Monday, March 3, 2014

Public Space and Race

Each decade in the history of the US inspired a major theme that has left a lasting impact on future generations. The 20's was the age of the flappers, the 70's being the Disco era, and the rock age of the 80's.  Although each decade had a distinct style, there was one thing that did not go away once a new decade came about- racism. 

Staples wrote Black Men and Public Space in the 1980's, when the US had claimed to be tolerant, but this essay proved that most people believed stereotypes.  To stereotype someone is to give a certain person traits based on the idea that all people who share a certain characteristic are the same.  Most Americans are guilty of stereotyping, and the people that are stereotyped the worst are African-American men, which is exactly what Staples proves in his essay.  He says that he is the exact opposite of the stereotype, but the first thing that people notice about him is his race.  Is America still as racist as it was in the 1980's or has it changed and become more accepting? 

Although the US isn't the perfect country, it is changing and becoming better and better each day. Americans are able to fight for their rights without having to overthrow the government to be heard, which is happening to a lot of people in other countries right now.  Racism is slowly disappearing throughout the US and we see more people of color in power, which is for the better.  In the 80's, Staples was treated unfairly by complete strangers for being black, but hopefully he doesn't have to be as we advance as a country to become a place without racism.

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