A Letter to Adam J. Banks
Dr. Adam J. Banks:
I write this letter in order to express to you the impact your article, "Race, Rhetoric, and Technology: Searching for Higher Ground," has had on me personally. As someone who identifies as White, it has opened my eyes to how different spaces of the Internet react to the expression of Black culture. This reaction reflects a racism that has gradually been institutionalized within our society for hundreds of years, and is one that Whites should be ashamed of. You have stated that the Internet’s default user is White, and, because of this, the default language is Standard English. Based on these regulations, we reject the use of Black English as if it is not an actual language, as if it exists solely …show more content…
In other words, intolerance of Black culture can be seen as a sort of slavery of the digital age, where Blacks have reason to feel as if they are trapped under the weight of standards—namely, how they are allowed to speak and behave—enacted by the White race. On another note, your view of these digital spaces has caused me to see the folly of humanity, that we are not truly free to express ourselves unless we are in a space where we feel we are accepted—or, at the very least, not criticized. By speaking of the ways in which Black culture has "counter[ed] the surveillance and censorship that always seem to accompany the presence of African Americans,” you have caused me to believe that, once we establish ourselves in a setting with no limitations, then we "truly do have the right to [our] own language," and that once we achieve this, we can do amazing things with it (68-69, …show more content…
Not only did you state in your article that one must not just use technology, that they must also learn “what lies behind…the interface,” you also have made some very important points which are still applicable today. You have implied that race is and will always be relevant online, and you have claimed that interaction among composition students is one of the best methods of learning, and that one thing lacking in our classrooms is a little control given to the students. The treatment of Black culture, traditions, and values across the internet may improve over time, but these ideas will remain standing as reasons your article will always be applicable, reasons why someone such as me, who identifies as White, is able to identify with and be impacted by this
Dr. Adam J. Banks:
I write this letter in order to express to you the impact your article, "Race, Rhetoric, and Technology: Searching for Higher Ground," has had on me personally. As someone who identifies as White, it has opened my eyes to how different spaces of the Internet react to the expression of Black culture. This reaction reflects a racism that has gradually been institutionalized within our society for hundreds of years, and is one that Whites should be ashamed of. You have stated that the Internet’s default user is White, and, because of this, the default language is Standard English. Based on these regulations, we reject the use of Black English as if it is not an actual language, as if it exists solely …show more content…
In other words, intolerance of Black culture can be seen as a sort of slavery of the digital age, where Blacks have reason to feel as if they are trapped under the weight of standards—namely, how they are allowed to speak and behave—enacted by the White race. On another note, your view of these digital spaces has caused me to see the folly of humanity, that we are not truly free to express ourselves unless we are in a space where we feel we are accepted—or, at the very least, not criticized. By speaking of the ways in which Black culture has "counter[ed] the surveillance and censorship that always seem to accompany the presence of African Americans,” you have caused me to believe that, once we establish ourselves in a setting with no limitations, then we "truly do have the right to [our] own language," and that once we achieve this, we can do amazing things with it (68-69, …show more content…
Not only did you state in your article that one must not just use technology, that they must also learn “what lies behind…the interface,” you also have made some very important points which are still applicable today. You have implied that race is and will always be relevant online, and you have claimed that interaction among composition students is one of the best methods of learning, and that one thing lacking in our classrooms is a little control given to the students. The treatment of Black culture, traditions, and values across the internet may improve over time, but these ideas will remain standing as reasons your article will always be applicable, reasons why someone such as me, who identifies as White, is able to identify with and be impacted by this