After reading “Black Men and Public Space” by Brent Staples, and watching the Daily Show video online “Second Amendment Dos and Donts”, they have many similarities and differences. Although the story and the video are not completely the same, and despite the fact that they do have their noticeable differences, they certainly succeed in getting their main point across which is the sacrifices they make in order to protect themselves.
In Staples story, there is no humor. He talks about how he first became familiar with the “unwieldy inheritance” after a woman on the street spotted him and shortly after runs away in fear. Unwieldy means to big or too much to bear, which reflected how staples felt when people treated him as a criminal, or something …show more content…
Staples writes about how fear becomes a familiar face to him throughout time. Not only does he talk about the fears that he has, but also the fear that other people are directing toward him. “At dark shadowy intersections, I could cross in front of a car stopped at a traffic light and hear the thunk thunk thunk thunk of the driver – black, white, male, or female- hammering down the door locks.” (Staples, Brent 196). He talks about the diverse kinds of people who show their fear of him: “…policemen, doormen, bouncers, cabdrivers, and others whose business is to screen out troublesome individuals before there is any nast ness. (Staples, Brent). Staples tells us that growing up he was one of the “good boys” and saw “countless guys get locked away.” Staples says that the scariest situation he had ever been in was when he was mistaken for a burglar at his own place of work. Another frightening time was when he was working and entered a jewelry store, …show more content…
Right from the start Michael says “If you are black, don’t bring a gun to a restaurant, because even if you tell them you’re not going to shoot, they probably won’t believe you.”(2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) Many people will laugh at this but really what he’s doing is trying to prove a point about how people perceive blacks to be frightening, just like Staples’s story. This is followed by Michael saying “Black people don’t even go out, make it a digorno night.” (2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) Again, this supposed to be humorous to keep the viewers’ attention but it is still focused around the same point. When the police is mentioned, Jordan says “invite them over for beers and target practice,” but when Michael speaks he tells the audience “don’t say anything to the police, just get on the ground and cuff yourself.”( 2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) This, like in Staples’s story, is the humorous way of explaining a black man’s way of protecting themselves. Rather than fighting with a policeman or stirring up trouble it is easier and safer to just keep quiet and “cuff yourself”. Another similarity between the story and the video is when Michael mentions how important it is not to draw attention to oneself. He makes a joke about being in a sweatshirt and then distracts Jordan and calms him down. Michael talks about never reaching into your pocket for
In Staples story, there is no humor. He talks about how he first became familiar with the “unwieldy inheritance” after a woman on the street spotted him and shortly after runs away in fear. Unwieldy means to big or too much to bear, which reflected how staples felt when people treated him as a criminal, or something …show more content…
Staples writes about how fear becomes a familiar face to him throughout time. Not only does he talk about the fears that he has, but also the fear that other people are directing toward him. “At dark shadowy intersections, I could cross in front of a car stopped at a traffic light and hear the thunk thunk thunk thunk of the driver – black, white, male, or female- hammering down the door locks.” (Staples, Brent 196). He talks about the diverse kinds of people who show their fear of him: “…policemen, doormen, bouncers, cabdrivers, and others whose business is to screen out troublesome individuals before there is any nast ness. (Staples, Brent). Staples tells us that growing up he was one of the “good boys” and saw “countless guys get locked away.” Staples says that the scariest situation he had ever been in was when he was mistaken for a burglar at his own place of work. Another frightening time was when he was working and entered a jewelry store, …show more content…
Right from the start Michael says “If you are black, don’t bring a gun to a restaurant, because even if you tell them you’re not going to shoot, they probably won’t believe you.”(2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) Many people will laugh at this but really what he’s doing is trying to prove a point about how people perceive blacks to be frightening, just like Staples’s story. This is followed by Michael saying “Black people don’t even go out, make it a digorno night.” (2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) Again, this supposed to be humorous to keep the viewers’ attention but it is still focused around the same point. When the police is mentioned, Jordan says “invite them over for beers and target practice,” but when Michael speaks he tells the audience “don’t say anything to the police, just get on the ground and cuff yourself.”( 2nd Amendment Dos and Don’ts. The Daily Show.) This, like in Staples’s story, is the humorous way of explaining a black man’s way of protecting themselves. Rather than fighting with a policeman or stirring up trouble it is easier and safer to just keep quiet and “cuff yourself”. Another similarity between the story and the video is when Michael mentions how important it is not to draw attention to oneself. He makes a joke about being in a sweatshirt and then distracts Jordan and calms him down. Michael talks about never reaching into your pocket for