Author: garcia.882

Text Review: The Hate U Give

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The novel The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a fictional tale that provides social commentary on police brutality against the black community and the everlasting impact this has on society. The impactful novel follows the life of Starr, a young black girl who is living in two vastly different worlds. On one end she attends a predominantly white private school, however she grew up and continues to live in a black neighborhood full of crime. Starr appears to be doing a great job at keeping her worlds separate, but one unfortunate night Starr’s world comes crashing down as she loses her childhood best friend at the hands of a police officer while she is in the passenger seat.

Starr internally struggles with keeping her worlds separate as she has done her whole life. She radically changes who she is as a person from what she says to how she dresses when attending her private school to not be perceived as “ghetto” but she soon realizes that by shunning her identity she is doing a disservice to Khalil. After initially being scared and unsure of testifying against the officer, she develops the strength and courage to speak up on injustice and racism without concern for how others view her.

This novel does presents the theoretical ideas of the subaltern and the master and slave concept. The theoretical idea of the subaltern is presented when the black community in the novel seek justice for Khalil. Their voices are ignored and instead actions are taken to silence them such as deploying police force to block the streets and the use of tear gas. Angie Thomas describes the scenes as reminiscent of a war zone and that is the extent those in power will go to not hear the cries for justice of the black community.  In a symbolic scene Starr takes the lead among protesters and begins to shout that peace will not be restored until justice is met, but her passionate speech is met with dismissal and resistance showing the lack of care for anything the subaltern has to say. The idea of the master and slave concept is showcased earlier in the novel by Starr. Starr recognizes that white people are those in power (the master) and she changes her persona to appeal to them thus accepting her role as the inferior person in the relationship (the slave). 

Angie Thomas writes this novel to spark the much needed conversations on police brutality and systemic injustice. Her novel addresses the massive issue in this country that has not been addressed for years. For years the black community has been targeted left to grief for their loved ones whose lives are taken at the hands of those who swear to serve and protect and no action has been taken. This novel inspires us to take a stand and to let our voices be heard as we can all be the star that shines their light on this cruel, dark, and unjust world.

“Yo Is This Racist” Op-Ed

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A summer full of confusion, anger, and disgust is the perfect way to describe the summer the United States endured last year. The events that transpired during the summer of 2020 left a bitter taste in the mouth of many citizens and left sectors of people angry and begging for justice.  Not only was the country fighting the worldwide pandemic known as COVID-19, but it was also fighting a plague that has haunted the country for centuries, the plague known as racism and systemic injustice. For years the country has tried to sell the citizens of the United States of America the usual propaganda of “we are working on fighting injustices” and “we are making progress as a country.” However, the harsh reality is that progress has not occurred fast enough. In fact last year opened the eyes of many to the massive amounts of injustices that still exist in the country which leads to the massive atrocities that headlined the news all of 2020. The summer of 2020 should be used as a precedent for change as the citizens were witnesses to some of the most blatant evidence of systemic injustice and oppression that caused the country to come to a halt and decide to protest massively in scenes reminiscing of the civil rights movement. 

In one of the most perturbing and graphic videos I have seen we saw an unarmed man be violently detained and choked for over eight minutes until he lost his life at the hands of the police. George Floyd is a name that will forever be remembered, because unfortunately he became another victim. Another victim of the excessive force police use on people of color, another victim of the over policing that occurs in minority neighborhoods, another victim of police brutality, another victim of systemic injustice, and above all another victim of America. George Floyd paralysed a nation because for over eight minutes we see a grown man helplessly lie on the floor as a police officer has his knee over his neck restricting his ability to breath. George Floyd felt powerless and all he could do was cry and yell for his mother and his children as the police officers stood over him watching his last few seconds of life slip away with no remorse whatsoever. This scene is infuriating but it is very symbolic of the system in America. While the majority in this case white Americans stand tall the minorities are down begging for help and justice. The whites demonstrate power at the expense of the lives and liberty of the minorities. 

The haunting video is something that will forever be remembered in the history of the nation. A video this graphic and this infuriating had not been seen since the beating of Rodney King at the hands of the Los Angeles Police Department. The attention the murder of George Floyd got peaked the interest to many other cases of unjust police force against the black community. The names of Breonna Taylor and later on in the year Jacob Blake made national headlines as Breonna Taylor was killed unjustly due to a no knock warrant, and Jacob Blake another unarmed black male was shot in the back by a police officer as he was checking on his kids. The Black Lives Matter movement once again started to gain prominence and black voices were finally being heard after being silenced for hundreds of years. While slavery ended years ago the discrimination and the suppression of the black community still continues to this day. The literal chains and shackles came off but in place a system was created that restored the chains and shackles and silenced the community.

For years the white citizens of America have enjoyed their stay at the top of the social hierarchy at the expense of minorities. As Simone De Beauvoir explains there is a relationship dynamic known as the one and the other that accurately describes this relationship. The one is the person that seeks to establish themselves at the top of the social hierarchy and be the dominant sector of people, but as she mentions to truly be dominant they have to establish another sector of people as inferior or as she calls it they have to establish the “other.” This relationship dynamic is what led to the creation of a system full of injustices that allows the white sector of America to be far more suited to thrive while the black sector of America struggles to even survive. This relationship dynamic is to blame for what happened to George Floyd because it is this relationship that created the system that leads to an us versus them mentality that has fueled years of prejudice and discrimantion. That prejudice and discrimination led to a police system that already expects people of color to be a criminal before a proper investigation has taken palce. This system is what fuels an officer to feel “threatened” by an unarmed black civilian who is simply confused as to why excessive force is immediately used on them. Police officers feel threatened by the color of a minority’s skin because the system created a misconception that they were the stereotypical criminals who were menaces to society. This system is single handedly responsible for the deaths and unjust incarceration of many black people in America.

For years the black community has been the subaltern in America. During the dark history of America they were enslaved and used for arduous labor thus they were simply treated as property who had no say in anything. Not only were they denied their rights as citizens but they were denied basic human rights and at some point were even considered three fifths of a person. As Dr. King mentioned they were asked to “wait” and be patient for reform but as he stated in his Letter From Birmingham Jail the black community understood that sitting down and waiting for change was not an option. They were frustrated because they understood that the word “wait” meant never and they chose to not simply sit with their arms crossed and instead chose to speak up. However, no matter how much they spoke up in true subaltern fashion they were ignored and their pleas were met with resistance and violence. The black community was tired of being vilified and targeted for simply having a different color of skin, but their attempts at asking for justice have fallen on deaf ears for years. In recent years the cases of police brutality have sparked a nationwide debate especially when Colin Kaepernick chose to use his platform to protest against police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem. Colin Kaepernick was a high profile celebrity when he began his protest as he was an NFL star who even played in Super Bowl yet even he was ignored. His message was completely ignored as people focused more on the action of him kneeling as opposed to the reason as to why he was kneeling. His decision to continue to kneel as a form of protest ended up costing Colin his career as no team has given him a chance since that season. What happened to Mr. Kaepernick is indicative of the term subaltern and it is a demonstration as to what society has done to black folks every time they speak up. 

Being a person of color in America is not easy. Being a person of color in America means that there is a genuine fear that you could be the next victim of police brutality. Having to fear if you are going to die when an officer stops you is a disheartening feeling but it is the reality of America. The sad reality of an America who has continuously justified the murders of black civilians at the hands of the police. The truth is that these occurrences are not accidents, they are not mistakes in which a cop panicked or felt threatened. The sad and unjust reality of all of this is that these deaths are a result of the system. This is how everything was designed and none of this will stop until proper systematic reform is done. America created a system that persecutes minorities, especially black and brown people. From the over policing of these communities to the representation of these people in shows and movies. George Floyd was the latest victim of  the American system. George Floyd’s tragic murder should not be another statistic. He should not be just another name added to a far too extensive list of unarmed people of color being unjustly killed by police officers. George Floyd’s murder should be used as a benchmark that brings about changes in the system. His death opened the eyes of many to the systemic injustice in America and the lack of adequate punishment for officers who are responsible for the murders of civilians. The death of George Floyd should be forever engraved in our minds. His horrendous murder should be the final straw that pushes people to continue protesting and continue to fight for reform until change is made. His death should bring an end to the long overdue wait for justice and equity. 

 

Diary Of Systemic Injustice Redlining’s Continuous Effect on Homeownership and Racial Discrimination-Julio Garcia

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Something I have recently read about was that there are many people of color who are homeless and that even in our current society some cities are still severely separated by race. This peaked my interest and I began to do some research as to why this could be the case. What I found was disturbing, but not surprising knowing the dark history of America. My interest in this topic led to me learning about redlining which is the denial of a loan or financial assistance to people because the area in which they live is deemed an area of financial risk. This is one of the many policies that even though they are no longer in place their effects continue to be seen in current society. Redlining is an example of systemic injustice because it is a policy that serves as a method of keeping people of color under while enabling white Americans to prosper as it is the communities in which minorities live that are deemed of financial risk thus preventing them from being given loans. On the other hand communities where whites live are rarely considered of financial risk thus enabling them to be given loans and allowing them to prosper and become homeowners. Not only does this policy cause homelessness but it also causes severe racial separations in cities, an effect we still see today as in many cities in the United States there is a clear division in which areas minorities live in and which areas whites live in. This policy is one of the many policies the United States has enforced to keep the privileged at the top and cause minorities to continue suffering, the segregation of the cities due to redlining led to even more division and more hindrances to the opportunities of minorities to make any progress. Redlining was a policy established a long time ago, and even though it is no longer in place the effects of the policy as well as the thinking the policy left behind continues to hinder progress in today’s society. This reminded me of a particular quote from the Letter From Birmingham Jail that we analyzed earlier this semester. In his letter to the white clergymen Dr. King emphasizes that Black people are tired and frustrated about being told to wait for change because the word wait essentially means never. He states “For years now I have heard the word wait. It rings in the head of every negro with a piercing familiarity. This wait has almost always meant never.” This quote applies to this policy because for years this policy has not been in place yet we still see a massive discrepancy on homelessness and we still have segregated cities and no apparent urgent policies to undo the errors of previous horrendous policies. Years have passed and the black community has still not received equity making Dr. King’s words resonate more and this eternal wait for equity and justice appears to be never ending.

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2019/08/07/472617/systemic-inequality-displacement-exclusion-segregation/

Context Presentation: Things Fall Apart

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The book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe details the story of Okonkwo, a successful and well respected leader in his village who slowly descends into a cycle of depression. His depression arises when he is not able to learn how to adapt in his village when they fall victim to colonialism. Slowly his village begins to adapt to western ideals, and Okonkwo views this as a threat as he feels his village is losing their customs and their culture yet others are drawn to what the Europeans bring in terms of religion and education.  Undoubtedly what made everything more frustrating for Okonkwo was that the village had a well established society with their customs, beliefs, and traditions. The village was in no need of help from any outsiders, but when the white man came all this started to slowly be lost and his death by suicide is representative of how colonialism can destroy many well established communities who never needed the influence of the west to survive.

The book Things Fall Apart provides a very important and interesting commentary on African society prior to colonization. Sadly so often African culture prior to colonization is ignored because the white man who colonized the continent are allowed to dictate the narrative of the tribes. This is where the narratives of African tribes being savages who needed Christianity arise, but in reality there was already an established society with their own religion, language, and traditions. As mentioned in the article “What Africa had before colonization” “Africa had its own forms of commerce, science, art and other measures of civilization long before the arrival of the colonizers.” This is an important distinction because as we learned earlier in the semester the privileged group is so often allowed to tell the stories of minorities and this becomes the narrative around them.

Sadly this happens constantly throughout history. History is told from the side of the victor and this has been European countries for the most part, so the story of the minorities is left out and their voice is not heard. A historical event that is reminiscent of this is what happened with Christopher Columbus. During our early portion of our school career we are told the story of an explorer who discovered places, but the reality is far from the truth as he left a vicious cycle of destruction of tribes.

Nyoni, Philani A. “What Africa Had before Colonisation.” This Is Africa, 26 Mar. 2015, thisisafrica.me/african-identities/africa-colonisation/.

History.com Editors. “Why Columbus Day Courts Controversy.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 7 Oct. 2019, www.history.com/news/columbus-day-controversy.