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I highlight this particular poem for the three lines at the bottom of the second stanza which read, “I guess being colored doesn’t make me not like the same things other folks like who are other races. So will my page be colored that I write?” I am attracted to this poem for a couple of reasons including it’s highlight on the all-interacting ‘hive’ we live in where every moving part of society is connected to another in some way. This twenty-two year old colored college student writes a poem that comes out of him, but he goes into this assignment with the understanding that not only will his assignment be colored  but a part of his white instructor as well. He further includes his environmental circumstances, New York and more specifically Harlem. Being the only colored student in class, his experience living in Harlem is entirely different from his fellow classmates who live in a different part of the city. However he doesn’t disregard this as a negative aspect but an accepted truth to everyday life. Every body around him is different and is faced with various opportunities/struggles, and this is what he argues makes the assignment ‘American’.

When talking about his white instructor he writes, “Sometimes perhaps you don’t want to be me. Nor do I often want to be a part of you. But we are, that’s true! As I learn from you, I guess you learn from me–” This poem beautifully highlights the positive and negative aspects of the black/white relationship in America. For this relationship to co-exist in a semi respectful and humane nature we need to embrace our history and learn what we can from experiences of others. Everybody’s difference whether black/white/asian/latino/etc.. needs to be fully embraced in order to exist as a true democracy. Theme for English B emphasizes the importance of needing to hear someone’s story before assuming a general sentiment or attributing stereotypes.

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A particular poem by Langston Hughes that stood out to me was “Let America Be America Again.” This poem talks of how the ideals that America and the “American Dream” were built on do not apply for everyone that make up this nation. Lines such as, “but opportunity is real, and life is free, Equality is in the air we breathe,” are countered with lines like, “(There’s never been equality for me, Nor freedom in this ‘homeland of the free.’)” America boasts the importance of liberty, equality, freedom, etc.; however, not every person in America has these important rights our nation was built on. For those of color, achieving these aspects of the American dream has been an on-going battle throughout the entirety of the nation’s history. 

I found this poem particularly interesting because of the present day relevance with the similarities it holds with the slogan of the Trump administration: “Make America Great Again.” This slogan closely mimics the title of the poem. Both the poem and this slogan infer a greater America in the past, but for those of color, America has never been great; issues such as the oppression and segregation of African-American citizens were only more severe. Although America is still not a land of equality for minority groups, comparing this present day America to the America 100 years ago, America is technically “greater,” even if not by much. 

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Although Langston Hughes was by no means the only voice of the Harlem Renaissance, he had an immense amount of influence in his objectives to portray the reality of America at the time. One poem of his that particularly stood out to me was “Will V-Day Be Me-Day Too.” In this poem, Hughes says, “When we see Victory’s glow, Will you still let old Jim Crow” showing his commitment to his country but also identifying what he is actually fighting for (and how ugly it might be). He later equates black oppression to the oppression of the “Germans to the Jews.” Clearly, Hughes is describing immense problems with America at the time. He is patriotic but recognizes that there is still a long way to go for the American dream. “America was never America to me” is another line that stood out for this reason. Hughes clearly has a well-defined sense of what America should be in his mind, even if reality doesn’t fit his expectations. He is still optimistic about the future but realizes that it takes effort to create the America he wants. Hughes’ poetry works to close the gap between his (and many others’) dreams and the actuality of what America realistically is.

What made Hughes unique and possibly what caused his poems to be so well known today is that he takes a unique take on America. He is both hopeful, but realistic; crude and refined in his diction. This is probably why his works appealed to such a diverse crowd. He uses lingo that is representative of the black community at the time in his well structured and poems and works, clearly showing his education at Columbia University. It is easy to understand the purpose of his poems at a quick glance but it takes a much deeper effort to realize his genius. Hughes is clearly a part of high culture today with influences that span much wider categories. J.I.D., for example, is a rapper from Atlanta who has, on multiple occasions, claimed he is heavily influenced by Langston Hughes. With such a wide influence today, I wonder how his works were received in the early to mid 20th Century or if Hughes ever knew the impact he had. Like many of the artists mentioned in “Or Does it Explode,” it would make sense that the conflicting responses Hughes received at the time are a testament to the power of his written word and of him as a prominent figure.

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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.

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I found the video on women’s suffrage very informative. There are certain things that most people don’t know about the movement. People typically simplify it by seeing it as a spontaneous movement when all women finally decided to fight for the vote, but it was a much more complicated and strenuous process. The women involved in the suffrage movement began as abolitionists. I thought it was interesting how the movement for women’s rights began because women were locked out of the anti-slavery discussion, despite being abolitionists themselves. To this end, one of the points of the video that I enjoyed the most was when they talked about how former slave Frederick Douglass himself came forward in support of the women’s suffrage movement. Unfortunately, when slavery was finally abolished and down the line when black men were guaranteed the right to vote, the women’s suffrage movement didn’t achieve the same success.

On this point, I thought it was interesting to consider how the women’s movement has always seemed to be on the “back-burner” of American politics. As more and more classes of men were allowed to vote (the poor, blacks, etc.) nobody besides women themselves seemed to care about their movement. Even as the most radical change in American politics since the creation of the Constitution was occurring with the abolition of slavery, American men were still unyielding and were refusing to even consider a women’s perspective on the matter. Living conditions aside, it seems like women had a social status equal to a slave. Despite all of this, I found it at least interesting how World War I secured the suffrage movement, with women becoming crucial figures in the factories at home while men were off fighting in the war. This time it seems women made themselves heard and refused to be swept aside despite the global conflict. And finally, after the war concluded, women guaranteed their vote.

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The video about the women’s suffrage movement highlighted areas of the movement that are usually not publicized. Firstly, it was interesting to learn that suffragettes started as abolitionists. These women were able to recognize that slavery was the biggest human rights problem that needed their support, and fighting for women’s rights had to take a backseat to fighting for those who had no voice of their own. Through the fight for abolition, women were able to realize the similarities between women and slaves. Women had no right to their own body once they were married. They were their husband’s property, much like slaves were their owners’ property. While there were obvious differences in the lives of slaves and white women, it was interesting to learn how the similarities encouraged women to fight for slaves before fighting for themselves.

There are also negative aspects of the suffrage movement that were discussed in the video. Facing a need for more support, suffragettes turned to white conservative women for support. The suffragettes were angered when black men were given the right to vote before women, and white conservative women were the angriest of them all. They believed that the reason white women should have the right to vote was to make up for the uneducated black men who had been given the right to vote. This opinion set women back in their fight for the vote because it showed that many of them were not fighting to improve the greater good, but had turned to only fight for themselves. The former abolitionists neglected their duties to the slaves that they had fought to free and the argument for their rights became racist and bitter, thus taking away from the true reasons why women should have the right to vote.

This video made me reflect on the groups of people that are still fighting for human rights in the U.S. right now. While groups such as the LGBT+, racial minorities, and women are all still battling an upward fight for equity with white men, the opinions of other often get in the way of what is actually being fought for. When people have racist, homophobic, and sexist views, they fail to see the fundamental human rights violations that are taking place in the country, much like what happened with conservative suffragettes and their views on black men. People need to focus on the bigger picture, which is that many groups in this country still are not treated equally, and it should not matter what people actually make up these groups.

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Women’s right to vote was obtained through no easy feat. Patriarchy was established to keep us in check, crippling women financially, civically, and most importantly, socially. Without the financial means (fair and equal access to work, personal accounts, and loans) and civic power (the right to vote and hold office) to protect our rights and personal interests, women were left entirely at the mercy of men, at a societal level and within the home. This system was justified through the disparagement of the “fairer” [read: female] sex, and it became socially instilled into men and women that women were inherently biologically different from men to the point of being “irrational” beings who should not be left in command of themselves for their own protection.

Overall, this strategy was very effective. Through social/pseudo-scientifc posturing about the way women are, and through complete financial and legal domination, women were either without the means to advocate for their own rights or pitted against their oppressors (men) and “science” in trying to fight it. Patriarchy not only stripped women of their power, but also of their voices and ability to be taken seriously. This is showcased very effectively in the work The Yellow Wall-Paper, by Charlotte Stetson, where the female protagonist is constantly forced to question her own perspective and experience of reality due to what may be mental illness but what is also certainly gaslighting by the husband who controls every aspect of her being (down to where she is allowed to be and what she is allowed to think).

Given the patriarchal norms that stripped women of the power to speak and be believed, it is impossible for them to have received their right to vote in any way other than fighting, and working alongside the Civil Rights movement for Black Americans. It is also understandable (though still wrong) that this movement became co-opted by racist white women who sought to gain power comparatively by stealing rank from black men (and obviously black women doubly so). While the narrator of The Yellow Wall-Paper may not have truly gained power by the end of the story (like women), she managed to break out of the initial binds of the wall-paper (gain the right to vote) which was certainly a first step.

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The element of the videos that we watched for Thursday’s class that left the greatest impression on me was the fact that in order to consolidate power and gain for followers, leaders of the women’s suffrage movement published horribly racist sentiments. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony were desperate to gain support from wealthy southern women in order to forward the women’s suffrage movement. In order to gain support from this audience, though, they wrote truly heinous things against African Americans. While this tactic proved to be effective in bringing more women together in the fight for the vote, was this sacrifice really worth it? It’s hard to say, given that the Nineteenth Amendment was eventually passed by Congress and women were granted the right to vote in America. The question is that would women have won the right to vote had these feminist leaders not resorted to racist sentiment in order to gain followers?

Since Stanton and Anthony have been immortalized in American history due to their efforts in the name of women’s rights, their words will live on forever. The fact that such racist sentiments are attached to their names leaves a deep scar on their legacies, in my opinion. How are we supposed to support a cause for equality between the sexes when they don’t support equality between races? The compromises that people make for the sake of their causes can seriously alter the way in which history views their story.

These ideas are still very relevant today. Donald Trump is constantly called xenophobic, homophobic, and racist by countless people and media outlets. These accusations do have some foundations, as the language that he uses in speeches, rallies, and tweets indicates that. However, there is no way for us to truly know what Trump’s real thoughts and feeling are on minorities in this country. While there is no way for us to certainly know if he believes that white people are a superior race, we do know that these campaign tactics were very effective in the 2016 election. Trump tapped into some of the darkest sentiments that exist in this country, and was able to harness those sentiments into votes in his favor. Again, a political figure used questionable tactics to further their cause.

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“Not every man is a tyrant, but the law gives every man the right of tyranny.” This was the most powerful sentence in the video. It’s so relevant even now, because of things in the world like the “not all men” response to the “me too” movement. Tons of men went around telling stories of how while some men are awful and don’t respect women, they do respect women so therefore not all men are deplorable. But similar to how the “all lives matter” phrase undercuts the power of the BLM movement, saying “not all men” is stripping women of their voice. The idea behind it is that no, of course it’s not all men, but it is enough men. It’s enough men that women are afraid. And that’s what I think links this quote about the law giving men the right to tyranny. Too many times, we have seen in this country a profound lack of punishment for a man who sexually assaults a woman. When the concern is greater for the fact that “this criminal accusation could ruin this young man’s life” than it is for the actual physical, emotional and psychological impressed upon a woman without her consent which will also, in fact, ruin her life. This lack of response to this specific type of violence against women is exactly what they mean when they say “the law gives every man the right of tyranny.” No, not every man is going to capitalize on the fact that he won’t be punished for assaulting a woman. But even the fact that he can is a very scary thought. And it’s powerful quotes like these which force us to acknowledge how vast the difference of right for men and women in America actually is.

The other thing that jumped out at me in the video was the fact that the 15th amendment split the supporters of women’s suffrage. This made me think of Crenshaw’s idea of intersectionality. People were talking about the rights of white women and the rights of black men. Black women were completely ignored in the conversation. And of course, we discussed in class how suffragists and abolitionists originally banded together because they were political activists fighting for social reform and they thought if everyone is equal than everyone really should be equal. But with the presentation of the 15th Amendment, it became the case where some people were being given rights and they thought, “Hey, that’s better than nothing,” but of course for those that were not receiving rights the obvious response was, “No, this isn’t what we wanted, what we were fighting for.” So the two ended up being divided when, like Crenshaw says, it’s more beneficial for them to be intertwined.

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Uncle Tom’s cabin acted an emotional mirror and influenced people’s perspective on slavery. The immediate backlash which followed its’ release highlighted its immense power as a ‘psychological weapon’ against the promoted system in place. In many places in the South, story tellers altered it making Tom a buffoon who enjoyed his position as a slave. However the book held a  net positive influence and highlighted many issues concerning slavery which weren’t spoken about such as detailed stories of the complex and layered relationships between slaves, both men and women and their masters. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was revolutionary for its’ inclusion of the female experience during these times. Additionally, having a female author doing with this time was rare, and having a female writer with the most popular book of its time was unheard of. Stowe became a figurehead who Lincoln regarded as a spark to the opposition of the existing institution. 

Uncle Tom’s Cabin undoubtedly sparked a conversation. Whether people were angered or intrigued, there was no avoiding it. It gained its’ place as a discussion point of the complex/inhumane nature of slavery. It told a story which communicated to the mob of society. Similar to the music, t.v., video games, social media, etc… we have today as pop culture, Uncle Tom’s Cabin acted in the realm of influence unavoidable to anyone. Just as we can’t dismiss pop culture’s icons nowadays, we can’t dismiss such avenues as Uncle Tom’s Cabin because it represented our values/motives at the time. 

We learned about Shakespeare’s notoriety for being vulgar yet he has appeared in culture, as well as pop culture since. Although it is so easy  for the masses to disregard pop culture as vapid, we have to understand the influential power of it. Uncle Tom’s Cabin opened doors of discussion which politicians couldn’t talk about. This is crazy! The fire which Stowe kindled caused a “profound cultural and ideological rebellion.” Not only do we have to be aware and respectful of such power, but further investigate the interworking of popular culture’s leadership systems in our society.

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