Week 5 - Toni Morrison

Dear Ms. Morrison,






I recently read your article in TIME Magazine, “On the Backs of Blacks”.  Though you wrote this piece in 1993, the points you raise remain true today in 2018.  It is terrible that we have not progressed in the 25 years since your article’s publication, and in some ways we have taken steps backward.  From the election of our current president to horrific events like those in Charlottesville this past summer, a future of improved racial relations in the United States does not seem to be on the horizon.
You bring up the concept of “race talk” as an enduring “rite of passage into American culture”.  I found your quote “only when the lesson of racial estrangement is learned is assimilation complete” to be a powerful description of how this prejudice is maintained and passed on over generations of new Americans.  This learned racism is incredibly problematic because it has created the idea of “American blacks as the common denominator in each conflict”.  How can we expect to progress to a society where all are viewed equally when an entire race functions as a catch-all for all the problems and evils that exist in the world? 
You mention that this idea of “us vs. blacks” functions as a bonding mechanism for other ethnic and racial groups.  I believe that this mindset is the heart of the problem.  We must stop perpetuating this fallacy and a first step in doing so can be by eliminating race talk in popular media channels.  This is no small task, but an effort must be made in order to break out of the social standstill that exists around race in the US today.
I urge you to write a follow-up piece commenting on how your writing from over 20 years ago remains incredibly relevant to our world today.  The written word can be a powerful tool and, most importantly, it keeps the conversation going. 

Best,

Christine

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