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Kuomar Fitzgerald
Professor Drown
English 122
11 April 2019
BLACKNESS VS WHITENESS PROJECT
Many people are unaware of the police system and how they treat African American. Specifically, white people are usually the ones unaware and sometimes ignorant about the situations that goes on between white cops African Americans and usually these situations or altercation ends up in the African American demise.
In the Whiteness project and Blackness project there were some comparisons as well as there were differences. In the whiteness project a lot of people felt that the color of their skin is the reason why they get ahead in life. Most of them realize that this is wrong, and society should not be this way, but it is. I remember one guy from the whiteness project named Nicholas say that him being white was an advantage that he had over other races and he would use that advantage to get a job that he wanted. “When I got my job, for example, I walked in there, and I just looked clean cut white person, and they hired me -pretty much because of that-and it’s just-small things that no one really notices -but life is a little bit easier being white, I think” (Nicholas). Now I don’t blame him for thinking like this because I do the same thing. Being black has its advantages too sometimes and when the moments right I use that advantage that I have to get ahead.
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However, not all those videos I agree with during the whiteness project. There was a couple of guys that explained how they fell about race and it was like listening to ignorance itself if that word could be a person. Bryan from the whiteness project said, “And it’s always pointed out that the white cop hurt the African-American kid or – you shouldn’t be doing anything wrong that’s my point on all of it. You got shot in arm, you got tackled -don’t do anything wrong you won’t be – I haven’t” (Bryan). What I find ignorant about this comment is that not all African American kids who are hurt by cops commit a crime. Most of the time it’s an itchy trigger finger dirty cop who’s out to hurt African American kids because they have the power to do so.
In the blackness project film, it conveyed how people felt about race, racism, and people in general. Willie from the blackness project explained how racism affected his life big time and how everything that he did had to be done accordingly and efficient or else it would lead to an issue for his parents. He also explains why the black youth doesn’t understand the importance of racism. Willie says, “We look at young people today, young black Americans and we as older black Americans say why don’t you understand the struggle. What happen what blanked it all out how could you not see how you could not have heard because it is not their struggle” (Willie). It’s because this is a new era and the problems that he had faced with racism back then is not as much of a problem for the black youth today. Young Bryon is a prime example of racism not being as much as a problem to him as it was to the old man. Bryon explain how he had never really thought about racism simple because he hadn’t really experience it. Bryon say, “It made me feel weird, I just feel weird because I guess there aren’t things that are discussed and if they aren’t discussed around me” (Bryon). To give some more context about this quote Bryon was talking about racism and how it made him feel. Clearly, this is something that Bryon didn’t
feel comfortable about because this is nothing he experience and if someone was being racist toward him, he probably wouldn’t notice because racism wasn’t a problem he grew up with.
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In the whiteness project certain people felt that it was never the police fault when bad things happen to African Americans. I remember Nathan from the whiteness project explain how he thought it was not the police fault when it came to what happen in Furgerson. “So, I feel like white people are misunderstood and they are put into bad situations like that- like Ferguson, McKinney, and all that” (Nathan). Which I find very ignorant and disturbing that people could make these assumptions without really doing any research to understand importance of what is really happening. However, in the Blackness project people find the police system to be unjust and unfair just by showing videos of what cops where doing to African Americans. One person said that we as a black community have to start policing ourselves, so these cops don’t end up hurting us. He was explaining that black people have to help and make each other better so these white cops don’t have to find their way in the situation.
The origins and current functions of racism started in 1640 in the colony of Virginia. At that time John Punch who is an African and two other men who were Dutch, and Scotsman ran away from their servitude. They were all caught and as punishment the Dutch and Scotsman got four more year of servitude and John Punch was sentenced to labor to his “master” for the rest of his days. This act that the judge decided for these men created the birth of racism. The only way I believe racism could end is if the system does the same thing that happen to John Punch. Which is make an example and set up some consequence out of the next cops that feels need to take another African American life because he has the power too.
