Most people in America claim that racism is no longer an issue. Following President Obama’s election back in 2012, many academics said racism was either dead or coming to an end in America.[footnoteRef:2] However, many fail to recognize the effects of slavery in America today. Slavery in America is a core part of its history; it is the painful injury with which 15% of Americans now live.[footnoteRef:3] ‘Between the World and Me’ was written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and published in 2015. Coates explores issues relating to education, violence, privilege, and goes on to reflect upon his life and explain his frustration and experiences of being black in America. Slavery has created a ripple effect, producing today’s American race stratification. A system that upholds a false white superiority and black inferiority based on three main themes: an unfair justice system, educational system, and social institution.
As the novel begins, we see that Coates and his teenage son, Samori, have a close relationship. Coates starts to describe the theoretical reality about what it means to be black in America and offers a recollection of his experience, a memoir. We see that he struggles to find meaning beyond what lies in the ghetto, but as he grows up and out of the ghetto, he discovers purpose and joy among Howard University, also widely known as ‘The Mecca.’ He encounters black people from all sorts of backgrounds and experiences, and he discovers there more than just black people growing up in the ghetto. Still, even then, they are all influenced by the unfair system of American simply because of the color of their skin.
Before we can talk about the unfair justice system, education, or social matters, we need to recognize the origin of the problems. The Dream is the root of systemic racism, and it is a twist on the idea of the American Dream. America has never indeed been a democratic nation because African Americans were never included in the ‘government of the people.’ White America’s progress was built on the looting and violence on black people, not through the ‘hard work and aspirations of Americans.’ Thus, the American Dream is an entirely different reality for blacks and browns; it isn’t the pursuit of happiness or the equality of opportunity. The Dream was built on the oppression of black people, and to believe in the American Dream is to believe in the false myths of American history, the idea that the country is built as equal and just for all. ‘Fear ruled everything around me, and I knew, as all black people do, that this fear was connected to the dream out there…'[footnoteRef:4] This fear is the result of the Dream and the high crime of history that brought the ghettos to be.
The Dream has caused a constant fear among the black community. From Camden to Detroit, the ghettos did not just happen by accident. The development came as a direct result of racist policies, economic and labor factors that made it difficult for blacks to live in other neighborhoods. “Redlining is the practice of denying key services, such as home loans or insurance, for residence in a geographical area”[footnoteRef:5] Redlining pushed black Americans into specific areas and then impoverished those accessible urban areas. It forced them into low wage jobs, along with widespread job discrimination, resulting in impoverished neighborhoods. “We did not design the streets…the crews, the young men who’d transfer their fear into rage…these neighborhoods became the security of the bodies living here…prove the inviolability of their block, of their bodies, through their power to crack knees, ribs, and arms”[footnoteRef:6] For centuries, blacks were forced to live under fear as the law did not protect them, and if the law did not protect them, they’d have to defend themselves. This fear is transferred into rage among the ghetto communities. There were also many other factors, such as the Great Migration, the eugenics movement, and federal sponsored housing policies.[footnoteRef:7] All of these factors result in the underserved impoverishment of the black community. Blacks have been excluded from the possible accumulation of wealth that could improve their lives, and though there are many thriving and successful blacks in America, many have had more difficulties along the journey simply because of the color of their skin. Coates states at the end of the novel, although he has grown to become an intelligent black man living in New York, the ghetto preserves the old fear of his youth.
Furthermore, the black youth were not offered the same experience as whites just to keep The Dream alive. “To be black in the Baltimore of my youth was to be naked before the elements of the world, before all the guns, fists, knives, crack…”[footnoteRef:8] While white youth are illustrated as innocent and protected, black youth are not identified with those things. Not only are they neglected of those things, but this causes the illusion of child segregation; the white children are innocent and must be isolated from and kept away from black children. Coates goes on to describe how he was never felt motivated or inspired by the education system as a student. “If the streets shackled my right leg, the schools shackled my left…The world had no time for the childhoods of black boys and girls… those who failed in the schools justified their destruction in the streets”[footnoteRef:9] It is clear that it was not only the ghetto a setback but also the education system. There were no dedicated educators in the system that could inspire and motivate these kids to learn and flourish. In addition, many black communities are experiencing issues such as financing, which has a significant impact on education quality. Education policies often continue on the premise that socioeconomic status counts, but that race and discrimination does not. But according to the Nation Center for Education Statistics, white eighth-graders with low incomes outscored black eighth-graders without low incomes.[footnoteRef:10] It is apparent there is something more to this than simply the socioeconomic status of students. All students deserve a quality public education, which can only occur when they raise school integration, instructional investment, and better teachers.[footnoteRef:11] Education has the potential to break chains of racism, inequality, and limited opportunities through it, yet black communities are not given the chances for a better education because of The Dream.
Slavery endures in a framework of oppression in which black men and boys are at higher risk of being killed by police officers. The justice system continues to fail black communities. Police brutality continues to affect black Americans disproportionately.[footnoteRef:12] Coates goes on to illustrate a personal experience, which became a pivotal moment in his life. He states that the killing of Prince Jones, one of his classmates, was evidence of crimes being perpetrated against black people as service of The Dream. Prince Jones was an African American who attended private schools throughout his youth and excelled at his studies, but he was unjustly killed by a police officer at the age of 25. “I knew that Prince was not killed by a single officer so much as he was murdered by his country and all the fears that have marked it from birth”[footnoteRef:13] This display not only an injustice system, but the news we hear regarding the current reports that black men are being killed by cops are not simply just an officer protecting themselves against a man threatening them, but the vast majority are innocent black men living in a disordered American system.
There are numerous cases of injustice being illustrated as we reflect to scriptures, but it is only through God, do we know what just is. Jesus states:
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: ‘In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ ‘For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:1-8 New International Version)
In the Parable of the Persistent Widow, the widow persists in nagging a corrupt and powerful judge to do justice for her. Throughout the bible, it states that people should fight for the poor and weak, not against, but here we see those in power (judges) doing otherwise. ‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.” (Leviticus 19:15 New International Version) Yet, blacks are judged unfairly, and favoritism is shown to whites. But in the parable, it is only because of the widows’ perseverance in her faith, is justice then given to her. It is evident that there is a juxtaposition in which only God can bring justice to a corrupt world. Amid the systemic injustice in America, justice may be done. Like the widow, one must never give up hope and pray for the greater good. Persistence through God leads the judge to act justly. In Proverbs, Deuteronomy, and many other books in the Bible, God illustrates his dislike of injustice because it perverts his world, for it is meant to bring peace to his people. The world is corruptive, and it is only through Christ can we persevere and bring justice to all. Likewise, people do not suffer under injustice because the Lord wants it; rather, he is opposed to it.
‘Between the World and Me’ is a novel based on the true story of Coates discussing the truth of what it is like to be black in America. The struggle, the systematic oppression which lies on the backs of black Americans to sustain the so-called American Dream. Blacks are continuously oppressed by an American system that trickles down to the educational system, justice system, and social institutes. In essence, Coates states blacks must educate themselves and be hyper-aware of the system which whites use against them. One must not struggle and be in anger against those who believe in The Dream, but they must pray for them.
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- ‘Blacks: Education Issues.’ NEA. Accessed October 31st, 2019. http://www.nea.org/home/15215.htm.
- Bouie, Jamelle. ‘How We Built the Ghettos.’ The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast Company, March 13th, 2014. https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-we-built-the-ghettos.
- Coates, Ta-Nehisi. Between the World and Me. New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2017.
- Cole, Nicki Lisa. ‘Understanding Systemic Racism.’ ThoughtCo. ThoughtCo, July 3rd, 2019. https://www.thoughtco.com/systemic-racism-3026565.
- Howell, Aaron J. ‘The Federal Government Created Inner-City Ghettos with Racist Housing Regulations.’ Medium. Timeline, July 18th, 2017. https://timeline.com/redlining-federal-housing-racist-14d7f48267e8.
- Lockhart, P.R. ‘Black People Are Still Suffering from Police Violence. Is America Still Listening?’ Vox. Vox, May 24th, 2019. https://www.vox.com/identities/2019/5/24/18636305/police-violence-eric-garner-sandra-bland-black-lives-matter.
- Moore, Leonard. “Police Brutality in the United States.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., July 27th, 2016. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Police-Brutality-in-the-United-States-2064580.
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