Black Americans In 'Home' By Langston Hughes

Black Americans were supposedly liberated as they were released from their shackles after Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation in 1862, but were they actually freed? Several people have discovered convincing clues about how black people have been discreetly segregate, and Langston Hughes is one of them. Hughes is an African American poet and a social activists who demonstrates the conflict black Americans often encounter through his poems. His short story “Home” is a prime example of his moving work. The short story follows a black violinist, Roy Williams, returning back home to the United States after his stay in Europe to visit his family due to an illness. Roy was traveling Europe with a jazz band, but he quickly notices dirty looks and racial …show more content…
When Roy first returned back home, he noticed how several black Americans were poor and in poverty. “He stayed a couple of days in Harlem. Most of his old friends there, musicians and actors, were hungry and out of work. When they saw Roy dressed so well, they asked him for money.” (Hughes). Roy received more opportunities as he left the U.S for Europe, but the people he left back home didn’t have the same chances he had. They weren’t given any chances to succeed as they are stuck in the ghetto with no help. Langston Hughes illustrates a real life issue that still affects the people today through his story “Home”. Black people are a part of the majority of people who are in poverty in the United States. This would result in ghetto neighborhoods, but no one is even trying to assist the people living there. The people living in these appalling environments are completely neglected and treated like trash. Langston Hughes’ “Home” exposes an issue about how poor black Americans are ignored and left to …show more content…
Ironically, music gave Roy more opportunities in life, but it was also the cause of his unfair death. Roy’s musical connection with Miss Reese made other white people believe that he was committing a crime. “The movies had just let out and the crowd, passing by and seeing, objected to a Negro talking to a white woman - insulting a White Woman - attacking a WHITE woman - RAPING A WHITE WOMAN.” (Hughes). Although Roy and Miss Reese were having a casual conversation, random white men believed that Roy had an intention to rape her. They just assumed that he was doing something heinous just because of his skin color. They beat Roy to death as they believed Miss Reese was in danger when she actually wasn’t. Roy had no intentions to hurt Miss Reese, but the white men thought he actually did as they were blinded by their hate. The short story “Home” captured the wrongful belief about how black Americans are dangerous