a picture-perfect example of why we should not categorize people by their differences. She intentionally left out the race of Twyla and Roberta to break through social barriers and teach the audience to stop stereotyping people. America is headed in the right direction. 2020 is far different then the 80’s, are society has learned from its mistakes and corrected the injustice of the past.
I agree entirely with your response to this article. I feel that although America is not 100% where it should be in response to racism and discrimination, looking back on how prominent these injustices used to be I feel this country has come a long way. I agree that we shouldn’t categorize people by their differences. Any body with a beating heart should be categorized the same. There should be no difference based on race, gender, ethnicity etc. Thank you for your comment I enjoyed reading this.
On top of this, African Americans have been systematically targeted for a very long time, so I cannot sit here and pretend I understand what anybody is experiencing. I think that American is eventually going to reach a point where everybody is categorized based on there human life and not on anything else. This is something that will just take time, and the social barriers need to be broken as harrisan.36 mentioned.
I appreciated you comparison with the way racial discrimination played out in the 80s compared to today. As I think I’ve commented on previous posts, the racial discrimination of today is “sneakier” than it used to be and can be easier for people to explain away by picking and choosing statistics. Your point about employment inequality struck me and made me think of studies that show that resumes are more likely to make it through the screening process with “white sounding” names compared to “ethnic sounding” names, even with equal qualifications and experience. I can’t say whether that is intentional or subconscious bias, and surely it’s actually some mix of the two, but the fact remains that stereotypes of Black people are still leading to unequal opportunities to this day.
I think it is so important to be aware of the discrimination and racism that we still face in society today. However, I guess one difference I have in regard to your blog would be, I do believe we have come a long way since the civil rights movement. I truly believe the world we live in has come a long way. I think a lot of us forget that this is a progress and cannot be changed over night. We cannot expect a perfect world. It is significantly important that we continue to reflect and become aware of the biases we may have as individuals. We have to focus on today, where we are as a society, rather then putting most of the focus in the past.
I liked your presentation and the comparison of modern day racism to that of the 1980s. It is embarrassing to look at our country and see how little we have actually progressed. Racism today is not that of the 60s when Blacks were harassed in the streets. Today racism is “hidden” in the laws and practices that are carried out everyday. So I’m happy that you pointed out the wage difference between Blacks and Whites. I truly believe were still a long way for the realization of all men are created equal.
Hi, I liked your presentation and you made really good points! While racism isn’t as bad as it used to be during the civil rights movement I believe that this year took a really bad turn and it seems like we’re living in the civil rights movement.
I really enjoyed reading your presentation and I definitely agree that the term “white privilege” still exists today when it should no longer have a place in society. White individuals have to usually only worry about very trivial matters relative to African-Americans, and an example of this is when they deal with the police. When white individuals are pulled over, they can oftentimes sweet-talk their way out of a ticket and they are treated with a high amount of respect. On the other hand, African-Americans are practically forced to be fearful and anxious when they get pulled over because they are not given an ounce of courtesy. In fact, they have to worry about where they place their hands in front of an officer and how they speak because even the smallest dilemma could result in consequences that are not deserved. For instance, George Floyd was killed for not doing anything wrong while some white killers have been given water and treated nicely after committing despicable acts of terror. Although race should have no influence on anything in life, too many people in this country were raised with terrible ethics and have antiquated views that favor a particular race for no apparent reason. I think many schools still tend to skip over racial injustices that have occurred and how to repair them because it seems like society has been regressing for quite some time.
I think you did a really nice job in this presentation. I think you made it super clear and easy to understand. I really like that you related everything to present time to better explain that some things never change, and if they did at some point, it was only temporary. I thought the simplicity of your examples held strong meaning, making your work well done. It is crazy to think that certain issues taking place within our world now are things we tried to solve decades ago.
Great write up! I do want to point out that if the story ended in the 80s, it would have started in the 50s or 60s. Math there is that the girls had kids and were married during the grocery store encounter, so likely in their 30s, and they were 8 when they met at the orphanage. So they saw a span of decades, going back to the 60s, 70s and 80s. As I read through your post, I couldn’t get the statement “Racism isn’t getting worse, its just getting filmed” out of my head. And, sadly, I believe that’s the case. Viral videos, tweets and memes are a very new thing. Instead of remembering, or like we saw in this story, mis-remembering events, they are now hard coded in film.
Loved the way you tied in an example from today’s society about how Blacks are discriminated against systemically. I think sometimes because overt racism is not as prevalent today, people often time think it does not exist. However, as you mention in your example regarding the wage difference between the two races, racism is still very much alive today.