Paper 2

Matthew Presta

J.Mignano Brady

English 102

April 24th, 2017

Oppression of the Innocent

Oppression is clearly evident in the book Black Boy by by Richard Wright and the short story “White Women of Color” by Julia Alvarez. Both works highlight the concept of oppression by silencing,marginalizing, and dehumanization. Oppression as a theme directly correlates throughout the song “The Blacker the Berry.” The song written by artist Kendrick Lamar,is as barbarous as the oppression of the Black community in the United States. Richard Wright in the Black Boy starts to learn about the cruel truth of Black boys in America as he grows older and wiser. Julia Alvarez in “White Women of Color” figures out what it truly means to be an immigrant in America. Richard,Julia, and Kendrick Lamar have one thing in common, they feel the tensions of oppression as they are colored americans in the United States.

In the book Black Boy, by Richard Wright, Richard starts to realize the reality of racism in the United States as he is an African American. Richard said “they would lift their heads to the ceiling and gape in a soundless wail. The sight became lodged in my imagination as a symbol of silent suffering.”(Black Boy, 303) As the dogs go for testing the doctors cut their vocal cords to minimize noise within the lab. The dogs inability to speak, symbolized the opportunities the African Americans weren't given compared to whites. This research testing proved how they dehumanized the dogs just like they did to the African Americans. Everybody deserves the right to speak their opinion and  stand up for what they think is right. If you are not given the chance to speak your mind like others is that fair to live like that? In order to make the change the African Americans were willing to make for the better, they needed to be treated as fair as the rest with their opinion being valued.The Dogs and African Americans being dehumanized become a huge symbol of suffering. The theme of marginalization was declared as the dogs were given to ability to their own rights. Thoughts and ideas for change were trapped inside their mind without any change of being heard. The Dogs symbolized the sense of fear and loss of power the African Americans were feeling. Kendrick Lamar said “ I said they treat me like a slave call me black, We feel a heap of pain , cause we black.” In Kendrick lyrics he’s portraying how the past has yet to change. Even in today’s society African Americans are still being put down and treated as slaves no matter what day and age we are in. It is hard to reflect on the history of discrimination of African Americans because it is still being written today. The 13th amendment which abolishes slavery doesn't mean anything because African Americans are still being oppressed by Americans.According to the article Black Lives Don’t Matter: the Silenced Black Voice by Adam Lammarra (Page, 1) blacks are 6 times more likely to be sent to prison than white people. Is it because our criminal justice system is setup to target African Americans? The NYPD stop and frisk policy targeted African Americans by police officers, as they deliberately search African Americans because they were black. Stripping away the right to their 4th amendment. Out of all the NYPD stop and frisk’s, 83% were either Black, or Hispanic. Our policies set up by our legislation are targeting African Americans, as institutional racism still exists.

Richard Wright also talks about the day to day Oppression he faces, just because he is black. As Richard wright walks the street at night he gets questions by police because he is black. Police see a black man on the streets and think that they are up to trouble. “But the color of a Negro's skin makes him easily recognizable, makes him suspect,  converts him into a defenseless target. " (Black Boy, 28)Even though the 13th amendment exists, black people still feel the pressure of slavery day to day. They cannot walk the streets at night without being questioned of crime. The police tells Richard “Tell your boss not to send you out in white neighborhoods at night time.” (Black Boy, 29) Why does a black boy have to have his freedoms limited and be marginalized as a 2nd class citizen, as he cannot walk the streets.

In the books White Women of Color, Julia has to deal with coming to America and starting a new life. Julia talks about how she was discriminated and marginalized at home. She says,“People of color were treated as if they were inferior, prone to violence, uneducated, untrustworthy, lazy.” (White Women of Color, 187) Julia's dominican race were thought to be trouble seeking, but really they were no different than the white folks. People dehumanized Dominicans because of their race. Alvarez family was being silenced by society. Living in a world where you cannot speak, you cannot be heard. Americans thought of her as subordinate. Julia went to private school, as she received an education. Julia never started fights, and accepted the discrimination. She did not retaliate because she knew she was better than the racism. Many students bullied her at school as they said “go back to where you came from.” (White Women of Color, 187) Can you imagine coming to America to start a new life and not being accepted to society? Julia was treated as an enemy when the only crime she committed was trying to succeed in america. The white children in Julia’s school were raised by their own parents to think Dominicans can't succeed and also learn it in school. Kids learn about history and how oppression can be seen extensively on american soil. If children were not taught about the history of oppression throughout our country, would kids discriminate?  

Kendrick raps “I mean it's evident that i'm irrelevant to society.” In 2014, there was a spike in African Americans being killed by police which started the #BlackLivesMatter movement. African Americans were protesting for justice, but kept getting silence by the media. Many Americans viewed their rallies as protests, but really they were screaming to be heard. Black activist have had to fight commercial events to be heard such as the Macy's Day Parade.The Macy’s Day Parade is an iconic event for Americans, and has been going on since the 1920’s.  Many African americans marched through the famous parade located in New York City. Activists wants to stop being silence, and howl their voice for equal opportunity. According to Snejana Farberov from Daily Mail (Page, 1) protesters raided the streets of the 2014 parade with signs targeting police, and were seeking justice for Mike Brown. Mike Brown was a black man who was killed by police, and activists believe he was brutally murderer by police. Many blacks feel they are treated as irrelevant and take on social media to be heard. Julia Alvarez was treated as irrelevant as she was discriminated in school. Julia did not let that stop her from getting an education and falling to racism. Julia received a degree and proved that she is not “lazy,”  African Americans are standing up for their rights and speaking out, on how society bullies them today. Activist speak out on facebook groups, start many hashtags all over social media, and protest commercial events.

All in all we are a nation divided by race. People may protests and speak out, but we are the generation for change. People need to break the silence and speak out. Oppression is pronounced in the book Black Boy by Richard Wright, and in the short story “White Women of Color.” Kendrick Lamar raps about oppression of African Americans in the United States through his song “The Blacker the Berry”, and exemplifies the oppression Richard and Julia felt.

MLA Citation

Alvarez, Julia. White Women of Color. New York: 1998. Hungry Mind Review. Print.

“Black Lives Dont Matter.”Counterpunch.org.Adam,Lamarra September 21,2016. Web. April 25    2017.

"Ferguson Protesters Disrupt Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade: Activists Take to New York Route" DailyMailOnline.com.Snejana Farberov, November 27 2014. Web. April 25 2017.

Kendrick Lamar. Blacker the Berry. Terrace Martin, 2015. MP3.

Wright, Richard. Black Boy. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1944. Print.