Brent Staples of Chester Pennsylvania was born in 1951. He is an author and editorial writer for the New York Times. In 1986, Staples published an essay in Ms. Magazine named “Just Walk on by”. His essay conveys to readers about stereotypes and conflicts on how people are programmed to respond to black men in various ways and gives examples of situations he himself has experienced discrimination as a black man.
When I first read the essay I did a bit of research of my own. I began asking black males if they had ever fallen victim to discrimination. I was surprised to find out how many had been and how often it happened. One man said when he walks by (most) white woman they clench purses or move them to the opposite side, but if he is with a female they don’t. Another male enrolled at the University of California is often asked what sport does he play that got him his scholarship allowing him to go college. I think one of my appalling favorites is the "why do you talk white?" question. Just how exactly does a person talk a color? I mean, one can …show more content…
He refers to the situation as “most frightening”. The workers assumed the young black man was a burglar instead of an employee, yet he was holding a paper in hand; this is another example of a major stereotype. Staples gave this as one of the worst examples of them all, with the young black male journalist in Illinois working on a story about a murderer who was mistaken for the killer and held at gunpoint by the police. “Paranoid touchiness” is mentioned a couple times in the essay and I understand why. After being treated the way black males are treated they become immune to it. It's a catch-22 type of feeling where one thinks everyone is going to stereotype them or make false assumptions or
When I first read the essay I did a bit of research of my own. I began asking black males if they had ever fallen victim to discrimination. I was surprised to find out how many had been and how often it happened. One man said when he walks by (most) white woman they clench purses or move them to the opposite side, but if he is with a female they don’t. Another male enrolled at the University of California is often asked what sport does he play that got him his scholarship allowing him to go college. I think one of my appalling favorites is the "why do you talk white?" question. Just how exactly does a person talk a color? I mean, one can …show more content…
He refers to the situation as “most frightening”. The workers assumed the young black man was a burglar instead of an employee, yet he was holding a paper in hand; this is another example of a major stereotype. Staples gave this as one of the worst examples of them all, with the young black male journalist in Illinois working on a story about a murderer who was mistaken for the killer and held at gunpoint by the police. “Paranoid touchiness” is mentioned a couple times in the essay and I understand why. After being treated the way black males are treated they become immune to it. It's a catch-22 type of feeling where one thinks everyone is going to stereotype them or make false assumptions or