Racism is an astronomical problem people face each and every day. In the article Black Men in Public Space by Brent Staples, the true colors of people are shown and depicted from the perspective of an African-American man making a living in Chicago. In “FOBs” vs “Twinkies” The New Discrimination is Intraracial, Grace Hsiang dives into the racial divisions that are within the Asian-American community. In these two articles, readers are exposed to a world of racism and stereotypes within their community and culture. The articles share similarities in the overall idea of racism, however the differences in the essays include the social groups the racism takes place in, the culture being discriminated, and personal experiences of the authors. …show more content…
“Twinkies” share the same main idea of racism. The two authors explain the discrimination and judgment that they receive for being different. Staples states in his article, “It is not altogether clear to me how I reached the ripe old age of twenty-two without being conscious of the lethality nighttime pedestrian attributed to me” (Eschholz 348).This quote appears in Staples’ article after explaining the reactions given to him by the people he encounters while walking the streets fighting off sleeplessness. In Hsiang’s article, she writes, “...we cannot completely embody one culture when we are living in another.” Hsiang here is explaining the struggle of adapting to the American society with having a rich Asian background. As a result, both the African and Asian Americans become the targets of discrimination and racism in this world. The biggest difference between the two articles is the social groups in which the pieces take place in. Black Men in Public Space discusses the discrimination in society as a whole, and “FOBs” vs “Twinkies” describes the discrimination within the Asian-American
Author’s first point in his essay is the way black males are seeing in the streets during late night. “It also made it clear that I was indistinguishable from the mugger who occasionally seeped into the area from the surrounding ghettos” making this type of judgement of black males in public, does not just affect the person in ways of low self-esteem, but it also changes their behavior towards society; creating distinctiveness in racial issues. For example; a black male might feel less valuable than a white person
"Twinkies" and "Black Men and Public Spaces". The first, and most obvious dissimilarity is that one is between members of the same race and the other is between people of different races. Another difference between the two articles is the tone. " FOBs" vs. "Twinkies" has a more upbeat tone, saying that if you accepting both the society in which you live and your heritage you can overcome intraracial discrimination. In "Black Men and Public Spaces" the tone is more solemn is telling us there is no real way to overcome racial discrimination and stereotyping but, you have to defuse a situation before it gets too ugly.
The major thesis in this book, are broken down into two components. The first is how we define racism, and the impact that definition has on how we see and understand racism. Dr. Beverly Tatum chooses to use the definition given by “David Wellman that defines racism as a system of advantages based on race” (1470). This definition of racism helps to establish Dr. Tatum’s theories of racial injustice and the advantages either willingly or unwillingly that white privilege plays in our society today. The second major thesis in this book is the significant role that a racial identity has in our society.
But he fails to interpret the racism of that description, causing his idea to look underdeveloped. It would be beneficial and interesting to have this idea be examined, but it is certainly not necessary due to it not being the main idea of the essay. While Bertman’s essay may be short in length and lacking explanations for smaller ideas, it is still well developed enough to be cited in someone else’s
Stereotypes have the power to label someone and rob them of all their hard work or strike fear into others. One such stereotype is that of black men being more dangerous;yet, one black writer voices his opinion on such a stereotype. In the essay “Just Walk On By” by Brent Staples, Staples describes his experience of being a large black man and how it affects the people around him. From people locking their doors to pedestrians crossing the street to avoid a confrontation, people seem to be afraid of Staples just from a glance. Yet Staples does nothing to cause this fear, rather his stereotype is to blame.
Ronald Takaki is a social historian and is a professor at the University of California, Berkley. He is a professor of ethic studies. In addition to being a professor, he is also a fellow of the Society of American Historians. In his book, Double Victory: A Multicultural of America in World War II, Takaki focuses on the minorities during World War II. Most histories of the Second World War, focus on the politics, battles, or generals and leaders, whereas this book is about the experience of the different minorities in America.
In the reading Just Walk on By by Brent Staples, the topic of racial stereotypes surfaces from the man who gets racially profiled quite often as he explains his personal experiences. The author bluntly tries to pass the message that racially judging people is wrong and explaining how it makes the other party ,african americans, feel. When analyzing Staples’ message his rhetorical strategies play a huge role into how his message is perceived. He uses influential diction allowing each word to give an impact unmatched by any white man who tried to convey a black man’s thought process. Staples also appeals to his credibility with the obvious observation that he is a black man talking about his real life experiences.
Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space by Brent Staples discusses the relevant issues of racial bias and how prejudice against people of color has embedded minds, as it demonstrates the importance of being aware of how we conceive others. Staples uses a contrasting element of race by introducing a white female and a black male. He uses his experiences and other people of colour to display the struggles of racism they face everyday. Staples reveals how people are prejudice against appearance, despite the importance of individuality of people and being impartial regardless of someone 's skin or looks. The story begins with Staples describing his first experience frightening a white women due to the colour of his skin.
“Black Men and Public Spaces” Diagnostic Essay Brent Staples in “Black Men and Public Spaces,” illustrates the inescapable prejudices and stereotyping that African-American men face in America. He does this by relating to his audience through his personal experiences with stereotyping, and sharing his malcontent on how these events have made him alter his way of living. From “victimizing” woman, watching people lock themselves away, and having to whistle classical music to calm the nerves of people around him; Staples builds a picture to help people better sympathize and understand his frustration. Although Staples describes himself as a college graduate, a journalist, and a softy in the face of violence, he details that the overall public deems him a dangerous criminal.
In this paper, I will be critiquing these articles and films in order to evaluate the purpose of these readings and how they have helped further develop race in America. But most importantly, whether the author has achieved its purpose to inform readers about CRT, whiteness, and racial inequality. First article, I will be analyzing is Critical Race Theory: An Introduction by Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic. Both authors explore Critical Race Theory in detail. As I previously mentioned, CRT is one of the most important developments mainly in the legal studies department.
In his essay entitled Black Men and Public Space (1987), Brent Staples talks about how people will have a common misconception on the black community by thinking that they are all mugger ,rapist or thugs. Staples supports his claim by telling the reader events/ stories that occured to him and talks about how people will assume that he is a danger to society when in reality he isnt. The authors purpose is to inform the reader that his experiences of being stereotyped is to show the reader his point of view when it comes to these types of situations. Staples writes in a formal tone for an intelligent or free minded person.
In his essay “Black Men and Public Spaces,” Brent Staples explains that people often find him intimidating because he is tall and black. Staples shares his account of a number of personal encounters, arguing that in each situation, he was misinterpreted as being dangerous because of his daunting physical appearance. Staples asserts that as a result of this misinterpretation, he was continually mistreated. Staples begins his article by describing the events leading up to his life-changing realization that he has inherited “the ability to alter public space in ugly ways (183).” When he was twenty-two years old, Staples found himself one evening, walking behind a well-dressed white woman on a deserted street in a rather wealthy neighborhood.
The book aims to criticize the discrimination against people of color in America, while the series focuses more on seeking the diversification of the
Racism is a topic that has been relevant for many years though our time. Brent Staples wrote "Black Men and Public Space," published in Ms. Magazine in 1986, where he discusses how he became "familiar with the language of fear" (614). Throughout his essay, Staples uses logos, ethos, and pathos to give a reader an insight into the life of a black man in society, which effectively reaches his intended audience, but not his current day audience. Brent Staples starts talking about his "first victim" (613) picking up her pace until she was no longer able to be seen.
In this society, many judgements are made about people from different backgrounds. This causes many problems between people of other races. Racism can be shown in multiple ways such as by using overt and covert racism. In the two stories “The Stolen Party” by Liliana Hecker and “So What Are You, Anyway?” by Lawrence Hill, there are many examples of racist stereotypes.