Although the American Civil War abolished slavery, it did not put an end to the growing racial divide between black and white citizens. Many Americans, such as civil rights leaders and protesters, have fought valiantly to lessen this gap, but none have been able to completely eradicate it. The racism which comes with a this oppressive system gives people of color great disadvantages in their lives. In his novel Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates writes to his son about this growing racial divide within America. Coates discusses the pains and liabilities he faces as a black man in a white dominated society. Coates’s experiences with racism in his life lead him to ultimately conclude that “the price of error is higher for [black people]
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As an eleven year old, Coates stands in front of a 7- Eleven watching a group of older boys talking and yelling. One of the older boys pulls a gun on Coates before eventually letting him go. The danger Coates faces teaches him “how easily [he] could be selected” in regards to the violence and bloodshed which cling to the streets like a plague in black neighborhoods (Coates 19). The threat on his life he feels from an early age leads to him actively learning and “[practicing] the culture of the streets … a culture concerned chiefly with the securing of the body” (24). He goes on to discuss how learning the culture of the streets was oftentimes more important to him than his schoolwork, as these rules were essential to his safety and security. Coates’s obsession with the so called “culture of the streets” is reflective of how easy it can be to slip up and get oneself killed if a person’s skin is any color other than white (24). The formative years of Coates’s childhood in West Baltimore solidifies his perception and preoccupation for the safety of his body, and of the lengths he must go to in order to protect …show more content…
While attending Howard, Coates meets the illustrious Prince Jones: handsome, generous, on the football team, and the son of a “prominent doctor” (64). Although he does not speak to Prince Jones following his days at the Mecca, the news of his sudden death is still harrowing. The Prince George County police department murders Prince Jones, claiming he threatens to run an officer over with his jeep. The death of Prince Jones, even with Coates’s preexposure to police brutality against blacks, is especially jarring due to Prince Jones’s social class and personal magnetism. Accordingly, Jones’s death brings Coates to the conclusion that anyone is vulnerable to brutality, regardless of their success or social status. One can never erase the color of their skin, and if even Prince Jones, a “good Christian, scion of a striving class, patron saint of the twice as good” can be a victim, then who is safe (81)? Prince Jones’s only mistake is being black, which is all it took for the police to kill him. Prince Jones pays far too heavily for small mistakes which white people may not even be penalized for. Coates’s experiences with Prince Jones’s death teach him that none are immune to the inconveniences of being black regardless of their success, and that black people have many
As an eleven year old, Coates stands in front of a 7- Eleven watching a group of older boys talking and yelling. One of the older boys pulls a gun on Coates before eventually letting him go. The danger Coates faces teaches him “how easily [he] could be selected” in regards to the violence and bloodshed which cling to the streets like a plague in black neighborhoods (Coates 19). The threat on his life he feels from an early age leads to him actively learning and “[practicing] the culture of the streets … a culture concerned chiefly with the securing of the body” (24). He goes on to discuss how learning the culture of the streets was oftentimes more important to him than his schoolwork, as these rules were essential to his safety and security. Coates’s obsession with the so called “culture of the streets” is reflective of how easy it can be to slip up and get oneself killed if a person’s skin is any color other than white (24). The formative years of Coates’s childhood in West Baltimore solidifies his perception and preoccupation for the safety of his body, and of the lengths he must go to in order to protect …show more content…
While attending Howard, Coates meets the illustrious Prince Jones: handsome, generous, on the football team, and the son of a “prominent doctor” (64). Although he does not speak to Prince Jones following his days at the Mecca, the news of his sudden death is still harrowing. The Prince George County police department murders Prince Jones, claiming he threatens to run an officer over with his jeep. The death of Prince Jones, even with Coates’s preexposure to police brutality against blacks, is especially jarring due to Prince Jones’s social class and personal magnetism. Accordingly, Jones’s death brings Coates to the conclusion that anyone is vulnerable to brutality, regardless of their success or social status. One can never erase the color of their skin, and if even Prince Jones, a “good Christian, scion of a striving class, patron saint of the twice as good” can be a victim, then who is safe (81)? Prince Jones’s only mistake is being black, which is all it took for the police to kill him. Prince Jones pays far too heavily for small mistakes which white people may not even be penalized for. Coates’s experiences with Prince Jones’s death teach him that none are immune to the inconveniences of being black regardless of their success, and that black people have many