Langston Hughes’s “Night Funeral in Harlem” describes the funeral of a poor man. Lacking funds to pay the insurance company, the man’s insurance coverage was terminated. As such, insurance did not fund his funeral. The “poor boy’s” friends and girlfriend pooled together money in order to ensure the man had a proper memorial. This action conveys love through sacrifice; individuals contributed their own money to properly pay homage to their friend. The final line of the poem notes “It was all their tears that made That poor boy’s Funeral grand.” This description reflects the idea that material goods do not outweigh feelings of love. The “poor boy’s” community stands and acts together in solidarity.
This poem made me reflect on recent events in the United States and how communities come together in solidarity in light of them. For example, approximately one month after the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, various organizations and activists arranged for El Paso Firme: an event in effort of standing up against white supremacy. The event was held in a local El Paso park; however, the town of Buffalo, New York simultaneously held a rally and march to demonstrate solidarity with El Paso Firme. This gesture serves as a reminder that in the aftermath of an atrocity, communities can band together to find strength.
I think that the insights that you made regarding how material goods come second to feelings of love were well founded. I also think that the poem was making a statement about class and poverty as well. Since the insurance company did not pay for the poor man’s funeral, the community instead came together to honor their friend. It makes us think about how institutionalized problems effect the formation of groups and communities.
The connection with Langston Hughes’ poem and recent statements of solidarity in light of traumatic events is extremely intriguing. Communities are finding ways to help one another through more than just money and material items. These towns being affected by horrific events need as much support that they can get, even when the support is coming from towns all the way across the country.
I like the idea that wealth relates to more than money. And I think it’s important to remember this in the context of communities who have been stripped of and barred from economic wealth by White Americans. However, I also think the idea of wealth outside of money being the most important thing speaks to a certain privilege of having our needs already met. It’s good that his family was there to support him, but his death should have been insured.
Reading this poem definitely made me sad, especially because I made the same connections you did to modern times. Even though concepts like explicit segregation are banned, the impact of these times is still being felt today. Reading about the “poor boy” made me think about how even today there are communities such as these that, although banded together, still suffer the same echoed effects of segregated times.