Don't Catch You Slipping Now, Look What I'm Whippin Now

The Struggle for a Better World 

Prior to reading Between the World and Me, I was under the impression that everyone collectively would be responsible for “the birth of a better world”. But when Coates tells his son that “a better world is not ultimately up to you,'' he is referring to the fact that it is ultimately up to the wealthy Americans in power that refer to themselves at white, and that young black men (like Samori) are not able to make such advances in life. In the beginning of the novel, the Ta-Nehisi Coates describes his recollection of an interview with a popular news show host. Coates says that she asked him about his body, but soon after asks about “hope”, as he discloses that “I knew that I had failed” (10). The news host is almost completely disregarding the words he had supplied for her previous question. His ideas of how America is and always has been white America don’t go through to her. She seems to be convinced that the prejudice towards African-Americans is a thing of the past, whereas Coates may say that it is just as significant today as it was two centuries ago, if not more. She does not truly comprehend his points, as the writer of her “hope” question, the viewers of the show, and the owners of the news broadcasting company don’t comprehend it either. Having been unable to expose these people to the reality of our situation, Coates finds himself struggling to create a better world. 

Later, the author reminds his son of the time they saw a film at the Petersburg Battlefield in which the defeat of the Confederacy was “the onset of a tragedy, not a jubilee” (99). The people that worked on the movie—directors, producers, and other associates—did not want their viewers to think that the Confederacy’s fall was something to celebrate. Their positions as movie directors and produces gives them a certain power to control Americans’ perception of society. This power is abused by persuading the audience that the republic fighting to preserve the institution of slavery was ‘the good guy’, implanting a misleading and falsified representation of history in people’s brains. Due to the fact that the director of the movie was almost certainly white, the birth of a better world is simply out of reach for people of color.

In addition to the anecdotes of the news interview and the movie he watched with his son, Coates presents a direct quote from early 19th century South Carolina senator John C. Calhoun, who’s speaking about the divide between white and black. Coates goes on to write that the people that believe themselves white, such as Calhoun, consider themselves to be on top of a mountain while “there was someone down in the valley because a mountain is not a mountain if there is nothing below” (105). Calhoun’s view of life as a white person consists of a sense of superiority over people of color. This assumed role in society stands in the way of Samori’s chances of creating the “birth of a better world”. The stout racial prejudice cannot be easily alleviated from the perspective of people like Calhoun that consider themselves white. Therefore, the only way for a better world to come about is for powerful whites to stop jumping to falsified conclusions when they see a person of color.

Furthermore, the historically-backed idea that blacks are below whites made me think about the history of treatment towards women in this country. Treatment of black people and women are prevalent issues of today, as they both came into question for former #1 ranked tennis player, 39-time Grand Slam champion, 4-time Olympic Gold medalist, and black woman, Serena Williams. In the second set of the 2018 U.S. Open final, the chair umpire gave her a code violation because, although she wasn’t aware, he saw her coach attempting to coach her. As the match continued, Serena grew more frustrated. At one point she slammed her racket on the ground and sternly reprimanded the umpire, earning herself two more code violations and a $17,000 fine. In response to this, an Australian newspaper, The Herald Sun, published a cartoon by Mark Knight mocking Serena for her behavior during the match (NPR). This sparked international controversy, as figures of popular culture like J.K. Rowling and Trevor Noah voiced their opinions on the matter. In the cartoon, Serena is seen as a child throwing a tantrum. Having spit out a pacifier that can be seen on the ground, she is stomping on her racket while the slim, white umpire says to her opponent Naomi Osaka, “Can you just let her win?” Serena had reason to act the way she did, and it was unacceptable to give her an appearance that reflects “the dehumanizing Jim Crow caricatures so common in the 19th and 20th centuries” (Washington Post). Clearly, America’s history has a deeply-rooted influence on the discrimination seen today. The white Australian man that drew this image of Serena Williams may claim that it was solely drawn based on behavior, but her exaggerated features unquestionably resemble the features given to racially stereotyped black athletes in early 20th century media. The artists behind these cartoons do not understand the power they have or the damage they deal by presenting people of color in this way. Thus, those who consider themselves white (such as Mark Knight and John C. Calhoun) are responsible for the birth of a better world.