Ethos within “The Ballot or the Bullet” In 1964, Malcolm X gave a speech entitled “The Ballot or the Bullet” which described how African Americans were being used and should fight for their civil rights. Malcolm X stresses on the importance of understand how to vote for the proper candidate. The reason he stresses this in his speech so much is because he believes that this is the solution to ending the discrimination against African Americans. He addressed in this speech that most of the African American community don’t understand on how to vote properly and because of this they are getting miss treated from the very people they are voting to put in office. The reason Malcolm X says “the ballot or the bullet” is that its either going to come down to the “ballot” which is allowing them to vote, or the “bullet” which is going to result in violence in order to get the rights the deserve.
It became a form of resistance and hope; a way to resist social death. African American slaves would create religious songs and sing in the working fields, songs that told the story of the struggle they have been through. In the “Souls of Black Folk”, Du Bois tells of that double consciousness with the black people, to never forget who they are as a black first; then an American. He speaks of relating to the American society, but not losing your identity in this transformation. The fight is about being accepted for a human being first, then an African
1) Compare and contrast two different black political ideologies. Clearly articulate the objectives and central propositions of each ideology, and be sure to identify at least two black political elites associated with each ideology. Select a contemporary political challenge facing African Americans and identify the divergent solutions that would be advocated by proponents of each ideology you have chosen to compare. Since the early beginnings of racial discrimination whose snow-balling effects continue to distress African-Americans to this day, they have had to establish collective unity in the road to freedom. However, numerous African-American figures view many different roads to freedom, each having contested for dominance within the black community throughout black history.
That came later when skin color was used to identify and subjugate the enslaved. ‘‘Natural’’ differences were translated into racial hierarchies that fixed the inferiority of the slaves, culturally and philosophically. Race provided the physical grounds, but conceptualization of a racial hierarchy is a matter of racism and not race. Racism is a cultural expression of fundamental social beliefs and values. Visitors would have been better served had they been made aware that race is only half of the equation.
A quote from Franklin Roosevelt said, “If we do not learn from past mistakes, history is doomed to repeat itself” (History Importance, 2011). In this case, slavery was the mistake along with all other racial profiling. I believe that African Americans have much more integrity due to their inspiration and history, therefore they would be a substantial institution to the equal working force as whites. If blacks are not given equal working privileges, history will repeat itself and may result in another civil war. In my opinion, the African Americans deserve to be given a chance to shine in the general public.
Malcolm X Racism is a problem that the American people have grappled with since colonial times. Malcolm X, who not only influenced the civil rights movement but attempted to solve the problem of racism in this country. On February 16, 1965, Malcolm X gave a speech called Not Just an American Problem, but a World Problem. In his speech he provides a theory of racism called image making which still has validity today. Malcolm X is right to argue that “when the law fails to protect Negroes from whites’ attack, then those Negroes should use arms, if necessary, to defend themselves” because they need to protect themselves, deserve respect, and have rights.
Taylor Campbell English 1101 Section 41 Dr. Antiwan Walker October 7, 2014 Identity Crisis: What it means to be black and middle class in America In Shelby Steele’s essay “On being black and middle class” he writes, “It has always annoyed me to hear from the mouths of certain arbiters of blackness that middle-class blacks should "reach back" and pull up those blacks less fortunate than they.“ The black middle class has always been categorized as hardworking white-collar members of society sacrificing daily to provide for their families, while also seemingly staying in touch with black culture. In recent times, the need to stay in touch with black culture has diminished, and the need to assimilate into other cultures such as Caucasian,
Sarah Dr. Crystal Doss English 225 October 9, 2012 Segregation of African Americans African Americans were forced into the United States against their will and struggled to conform to a society that would not accept them. African Americans first had to become Americans in order to be a part of American society. Claude S. Fischer claims in his work, Made In America, that the central theme of American culture is voluntarism, which he defines as: “believing and behaving as if each person is a sovereign individual: unique, independent, self-reliant, self-governing, and ultimately self-responsible” (Fischer 10). Fischer adds, “voluntarism is believing and behaving as if individuals succeed through fellowship-not in egoistic isolation but
African-American Plight and Fight for Freedom and Equality [Student Name] [School] [Course/Number] August 24, 2012 [Instructor Name] African-American Plight and Fight for Freedom and Equality African-Americans have undergone much turmoil in the desire to overcome the pain and thrust of segregation, discrimination, and isolation all rolled into one bundle of hate and discord. Through the course of history, there have been a myriad of conflicts involved where African-Americans were pushed to the social corner of insignificance, therefore provoking them to the extent of unrest. Much historical evidence has presented the desire of African-Americans to overcome the many thorns that struck their
Estefani Vazquez Professor James English 50 November 24, 2013 Racial Justice Is it right to judge others; to think that you are better than other people because of your race? Racial injustice has been going on for many centuries. Racial injustice affected many people. During 1960s, Martin Luther king Jr., an American civil rights leader, went to Birmingham to resolve the issues that was taking place. King fought against injustice in non-violent ways by advocating the rights of African-Americans.