Race vs Class: The Debate

Engl 165-04 Fall '22, Engl 165-16 Fall '22

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I believe that class plays a very important role in society. Many people act differently depending on their social class. Class isn’t limited to solely one person’s financial status, but instead how someone holds themselves. Class still plays a massive role in everyday life. For example, some people are allowed to do certain things because of their class. One of the easiest ways to distinguish people between certain classes is based on money. People of the lower class tend to act differently than those of a higher class. I feel like it is somewhat of a stupid concept if you really think about it. Even though I believe it is stupid, we cannot avoid being put into certain social classes. On the other hand, race is something that you are born into and can be easily distinguished by. Sadly, in some areas, certain races have harder times than other races. I believe that both race and class play way too much of an important role in everyday life. When I meet new people I don’t care what race or class they are, instead, I’m more interested in meeting who I am talking with.

Malcolm X believed all of America’s and Africa’s problems were based on class. I would agree with this. People of higher class tend to have more say in decision-making. This leads the lower class to be told what to do. This happens every day almost everywhere around the world. If we did not have social class I think we would live in a completely different world. When comparing class and race there are many differences. A person cannot change their race, but they can work to change their class. I believe Malcolm X’s strategy to change the topic from race to class was good. Instead of trying to battle a debate regarding race, approaching social class allowed African Americans to prove their worth in America.

 
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One Step at a Time

Engl 165-04 Fall '22, Engl 165-16 Fall '22

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The Impact
One thing that this book never fails to do, is shock me. Perhaps it’s ignorance, perhaps it’s me forgetting everything I learned in my history classes, but the story that it tells feels so personal. It’s a different and fresh perspective from how we usually learn about these events, and it does an amazing job at putting us up close and personal with these tragedies.

The Horrors
Starting this week’s reading was heartbreaking. The very first few pages were dedicated to the bombing and the four tragic deaths of those innocent girls. Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson, Cynthia Wesley, and Denise McNair had their lives ripped away from them. Knowing that these four girls never got to grow up, really puts things into perspective. The aftermath of the bombing was also a shock. The multiple casualties that all linked back to this event just added a layer of horror. What really bothered me most however, was the fact that all of the deaths were of kids. It showed that even after all this time, things had yet to change. That they are about to enter an era that they know will bring a number of casualties like the ones caused on that day. Reading through these pages felt like a downward spiral from one awful event to the next.

The Assassination
Even if they showed steady progress, it all came crashing to a stop when John F. Kennedy was assassinated. This was a huge turning point, especially since the one in charge now was President Johnson. John Lewis however, wanted to give him a chance. Although President Johnson didn’t have the best track record when it came to helping with passing civil rights legislation. The only thing I wish he’d done differently is that he would’ve asked John Lewis to continue the protests. They would add more pressure to the up coming election, sure, but that wouldn’t be a problem if you had the people you are fighting for, be able to vote for you. That’s why I found it kind of counterproductive, when he was asking civil rights activist groups to halt their work.

 
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activism

Engl 165-04 Fall '22, Engl 165-16 Fall '22

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l I’ve also not put too much thought on about what I would be like if I didn’t have freedom. I do have to say I don’t ever think my freedom would be stripped because of the color of my skin, mostly because I am white. On the other hand, I do think my attraction to men would give people a reason to strip me of certain rights. I would also have to agree that I don’t care much for activism because I some incenses I don’t think it would really change anyone perspective on how the view things like black rights, LGBTQ+ rights, or types of religious liberties.



People in general don’t really care for activism because mostly activism just reinforces negative public perception to the point where people just see activists as fanatics, wild-eyed zealots who see the world in black and white. The reasons that many activists are seen this way is that the corporate media works relentlessly to portray activism in a bad light. Secondly, many activists are wild-eyed zealots who see the world in black and white terms. One of the more counterproductive yet enduring activist tendencies is to focus way more time and energy challenging cops than challenging the dominant culture those cops are serving and protecting. So, if you really want to goad cops into arresting you and/or scream “fuck the police,” please recognize that such gestures will do absolutely nothing to bring about serious, sustainable social change or to help lure more folks into activism.

 
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1961 -2022 Civil Rights Comparison

Engl 165-04 Fall '22, Engl 165-16 Fall '22

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The 1961 film, The 10 Commandments, was a key role in the civil right movement. John Lewis, who was a pastor, led his people to the movie theater in Nashville TN to protest and sit in. This protest was just one of many by Lewis and his followers. During the peaceful protest,  violent white supremacists in the community caused many terrible acts to play out. Beatings, foul words, and other attacks were bombarded upon the protestors that day. As students, we are currently reading and writing about this specific event. Sadly, as we live every day more of these events still play out. Though many of the goals of the civil rights movement have been reached, there is still negativity surrounding it today. Police brutality still exists in our country. Countless innocent African Americans have been brutally murdered by the police in my lifetime. It is a realization that is very difficult to grasp. I personally do not see much racism in my community, but this does not mean racism doesn’t exist in our country. One current event that I feel strongly relates to this event is the painting of the Robert E Lee monument in Richmond. After the killing of George Floyd, the people of Richmond Virginia protested in downtown Richmond. Thousands of people painted the Robert E Lee monument with “Black Live Matter”. I personally went to this monument in the following weeks after the protests. It was a crazy feeling looking at the monument, I had only seen videos on the news. The same area I was standing was the ground for many violent attacks. I personally know someone who was there as media reporting for the VCU Journalist website. She told me that police tear-gassed her even though she was wearing a very clear media badge. The massive group of people was shot with rubber bullets, tear-gassed, and beaten by the police. As everyone remembers these protests flooded the entire nation. We as Americans have a long ways to go to ensure equal rights for everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why Should I Care What the Gospel Says?

March Blog Prompt

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I have never been able to connect to Christianity despite coming from a very religious background. At a young age I was being suffocated by the same religious beliefs my parents had been raised by. I attend a private Christian school in my home country. As I grew older, I felt more and more disconnected from my religion. As I began to discover who I was as a person, my beliefs shifted. Suddenly, my parents’ prayers fell on deaf ears, my bible sat on my desk gathering dust, and my feelings got the better of me at the dinner table. I don’t consider myself as a religious person anymore, I don’t think I ever was. So, when I saw John Lewis preaching to the baby chickens as a child, I couldn’t help but sigh. I went into the book with a very negative view of Christianity, but to my surprise I didn’t find myself rolling my eyes.

“He applied the principles of the church to what was happening NOW, today. It was called the social gospel and I felt like he was preaching directly to me.”

This is what John Lewis mentioned when he first heard Dr. Martin Luther King on the radio. The social gospel is a more modernized version of the biblical gospel. One that’s more focused on the liberation of others. More often than not it was used to silence minorities, used to protect injustices, and even encourage the mistreatment of others. Even if that wasn’t its intended purpose, that’s how a lot of people used it. One of the ideas that struck me the most was of social evolution. It stuck with me the most because of the idea of moving forward in society. Being seen as everyone’s equal, no matter the color of your skin, is something we still struggle with to this day. It’s why I think this gospel is one I could get behind, despite my past.

 
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Second Civil Rights Movement?

Engl 165-04 Fall '22

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I didn’t have much experience reading in comic format until this class. Until reading March, I thought comics were just short stories that told a fictional story. While the comic format was difficult to read at first, I actually enjoyed the way it told the story. I like how the words are not the only thing telling the story. When reading this comic, I learned that you really have to look at the pictures to get a sense of the story as a whole.

I had some prior knowledge of what I had read. Although I did not know much of anything about John Lewis, I did know most other names he used. He talked about Martin Luther King, Emmitt Till, and Rosa Parks. Thinking about everything I knew before reading this, I always assumed it was a lot longer ago then it really was. I didn’t realize that these people in our history books were all experiencing the horrific stuff they went through less than 100 years ago. Reading the story March, I assumed Lewis had been learning about these people in history books. Little did I know, he was living through everything at the same time as them.

I didn’t have much interest in history growing up. I always thought of it as something in our past and did not see a point in reading and knowing about it. As I grew older I realized that what was in our history books is still very much an issue in our society. I was reading the comic thinking how horrible it is that these people had to go through this, not even thinking about how people still are experiencing this. Although we are not segregated like they were in the times this book is about, people of color are still looked at and hated similarly. People are still getting killed for doing nothing, all for the color of their skin. People are still looked at as the problem, when they are the victims. Emmitt Till was a 14 year old boy that was killed for saying two simple words to a white women. His attackers were found not guilty, and later confessed to the crimes but could not be tried again. George Floyd was a black man living in America just two years ago. He too was let down by the American justice system. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, John Lewis, and many more fought far too hard to still have these injustices happening in our world still today. It is only a matter of time before there is a second Civil Rights Movement, hopefully this time America will wake up and change.

 
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March book 3 The Bombing of 16th Street First Baptist

Engl 165-04 Fall '22

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When reading pages 1-61 I felt like there were many things that stood out to me. To start off the main thing that stood out to me was the bombing of 16th Street First Baptist Church in Birmingham AL. The reason why I feel like this event stood out is because even though some of the blacks lost loved ones and family members, I feel like they were able to stick together to fight for what they loved. I felt that this was a very important event because as a college student I realized that even today everyone has to fight for what they want and need no matter how many obstacles it takes to succeed.
Growing up as a little girl there were many things my grandmother had to sacrifice for her children and also grandchildren. I feel like my grandmother had to fight many obstacles to get her in the peaceful place she’s in now. Growing up my grandmother didn’t really have anything for her just because of the environment she lived in. My grandmother had to pray many times to keep pushing through hard times because she knew that one day, she was going to be in the perfect place she always wanted.
The reason I felt like talking about my grandmother and the people during the bombing of the 16th Street First Baptist Church is because even though neither my grandmother nor the people of the bombing had much, they had to look in a positive direction to where they could change minds of other in the future no matter if they succeeded the first time or not. Also, both topics I talked about didn’t let anything hold them down no matter how many people tried to hurt them for them to give up.
Compared to then and now I feel like the news back then was very unequal. The reason I say that is because there were mainly only black being targeted no matter if they did anything or not. Back then I feel like whites got away with a lot of hate crimes just because of how privileged they were. Therefore, I feel that news has gotten a lot better with getting both sides of a story to where it’s like 50/50 of information being provided. I also feel like news now has made people realize how real life really is and how people can make the world a better place by using their voice instead of hiding their voice.
When looking at the choices the characters made in the book, I feel that their choices were worth it because they chose to fight for what they wanted for the future. I feel like they wanted their voice to be heard and remembered through all the pain and suffering they went through.
If I had to be a character in the book it would most likely be the police officers. I chose the police officers because I felt like they never sat and listened to what was going on around them. One thing I would change to make it a better situation would be putting myself in the protester shoes to understand the pain they’re going through just to have freedom and to live a better life like the whites at the time.

 

March book two: freedom riders

March Blog Prompt

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As I started reading the second part of March, Book Two, I realized how much hatred was still being spread despite everything people of color have already been through. The freedom riders relied on someone to drive them in the middle of the night when it was dark. They were dropped off right at the Tennessee state line by the driver. Which was designated “Klan country.” All of the freedom riders began walking and came across a house. They knocked on the door, hoping that someone would assist them and let them in. The kind people let them in and allowed them to call Dianne. The freedom riders, in my opinion, are extremely heroic. They fought valiantly and never surrendered, no matter what. The freedom riders were subjected to verbal and physical abuse, as well as jail time. Because word had gotten out that the freedom riders were returning, they had to take a detour in order to return safely. They had returned safely.  

During the reading, the police officers took away the mattress simply because the freedom riders were singing. Even while imprisoned, the freedom riders continued to advocate for themselves. They kept singing while their mattresses were being taken away.

This, I believe, can be applied to today because people of color face racism on a daily basis, just as they did back then. The goal of the freedom riders was to put an end to segregation. Just recently, the Black Lives Matter protest was launched in order to fight for equal treatment. It’s truly tragic that our society is still like this. Segregation began around 1865. I’m just baffled as to why people still act the same way they did back then. A skin color is a skin color to me. I’m embarrassed that others behave in this manner because of their skin color. It is literally the year 2022, and people have yet to change. I support black lives matter protests, but I despise the fact that people of color have to resort to such tactics in order to be treated fairly.

 

March Book 2: Let Freedom Ring, Forever

Engl 165-04 Fall '22

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Today in labor history: Freedom Riders attacked in AlabamaAretha Franklin through the years

In March Book Two pages 62 to 123, the audience gets to take a look at what it was like for the freedom riders of the time. The section starts when Lewis and a bunch of other freedom riders take a trip down to Montgomery, Georgia. The freedom riders were a group of civil rights activists, both whites and colored people, who took trips through the south on buses to protest against segregation, but most importantly, segregation on buses and other means of transportation. The images shown in the book of the freedom riders’ trip were quite hard to look at. There were a series of images that showed the freedom riders getting attacked by the citizens of Alabama. 

When the beating was over, the story cut to the future where it illustrated Aretha Franklin singing “Let Freedom Ring”. I looked up the video of her singing it on YouTube, and it was very powerful. It was sung in DC in 2009, the day that President Barack Obama was first inaugurated. The phrase “let freedom ring” is defined as “a statement that the ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness should be spread across the Earth and allowed to flourish”. This was the message that was spread by Lewis and other civil rights activists through the period of segregation. They wanted everyone to be equal. I think that the song was a perfect fit because Obama, the first elected black president being inaugurated, shows how far society has come. 

I think a lot of people take freedom for granted. My family wasn’t negatively affected by segregation, but I’m sure if they were, they would have fought for their freedom, and I’m sure most people would have done the same. If no one would have stepped up, nothing would have ever happened, and that’s crazy to think. It’s hard for the generation, myself included, to try and imagine what it was like for people fighting for their freedom at the time. We’re used to an accepting society. I would hope people nowadays would be willing to fight for their freedom as people did back then, but it’s not an easy task whatsoever, so it’s hard to predict if they would or not. 

I’ve been thinking since the book was first brought to our attention that it’s a good thing to be reading. Society has definitely improved a lot, but it’s still far from perfect. I feel like certain events in the last few years have really shown that we still have a ways to go. However, society has recognized this, and we’re getting there, we just need more time. This book makes me, and hopefully everyone else reading this, realize how lucky we are and how much we owe it to civil rights activists. Even with society against them, they risked their lives fighting for what was right. We as a society need to keep carrying out the message that they carried out back then: let freedom ring.

 

African American and Black protesters buying movie tickets

Engl 165-04 Fall '22, March Blog Prompt

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The book discusses dramatizes the struggles of the freedom riders who traveled through the American South in the early ’60s. The narrative spotlights pivotal moments in the civil rights movement and shows some of the progress made in the intervening decades. The book also emphasizes the power of nonviolent protest. The black and white protesters risked life and limb for what was right. In Book Two, Lewis’s story continues with the events that took place on November 10, 1960, in Nashville, Tennessee, as “…our young organization had successfully ended segregation at the lunch counters downtown and turned its attention to fast-food restaurants and cafeterias using the same strategy.” It then continues with events that took place in the South between 1960 -1963, culminating with the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. The tension in the South and in Washington as events unfold. Finally, while Lewis introduces us to the giants of the Civil Rights Movement, he never loses touch with the fact that the real heroes were those who sacrificed their goals, their times, and sometimes their lives to advance civil rights. Furthermore, while Lewis was a key player, he modestly downplays his own role in the events. As Lewis’s life unfolds, we learn that with the success of the nonviolent protests at the Nashville lunch counters, the SNCC decides to expand their protests to fast food restaurants and cafeterias and then on to movie theaters. We see that their use of nonviolence is met with increasing uses of violence  from brutal beatings to being subjected to fumigation “used only for killing pests.” And we learn that after a march at a local movie theater, Lewis along with 25 others spent his 21st birthday on February 21, 1961, in jail.

I feel like we could stop the BLM protests if everyone agreed and got along with everyone. It is also putting the police officers in jeopardy because police should focus on effective management during the protest to contribute to keeping protests peaceful. One of the things that really hit home for me is having all these protests so close to my house and feeling like I can’t go anywhere or anything because I don’t want to be harmed. During one of the protests in my area, the protesters got very aggressive towards the police officers and started to destroy buildings, run a car through the local Walmart. The protesters were very angry and brutal to the officers.  I hate seeing the killings of police officers it hurts my heart. Especially the school shootings like the one at Bridgewater college. One of the police officers graduated from one of the local high schools in my area. Seeing a protest break my heart and I never join in the protest because I don’t want to be hurt personally.

https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/five-arrests-seven-officers-hurt-in-manassas-protest-local-leaders-question-use-of-force/article_a4c58560-a361-11ea-a534-97a1024a5189.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/02/09/bridgewater-officers-shooting-memorial/

 

 
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