Blackness

The section I read in Revelations seemed to focus on the word “Black” or “Blackness” and how it is defined and what the mass perception of it is. From my readings and personal experience, to do something “Black” or “Blackness” is not always the most positive thing. To do something black is most commonly viewed as a positive notion when referring to physical ability, sexual ability, and entertainment ability. The example that William Raspberry gave in “The Handicap of Definition” is that if a basketball fan said that the Boston Celtics Larry Bird played basketball like a black man, Bird would more than likely accept it as a compliment. On the opposite end, if one were to tell a white reporter that he writes like a black man, he would more than likely sign up for diction lessons. It is not the fact that the connotations that come along with “Blackness” are negative; it is just that it is too narrow of a definition. Blackness is more than physical ability, sexual prowess and rhythm. Why it is that blackness is placed in a small box with narrow definitions and connotations, when whiteness is given a much more important, meaning. With whiteness comes a sense of responsibility and importance. For example, if a black boy were to have great study habits, he might be made fun of by other black kids by accusing him of being white. If a black kid used correct English, he would be called white. If a black kid played with educational games such as scrabble as opposed to video games, he could be called white. All things that seem beneficial to the human race can be seen as white, or Chinese, or Jewish but things that are unimportant and only holds entertainment value are actions of “Blackness” The color white and black display similar meanings. In “The English Language is My Enemy” Ossie Davis looked in Roget’s Thesaurus of the English Language and revealed that the word “Whiteness” had 134 synonyms. Out of those 134, 44 were favorable. They included words such as purity, cleanness, immaculateness, bright etc. Only 10 definitions out of 134 appeared to have negative implications, “Gloss over, whitewash, gray, wan, pale etc.” When Ossie Davis looked up the word “Blackness” he discovered that there were 120 synonyms and 60 of them were distinctly unfavorable, none of them were even mildly positive. Amongst synonyms included were “Blot, blotch, smut, smudge, sully, evil, wicked etc.” Ossie Davis suggested that “Any teacher good or bad, white or black, Jew or Gentile, who uses the English Language as a medium of communication is forced willy-nilly to teach the Negro child 60 ways to despise himself and the white child 60 ways to aid and abet in the crime. This can be a contributing factor as to why “Blackness” isn’t perceived in great light, why it is downplayed. We don’t think about the definition much, but even subconsciously blackness is not seen as a positive thing.

Skills Create Unity

The section I read in Revelations concentrated on the different arts and skills of Africans and African Americans and how it affected or impacted those around them. Jomo Kenyatta’s piece “Gikuyu Industries: Hut-Building” focused on the African tradition of hut building. Hut building is important to an African man. It signifies that he is a man capable of taking care of his family and handling his responsibilities. It is a great desire of a Gikuyu man to own his own property. A man does not go through the process of building a hut building by himself. He and his wife ask for the help of their friends. Normally, the women gather the materials need to build and the men do the building. In African culture, it is very customary to help a friend in need so most friends will contribute to the task at hand. After the task is completed, the host holds a large feast in the hut for everyone who helped. The work and the feast bring everyone together in unity. This work helps to unify a community. This is somewhat similar to when the terror attacks on September 11, 2001 happened. Everyone from all over the country came together as one people and helped each other out. The only difference is for the people of Africa, a large catastrophe isn’t necessary. It is customary for Africans to help their friends out, out of the goodness of their hearts.

Disconnection from a culture

From my readings in Revelations and my own personal experience from being around African American’s for the majority of my life, I have learned that many African Americans do not know much about their African heritage. Many African American feel distant and unsure about their African history. Many African Americans only know of Africa from what they perceive through the media. The Jungle, lions, and uncivilized people are all common connotations that come with Africa, be it negative or positive. Most African Americans do not know or fail to understand that Africa is so much more than the golden sun and the jungle. A poem from Heritage by Countee Cullen expresses what Africa is to her. She states some common connotations such as the “Copper sun or scarlet sea. Jungle star or jungle track” she then goes on to say that “One three centuries removed from the scenes his father loved, spicy grove, cinnamon tree, what is Africa to me?” She is saying that she is so far removed from her African roots that she isn’t quite sure what Africa is or is supposed to mean to her, she just knows what she sees from other means, not necessarily from first hand exposure. South African activist Steve Biko suggested that it is not only the African American that is confused about their culture, but it is the Africans as well! He stated “One realizes that there is so much confusion sown, not only amongst casual non-African readers, but even amongst Africans themselves, that perhaps a sincere attempt should be made at emphasizing the authentic cultural aspects of the African people by Africans.”