A Rhetorical Analysis Of Speech By Cornell West

Cornell West defiantly made an impact on some of us who were at his speech last Thursday. He spoke about some of the controversies going on in today’s society as well as using past examples to reference. About a few weeks back, he was arrested for speaking out in Ferguson and its unbelievable VCU was able to have such a motivational speaker like him to come. Being a history and African American studies major, this really got me thinking; he asked us, “What kind of human beings will we choose to be.” as well as discussing the racial problems going in the justice system, as well as in the education world. Explaining to us how the jail system holds majority blacks and if it was the other way around (majority whites) the government would do more to help them out and bring them into the society. …show more content…
is being pushed aside and now making room for Jim Crow Jr. in prison complex, education, the war on poverty and drugs; how schools are now becoming militarized by eliminating art programs and music. He also spoke of DuBois and his 1957 writing where he spoke of how integrity faces oppression and DuBois four questions as well as saying we need integrity, honesty, decency and virtue to move forward. For me, as someone who is a minority, this speech defiantly made me reflect on somethings in my life. I realized that even though sometimes people may say some racial and derogatory things to me I can only reply back with a good education and love and not hate. Most defiantly out of my time here in VCU, I will always remember Cornell West, as well as admire the awesome selfie he and I took after the