We have seen racism in the books we’ve been reading this
semester. A lot. It particularly struck me as we read “Negocios”, an account of
a Mexican man’s struggles in America. He just wants honest work so he can
support himself and his family. Sound familiar? Since I lead student discussion
for Baldwin’s “Previous Condition”, it was particularly easy to see the
parallels.
Peter, the main character in “Previous Condition” was a struggling
actor already in America. He didn’t have to worry about being deported or
anything, just such petty things as being thrown out of his apartment for
simply being black. He also dealt with people thinking he had naturally violent
tendencies, people using racist slurs to describe him, and people being scared
of him, again for no reason other than his ethnicity.
On the other hand, Ramon in “Negocios” had to deal with very
different, but very real problems as well. He had to worry about being caught
by Immigration Authorities, since he wasn’t in America legally for a good part
of the story. He had to work extremely long hours to make ends meet, and even
then there wasn’t much excess. Also, while he didn’t worry about being kicked
out of his temporary residences because of his ethnicity, there were problems
that definitely only applied to someone in his situation. Namely, being duped
out of $800 by people saying they would find him a wife, who actually just
conned him and gave him nothing but false hope.
It’s very interesting (and humbling) to see the various struggles that come
with being in various ethnic groups that are discriminated against in various
ways. I’ve just presented the most obvious examples. I’m sure there are plenty
more you all can find. J
