Systemic racism is ubiquitous in the lives of African American women. The story structure consists a beginning, middle, and the resolution/ending. It followed Todorov’s theory perfectly. The stories are very believable because I have experienced workplace discrimination and have spoken with other women about their experiences. The best intent of the story is to educate people of the pervasiveness of racism and how the African American female, who has always been on the bottom of society, has been/is treated by society.
She uses a sentence structure with forceful language to show the reader the seriousness and gravity of her topic. Smith's poem gives us an insider’s view into a young black girl’s transition from childhood into womanhood at a time where both being a black girl and a black woman was not an easy thing. “What’s it like to be a Black Girl” is a look into the mind of a black girl in a society that is fueled with racism and discrimination due to both race and gender. The main character is transitioning from a young black girl into young black woman and trying to accept the changes that are taking place within her body. She was taught to be ashamed of who she was, how she looks, and where she came from.
January 18, 2013 SOC/338 - THE AFRICAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Gender Identity Down through the years we have been told that some powerful women have made a differences and paved the way for us today. The black Women that have paved the way made great contributions to our struggles and survivals. Theses black women probably ask themselves over and over how does a black woman handle the claims of being both woman and black? I don’t believe its no simple answer, each individual is different. Some of our women may choose to see being black first and then female second; or it may be reversed.
I Was A Black Girl Charlene T Gaines AFG1204A David Makhanlall 02/12/2012 I Was A Black Girl This paper will dissect the poem What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl (For Those of You Who Aren’t) from a black woman perspective. I will explain the feelings it evoked in me as I read each brilliantly placed word. I will describe my feelings and thought as I reread the words and remembered what it was like to be a black girl growing up. The poem What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl (For Those of You Who Aren’t) was very interesting because I could relate to it. (I am an Black woman who was born in 1968).
Diversity has created a major impact within our country. Today many Americans struggle with identity issues due to race and ethnicity. People strive to be socially accepted within their culture along with the culture’s of their peers. As read in Chapter 12’s Journey of Literature through their poetry, Patricia Smith and Aurora Morales stress that what we face today is reflected by history from prior years (Clugston, R. W. ). In Chapter 12’s Journey of Literature author Patricia Smith stresses the views and concerns from a black young girl as she tries to find her identity while growing and eagerly seeking her place in this world.
Cofer’s mother wanting to stay in El Building, whilst her father yearned to live somewhere else, because she never got over the yearning for la isla “The Island”. Her mother only cooked with foods she could pronounce the names of which were some of the same brands her own mother had used. Cofer’s mother shopping outside of La Bodega going to Sears, Penney’s and Lerner’s, showed a willingness unlike the other women to shop in American stores but still held onto the small comforts that reminded her of her home land. (53-55) Cofer’s cousin is fully assimilated into American life. She claims it herself, she is and American woman and will do what she pleases.
Barrientos says “I came to the United States in 1963 at age 3 with my family and immediately stopped speaking Spanish” (Barrientos 560). Her parents found it to their best interest if their children fit into the American culture as best as they can, only because they think that it will help them reach their full potential due to the racial discrimination and stereotypes some people would hold against Tanya for being a Latino. That is why Tanya did everything in her power to just look like the average American. She also explains how “they told me I didn’t seem Mexican to them, and I took it as a complement” (Barrientos 561). She finds it flattering when people who know that she is from Mexico still think she looks like any other white American.
This has a lot of importance to the storyline because during this time, there wasn’t any man figure in any of Mama Elena’s children’s life so Mama Elena expected more out of them and put a lot of weight on their shoulders by giving them responsibilities. Tita being not only the youngest, but also being a female puts her in a position to be expected to take care of her mother, never having the opportunity to marry, and never seeking a life of her own. One of her sisters although, Gretrudis, breaks all of her gender roles put in place for her and goes to fight in the Revolution. So in addition, their work had to be perfect, and the daughter’s room for discussion or debate as young women, in the eyes of Mama Elena, did not have an opinion or say so and under no circumstances were they to go against her wishes. If they did, then she disowned them as that is later discussed in the story.
It drove home the importance of confronting the dirty secret that we white people carry around with us every day: in a world of white privilege, some of what we have is unearned. I think much of both the fear and anger that comes up around discussions of affirmative action has its roots in that secret. So these days, my goal is to talk openly and honestly about white supremacy and white privilege. White privilege, like any social phenomenon, is complex. In a white supremacist culture, all white people have privilege, whether or not they are overtly racist themselves.
Unsatisfied with black men their true hunger was for sexual relations with white men. This also reaffirmed the idea that white men did not have to rape black women due to the gratification they received. The opposite stereotype was the mammy. The mammy was the depiction of black women as nonsexual care takers of white children. These black women were made to be caring of white children and the white households, doing all of the domestic work in the house such as laundry, cooking, and cleaning.