Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattilo Beals is a memoir about Beals experiences and her journey while integrating Little Rocks Central High School. She wanted to share her story about what it was like to grow up in the middle of the civil rights movement and what it was like to be one of the nine students who were the first African Americans to integrate a public all white school. During and after reading the book a few thoughts went through my head. First, was my reaction at the horrific things that were done to Melba by integrationist in Central High. For example, while in the bathroom stall a group of girls locked her in and began dumping paper that was light on fire onto her.
She tugged away thinking of the consequences she would leave her loved ones to. Her mentality, however, was stronger than her physical strength. This case is also demonstrated in Warriors Don’t Cry, an autobiographical novel written by Melba Pattillo Beals, in the struggle of defying the norms of a predominantly white school, while facing both mental and physical harassment. Melba and the others resisted this harassment only to become stronger in the end through defying. As defiance
Facing the segregationists and the horrors of the South, Melba Pattillo was a strong warrior on the battlefield of racism for all people of color across the world. Beginning with the integration into Central High School, the brave 9 children hit waves upon waves of mobs and white people giving their all to get rid of them. Melba has gone through hell and back facing attacks of anything from sticks of dynamite to acid being thrown in her eyes. Her dignity and courage gave her the strength to refuse to back down and make a remarkable story.
Mike Kelly once said truth is a battle of perceptions. People only see what they’re prepared to confront. It’s not what you look at that matters, but what you see. And when different perception battle against one another, the truth has a way of getting lost. When Melba the narrator of Warriors Don’t Cry was at the age of 5 she was at the brinks of seeing the darks ways of segregation.
Melba Pattillo Beals wrote Warriors Don’t Cry as a memoir of her battle to integrate Little Rock’s Central High. The nonfictional story focuses on the life of Melba Pattillo Beals, one of the nine teenagers chosen to integrate central high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. Being threatened and harassed by her school mates while her own community ignore her during her attempt to bring equality in Arkansas is heartbreaking as her remarkable story is displayed in this book. There are lots of literary elements used to create this memoir as they help the writing spring to life. Some of them are: first point of view, conflict, plot, theme, symbolism etc.
In the 1994, Melba Pattillo Beals reflected on her high school years of integration, which was back in 1957. She then published her memoir, Warriors Don’t Cry, which explicitly describes the hardships and battles she had to overcome living in a segregated time. In her novel, she writes, “Hearing the word ‘police’ terrified me, Daddy and Mother Lois were afraid of the police” (Beals 19). Melba was just a child when she was exposed to the cruel reality that colored people faced in the 1940s. Because this was a segregated time, Melba’s parents feared police.
Moreover, The book “Warriors Don 't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock 's Central High” by Melba Pattillo Beals is a history packed memoir that every American should read. This book allows the reader to step inside the world of Melba’s childhood and the racism of the 1950s. That’s why this was written, to show the hardships of the Little Rock Nine and every African American going through pure racism. Melba writes this in a way that appreciates her courage and bravery to fight for her rights and to be treated with utmost respect. This book is an inspiration to anyone who feels rejected or accepted for who they are.
In the 1980’s black women are faced with a lot pressure in society, Because women of color are both women and racial minorities, they face more pressure in which lower economic opportunities due to their race and their gender. This pressure is reflected both in the jobs available to them and in their lower pay. Also because they are women of color they are likely to be the giver of the house and also within the families. Through the use of anecdotes,rhetorical questions, anaphora, ethos and metaphors, "In The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism, Audre Lorde argues that women of color need to respond to racism with anger spurred from their fear and that not a bad thing depends on how anger is portrayed.
As a very young girl, her mother’s ex-boyfriend molested and raped her. Her rape took up a big part of her life, as it never really completely left her. Early on in her life, she branded herself as a bad person, but as she grew and matured, she realized she no longer identified as a bad person, but rather a strong, independent, intelligent woman who takes pride in her black
No matter what obstacles you face in life you should always strive to reach your goal. Determination is something everyone should keep in mind of, and without determination one will not succeed. In Warriors Don’t Cry the main character Melba Patillo Beals tends to strive for her goal. With the NAACP the little rock nine includes Melba and eight other black high school students were sent to Central High School to integrate and Melba was determined to go through with integration. Melba reveals many of her characteristics also as many events she had to face every day by herself.
“Don 't be afraid of change. You might lose something, but you’ll gain something better.” This quote perfectly relates to “Remember the Titans” directed by Boaz Yakin and “Warriors Don’t Cry” by Melba Pattillo Beals. Both of these portray the struggles of integration and the Civil Rights Movements. “Warriors Don 't Cry” this story portrays the story of a brave group of African American individuals who take on the challenge of integrating into an all white high school.
Why should the color of someone’s skin effect a crime that was committed? In the vignette of “Twelve Angry Men” the author, Reginald Rose addresses racism. According to act three on page 27 the Jurors are coming to a vote on whether or not the boy was guilty or not. The boy claimed that he wasn’t guilty of committing a premeditated murder
Casual Racism, An Aspect Of Society: Rhetorical Strategies In Get Out Although blatant acts of racism have diminished since the 1900’s, acts of casual racism are now predominant in America. In the film, Get Out, written and directed by Jordan Peele, Peele claims that acts of casual racism are aimed at ethnic minorities. Peele begins to build his credibility by addressing issues of casual racism in the text, targeting the White liberals as his audience, using constraints to encourage empathy for his character Chris, and by covering the controversial issue of America being a “post-racial” society as the exigence in Get Out. Peele, a comedy writer, actor, and ethnic minority, has been praised for his portrayal on his hit comedy show
Imagine living in a place and time where racism is not only unrestrained, but is enforced by the law. In “Cry, The Beloved Country,” Alan Paton discusses racism and its resulting factor; segregation. The novel 's theme is the enormous problem that racism was causing, and how segregation laws were only making it worse. To begin, South Africa had decided to set forth an apartheid to further segregation under the rule of the National Party from 1948-1994.
Afro-American women writers present how racism permeates the innermost recesses of the mind and heart of the blacks and affects even the most intimate human relationships. While depicting the corrosive impact of racism from social as well as psychological perspectives, they highlight the human cost black people have to pay in terms of their personal relationships, particularly the one between mother and daughter. Women novelists’ treatment of motherhood brings out black mothers’ pressures and challenges for survival and also reveals their different strategies and mechanisms to deal with these challenges. Along with this, the challenges black mothers have to face in dealing with their adolescent daughters, who suffer due to racism and are heavily influenced by the dominant value system, are also underlined by these writers. They portray how a black mother teaches her daughter to negotiate the hostile, wider world, and prepares her to face the problems and challenges boldly and confidently.
