The Provocative Nature of Discussing Race

Kanye West has released many religious and Gospel inspired songs in recent years, however, “Wash Us in the Blood” provides a direct connection between racial justice and Christianity. The invocation of religious symbols and ideas is intentionally provocative in Kanye’s music, especially in this piece where he makes a hard statement about the nature of being Black in America. Kanye is not the only one to purposefully be provocative. Sonia Sanchez and Danez Smith also provoke their audiences. I argue that the authors of these works do this in order to generate strong emotions and outrage in discussions around racial justice. 

 

“Wash Us in the Blood” is truly provocative when it comes to the religious community. One of the most provoking lines, in my opinion, is this:

 

“Let it off, set it off

Execution, thirty states (that’s why)

Thirty states still execute (ah)

Thou shall not kill”

 

Here, West, invokes one of the ten commandments in conjunction with the reality that the death penalty is still legal in 30 states, and often members of the black community are more likely to be given the death penalty as a sentence than those who are white. “People of color have accounted for a disproportionate 43% of total executions since 1976 and 55% of those currently awaiting execution” (aclu.org). By citing one of the ten commandments, the most important laws in the Judeo-Christian world, West challenges listeners to evaluate what they truly believe. He imposes the question of how can one support a death penalty and still follow the law of God? He is purposefully attempting to make people uncomfortable with their reality, pushing them into anger and generating strong emotions when it comes to issues of racial justice.

 

Smith and Sanchez do the same thing. In Dinosaurs in the Hood, Smith writes, “Don’t let Tarantino direct this. In his version, the boy plays with a gun, the metaphor: black boys toy with their own lives.” Smith challenges his readers here by making them question what the media feeds them about race and race stereotypes. He wants to draw attention to the symbolism being made in media about the nature of black lives, generating strong emotions in response. Sanchez, in For Sweet Honey in the Rock, writes,

 

“And they followed us in their cars with their computers

and their tongues crawled with caterpillars…

and their courts changed into confessionals

but we kept on organizing we kept on teaching believing

loving doing what was holy moving to a higher ground”

 

Sanchez is being very provoking her. She asserts that despite the incredible hardships faced by those who have experienced racial injustice, people have kept working, kept fighting, to create a better future. This evokes feelings of exhaustion, but also hope. The powerful emotions that Sanchez is pulling on create a response that will ultimately change the way people view issues of racial justice. 

 

All these artists are purposely provocative within their work to generate a strong emotional response on the part of the consumer. Whether this work validates the injustices experienced by those who have been systemically oppressed, or illuminates a new reality to those who may have not experienced this in their own lives, it does a powerful job of changing the narratives and creating a shared sense of emotional responsibility when it comes to fighting for racial justice within America.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hamilton's understanding of National Time

Lin-Manual Miranda’s masterful hip-hop musical, Hamilton , eloquently ties together time theories that show the impact time’s understanding has on the development of a character and the motivation behind their actions.  Miranda’s work could not avoid discussion of the implications of understanding time, as he draws on history with his own lens, exposing his personal beliefs in time.  Miranda draws on national time in consideration of the creation of the United States, developing an understanding of the U.S.’s construction with a more modern and diverse perspective. The understanding of national time within this musical is seen through the creation of the nation, and Miranda’s understanding of ‘double time’ that was not considered in America’s history.  The U.S. Constitution was not written with consideration for those who were not experiencing life the same way as those writing it.  It did not consider the humanity of slaves, Native Americans, or women, who all experienced (and continu
Read more

Stability of "Creative Solitude"

     Every member of the Bechdel family household lives in their own world.  Alison's father lives in a trapped world--living in the same town and hiding his true sexuality--though he seeks stability in restoring their Victorian home and expressing himself through literature.  For instance, on page 13, there is an image of her father recording his voice to describe the influences on the house's design: "This owner changed the roofs, the porches, the chimneys, the fireplaces, the walls, the woodwork, until it became a stylish town house suitable for a prosperous lawyer's family."  His focus obsessively draws his attention and focus to the past, as he attempts to piece together the home's story.  This also alludes to his obsession with literature, as he chooses to live in a world different from his own reality, in order to escape his trapped life.     In addition to Alison's father, her mother, too, has her own sense of "creative solitude" (p. 133)
Read more

Home in Others

      Woodson’s own concept of home, I feel, evolves throughout the story’s progression. In the beginning, she is very focused on places and the feelings they provoke. Her geographical position greatly impacts her and the other characters’ mood, feelings of belonging and coincidentally, their comfort levels, which, in turn, all impact behavior. It is true that Jackie and her family must behave differently depending on their location. For example, take their obvious demeanor and mannerism change as the children make those journeys from North to South.       However, I would submit that Jackie’s concept of home takes on a less tangible form later in the story. While she does notice the comforting, home-like vibrations radiated from her various family members, the two remained coincidental until the climax of the book, aligning with Jackie’s increased self-awareness. She finds feelings of “home” and belonging while thinking of people, while reading, and in some way while she’s projecting
Read more