Racial Profiling and Stereotypes

Racial profiling and stereotypes are common threads in Richard Wright's Native Son. Bigger, the main character, is a young black man given an opportunity to be the chauffeur to the rich white family, the Daltons. He often feels very uncomfortable because of the color of his skin and feels that he can never be looked at in the same light as everyone else just because he is black. Jan is a local Communist leader. He is the main suspect in Mary death because of Bigger's made up story and no one doubt it because Communism is bad so Jan must be bad too. Then when the truth comes out and it all makes sense that the poor black boy killed the rich white girl. The only facts that mattered in this story were the color of your skin and your political believes. 

Native Son was written in the late 1930s but Richard Wright's message is still prevalent today. We very often continue to see racial profiling in every day society as it is splattered across the news. One recent event that comes to mind is that of NFL running back Ryan Moats. Was it racial profiling or was it a case of a cop on a power trip? Read the article on my delicious page and come up with your own conclusion. There is also racial profiling in the work place, that is a fact of life. This article argues that racial profiling in work forces is just preferences that are made to accommodate the customer. Is that the truth or is the author just coming up with excuses?

Racial profiling and stereotyping is just about every where. There are definitely numerous cases in which it is entirely unjust and wrong but this blog gives a more realistic view on stereotyping. Is the author's view really that far off from truth? Or is the portrayl of racism by one of our classmates more accurate? 

Many people say that the reason racism is prolonged and occurs is because of the people who are oppressors, in the case of Native Son it is white society. The following quotes would also suggest that point but I say that black society is the one who puts itself down and puts white people on a pedestal. Which side of the argument do these quotes from the novel support? Which side do you agree with?

"He was black and he had been alone in the room where a white girl had been killed: therefore he had killed her. That was what everyone would say, anyhow, no matter what he said."

"To Bigger and his kind, white people were not really people; they were a sort of great natural force, like a stormy sky looming overhead or like a  deep swirling river stretching suddenly at one's feet in the dark."

"They regarded him as a figment of that black world which they feared and were anxious to keep under control."

"I just work. I'm black. I work and I don't bother nobody."

Native Son is an example of racial issues during the 1930s. Richard Wright wrote the novel as his answer to them. Today, there are entire classes on race issues. Go on iTunes and search racial profiling missouri. Listen to the audio lecture by Dr. Karl Kunkel and listen to what he says about the issue. 

No that you are well educated on racial profiling and stereotyping go back to my delicious page. Take the common stereotype quiz and read common stereotype list from Progressive U. As your project you will draw yourself as the stereotype you were classified in as the quiz. Also draw 5 of the common stereotypes from Progressive U. 

Black in America

Experiencing life as a black man is something that I will never know so for obvious reasons, I cannot even begin to describe even the most ordinary of days. So, I am left to learn what life would be like as the opposite race through articles like “Being Black can Mean Being a Suspect,” written by a CNN reporter. This article begins by saying that the life of a black man, in this case 39-year-old Anthony Williams, can at times be difficult just because of the color of but that doesn’t stop him from accomplishing his goals. None the less, Williams says, “ he still gets nervous when he hears that police are looking for a 6-foot-tall black man, ‘because I know I fit that description.’” (CNN, 2) Racial profiling is an issue in society today as some officers may be using their own discrimination to make decisions rather than facts. Still, if you have done nothing wrong then you have nothing to worry about.

The facts are very straightforward; almost half of the people in jail are black as shown very clearly in a report by the NAACP. This isn’t just a coincidence or a random chance of fate and they aren’t going to jail just because of the color of their skin. Black people are committing more crimes and are thus suffering the consequences of their actions. Police departments aren’t patrolling the streets for the sole purpose of arresting black people. If someone commits a crime and gets caught then they will be punished no matter the color of their skin. That’s the way it should be. Williams says, “You never know what to expect when you get pulled over by police, and that's how it is when you're black.” (CNN, 5) He must be joking. Again, if you haven’t done anything wrong then nothing will happen to you. If you aren’t hostile and don’t act like a jerk to the cop then all he will do is his job, which by the way doesn’t involve collecting black people. The argument can be made that people will assume that “the black man did it.” Though this is partially true, the same argument can be for any minority, as people tend to always go against people they don’t know or understand. In the Native Son, the boyfriend is automatically assumed to be the murdered because the “communist.” Again though, is it really that wrong to make this assumption even now when equality has been reached? I don’t think so. People are worried and will take precaution based on their own assumptions and intuition even their own skewed believes. Though it may be unjust to just assume that the black kid, the Mexican, or the Communist did it, it isn’t inaccurate. Black people are associated with crime not because of racial hatred but because of facts that prove that the African American race is more likely to commit a crime. It’s that simple.

Mr. Williams should look in the mirror. The reason the police will knock on his door when looking for a 6-foot tall black man is because he is a 6-foot tall black man. What did he expect, for the police to ignore the facts and instead look for 5 foot 5 Andrew Horowitz? Black people need to stop complaining that the world is out to get them when United States jails are currently 50 percent black. It’s simple numbers and statistics not racism.

“Being Black can Mean Being a Suspect.” CNN Black in America. 24 July 2008. CNN. 16 Mar. 2009 . http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/07/24/bia.reax.irpt/index.html.

Socratic Seminar on Native Son

1: What are your first impressions of Richard Wright's Native Son?

2: What do you think about the main character Bigger?

3: Why do you think Bigger has such a tough time accepting a job from a rich white family like the Daltons?

4: On pages 21 and 22, Bigger says that the white people live in his stomach. In your own words what do you think this means?

5: Bigger changes his mind very drastically about the idea of robbing Blum's. Other than his job opportunity, why do you think he acted the way he did?

6: Bigger seemed surprised about how well the Dalton's treated him. Where you surprised by the Dalton's actions?

7: What similarities do you see between Native Son and the articles you read for your blog post?

8: What other similarities do you see between Native Son, a novel written in 1930, and society today?

Entourage and Heterosexual Privilege

There is no denying that HBO’s “Entourage” is one of TV’s most popular and catchy shows. The half an hour long comedy is about a movie star, Vincent Chase, and his rise to fame with the help of his aging actor of a brother, Johnny Drama, his best friend and manger, Eric, and his carefree friend, Turtle. Each episode always has a main plot that is carried on and continued week by week but there are also daily mishaps and occurrences that seem to always cause problems. Its viewers are attracted weekly because of the opportunity they have to see what the life of a movie star would be like, a slight reprieve from the monotony of normal life. It seems as if HBO has created yet another hit.



For me though, I have always been entertained by the comical relationship between Ari, Vince’s agent played by Jeremy Piven, and his gay assistant, Lloyd played by the openly gay Rex Lee. Ari alone gets dozens of laughs per show but his banter with Lloyd is priceless. Very often, the one-liners Ari delivers come at the expense of Lloyd and his sexual orientation. In the episode Dog Day Afternoon, Ari wants to sign a gay TV writer who has never had a straight agent so in an effort to show him that “he is a friend to the gay man,” Ari pimps Lloyd. This episode is a perfect example of heterosexual privilege. Ari assumes that just because the writer is gay and that Lloyd is gay that it’s a done deal. This type of discrimination is in no way justified. Why is it that just because Lloyd is gay and the writer is gay that they will immediately hit it off and he’ll want to sign with Ari’s agency? It’s safe to say that every straight man and woman don’t want to be with each other so I don’t see why it is assumed that all gay men want to be with each other. All Ari wanted was for Lloyd to, “go grab your best dress and know that your love of cock is a huge asset to this company.”

Heterosexual privilege is a common thread that very often goes unnoticed in the media. Almost every episode of “Entourage” has some part in it that has Ari poking fun at Lloyd in some way. I see it as just a show and not a personal reflection of the executives but the fact that it goes unnoticed to many is a problem.

By the way, Ari’s plan did work and the writer did want to sign with him until Ari’s conscience got the best of him and Ari was forced to save Lloyd.