With my second novel coming to an end, I am finishing up my Honors Portfolio task and I am extremely proud of it. I truly felt as though anything I wrote about the topic of race would be semi-cringy, as was this novel, therefore I decided to embrace it. The big question Tim Wise asks in the first chapter of "White Like Me" was "what does it mean to be white, especially in a nation created for the benefit of people like you?" (2). The first day I read the book, I underlined this sentence and continued with my reading, but this question stuck with me throughout the duration of the novel. Things that I had never thought of being "White privileges" suddenly answered the question of what it means to be White for me. I honestly felt like I was being enlightened when I read things such as "Geneology itself is something as a privilege" (5) because the idea that many African Americans can not trace their lineage due to slavery had never crossed my mind.
Up until the very end of my novel, I felt like I was learning. I was learning how lucky I was to live in the racial majority in my country, how much I take for granted every day, and how much more work needs to be done to end racial inequality in the United States and the world. I am excited to share my Honors Porfolio project because it is a very vulnerable and honest depiction of what being White means to me now that I have read this novel. While this novel definitely felt cringy at times, I began to ease into as I got used to Wise's writing. If I were to do it again, I do not think I would read this book because I am much more interested on learning about racial issues from minorities, rather than the majority group. However, I am glad I got the chance to learn about a perspective near to my own because it caused me to think deeper into the things I believe in. I can't wait to start my new book next week! Happy Friday!
0 Comments
As I continue reading my novel, "White Like Me" by Tim Wise, I notice that I am getting more and more uncomfortable with the issues the book discusses as it gets deeper into the problems with racism today. Since the author of the novel is Caucasian, it hits closer to home for me than any book written by an African American author simply because I can relate to it on a closer level. The message that has stood out to me the most is the idea that as the dominant group in America, White people rarely have to think about race at all.
Another idea that stood out to me is Wise's doubt that his writing about the issue of racism will bring about any change. I strongly disagree. I believe that the more people talk about it, the more things will change. Silence does nothing for our society. I wish more people got the chance to read this novel because I believe the more people aware about the issue of inequality, the more things will get done to solve it. As a Caucasian female, I can honestly say that I believe the majority of White people are extremely ignorant to the racism occuring today. That is a privilege that not all people get to have and this book has shown me how much I have been missing. I am excited to become exposed to more inequalities facing the African American race today as I continue my novel. Happy weekend! Similar to how I began my previous novel, I wanted to dedicate my first post on "White Like Me" to my initial thoughts on the novel based simply on the title. From previous knowledge, I recognize that the author, Tim Wise, tends to take an extremely liberal and progressive view on the subjects of white privilege and racism in general. In the video clip we watched in class of him speaking, Wise seemed like an extremely "woke" white man who is hyper-aware of the privileges he has in contrast to African-American individuals. It feels kind of strange to me that a white man wrote an entire book on race, however this makes me very curious to see his approach on the issue. As a privileged, white female, I do not feel as educated on the issue of racism as I believe I should be. My family and I believe strongly in equality for all people and I wish I had more information to bring to the table when discussing certain aspects of the issue. Hopefully, reading this book will give me new ideas surrounding the topic which I can bring up at family dinners.
Especially in today's political world (a.k.a The Trump Era), I believe the issues of racism and white privilege are as relevant as ever. I am very excited to get started with my new book and hope it opens my eyes to a perspective, while similar to my own, is that of someone else. Happy reading to me! Our unit on gender has come to a close, and therefore so has my novel "Cinderella Ate My Daughter". This unit has truly opened my eyes to new perspectives on the issues surrounding being a female in today's society. The final chapter in the novel is titled "Girl Power- No, Really" and it was by far my favorite chapter of the book. The chapter applauds Disney's new, diverse, female characters such as Princess Tiana who happens to be an African-American woman working as a "waitress at a restaurant owned by an African-American [person]" (180). The idea that change is on the rise excites me and motivates me to keep working towards equality for people of all genders. This example in particular not only got my attention because it displays a working woman, but also because the woman is of color. As I begin to change my mindset from gender to race, the similarities between their oppression become clear. Just as females may be thought of as incapable of certain jobs, leadership positions, etc. in today's society, people of color in America experience those same prejudices.
As I begin reading my new novel "White Like Me", I am excited to become more exposed to a problem I am typically sheltered from as a white person in America. I hope to become as educated on racial issues as I now feel about gender issues. Goodbye gender, hello race. |
AuthorAmy Granick is a senior at Leesville Road High School in Raleigh, North Carolina. She plans to continue her studies at North Carolina State University in the fall with a major in Psychology. Archives
May 2018
Categories |