Introduction
Racism is one of the oldest problems known to society. Although all humans in their essence are the same, many people are prone to this issue, considering one race better or worse than another. The analysis includes a comparison of two sources devoted to this topic. The first of these, Nikole Hannah-Jones’ article “It is Time for Reparations,” focuses on bigotry, referring to the history of America. The second, the chapter from Thomas Williams’s book “Self-Portrait in Black and White,” tells the story of the author, his life path to the study of prejudice, and the fight against it. This paper focuses on the analysis of ideas about segregation based on data from two sources.
Main body
The recent work of Hannah-Jones is directly related and dictated by current events from the United States. The main topic of this article is the relationship between white and black people in America. The author recalls various events in America’s history and explores its impact on society. For example, she emphasizes that although the uprisings are shocking, they have always led to cultural and political changes (Hannah-Jones). The author pays special attention to the marches in all cities of America in defense of the rights of black people.
At the same time, the text reminds all readers that the oppression of blacks has been going on for many years. Although almost 150 years have passed since the destruction of the slave system, bias towards them has remained in society, transforming into unwritten rules and police permits to shoot dark-skinned suspects (Hannah-Jones). Finally, the main idea of the whole article is the inequality of black and white people in society, consisting primarily of the economic situation. According to the author, they had the opportunity to accumulate massive capital throughout their history, while freed slaves were left literally without anything (Hannah-Jones). She emphasizes that the long years of slavery allowed whites to gain privileges and take a dominant position. Following this, to remove the difference, the state must finally pay the debts of the black part of the population in the form of reparations.
The position of Thomas Williams is in direct opposition to the words above. In the chapter Self-Portrait of an Ex-Black Man, the author tells the story of his search for a life position. He has been associating himself with black persons all his life. However, Williams also diligently searched for the roots of racism, trying to understand them after questioning one of the students (126). Despite the widespread belief that there are many racists among white people, he also notes that often persons are too lazy and do not even want to understand other people’s situations.
On the other hand, the author explores the very phenomenon of race as such. Despite the presence of many studies that supposedly confirm the genetic difference between black and white people, the author is inclined to think that race is a social construct (Williams, 146). Ultimately, Williams introduces the idea of abandoning racial affiliation since it only divides people. Instead, he says that human culture, defined at different times by different individuals, should be accessible to everyone (Williams, 149). Finally, explaining the title of the chapter, the author calls himself an ex-black man. He abandoned the categories invented by society since they cannot adequately describe a single person.
Both sources examined to address the problem of racism; however, the principles and approaches to addressing this topic are opposed. A characteristic feature of both texts is that they are aimed at drawing attention to racism as a social and cultural phenomenon. However, the Hannah-Jones article isn’t longer aimed at eliminating racism as such, but at retribution and restoration of historical justice. The author’s main idea is the presence of inequality between the two races, which the state is called to correct by paying off debts (Hannah-Jones). However, even if such an approach would be possible, the implementation of this policy would not solve bigotry and, ultimately, would in no way correspond to the original goal of the Black Lives Matter movement. Merely improving the living conditions of blacks will not force other people to respect them. Instead, due to an attempt to obtain additional privileges, society may split. The proposed methodology and rhetoric conducted by the author can only aggravate the situation between blacks and whites, which ultimately will result in much worse consequences for the whole of American society.
Williams is trying to find some solution that would help people get rid of prejudices about each other and come to terms with differences in skin color. Although his words about race as a social construct are quite controversial due to the presence of multiple genetic studies, the author puts forward several compelling points of view. Firstly, culture should not be determined by skin color but should be accessible to society. In this case, it is necessary to associate certain cultural assets not with the whole race, but with specific groups. For example, without a doubt, black singers helped create jazz and blues; however, respect should be shown to singers in a particular period (Williams, 150). Secondly, the most crucial thought regarding the topic of racism is the conclusion that no one can be fully defined by the category of the race (Williams, 160). The human personality is too complex to describe it merely by skin color. Therefore, each person needs his unique approach, devoid of prejudice. Such access is a means to get rid of racism in society.
Conclusion
Unlike the Hannah-Jones, Williams is trying to turn to racism from a global point of view, not analyzing the situation only in the United States. The first author’s approach in the framework of the large-scale theme of racism is too narrow because she is trying to solve specific economic problems of a close group of people. Simultaneously, the cause of inequality is not eliminated by her approach, since the difference in relations between whites and blacks is far from being only in different accumulated capital. That is why the Williams method is universal and suitable for the society of any country anywhere in the world. He talks about the equality of all people while not forgetting each nation’s cultural heritage. Therefore, this approach is much better suited to the theme of racism and has a more significant contribution to the global situation.
However, these sources leave room for thought, since many questions can be debated. Turning to the text of Hannah-Jones, one can analyze what the consequences of the measures proposed by the author will be. What will happen to the country if the state pays black reparations for years of slavery? How do people unprepared for unexpected wealth manage this money? Speaking about the history and message of Thomas Williams, it is worth thinking about issues of self-identification. If a person denies the race he or she was born, how exactly should he or she relate to his native culture? Would such an approach lead to the destruction of small cultures, since global events would supplant them? Thus, despite their differences, the readings raise many essential issues that equally require attention and discussion.
Works Cited
Hannah-Jones, Nikole. “It is Time for Reparations.” The New Your Times, 2020, Web.
Williams, Thomas. Self-Portrait in Black and White: Unlearning Race. Hachette, 2019.