The author and racism

Use this forum to discuss the July 2019 Book of the month, "Defining Moments of a Free Man from a Black Stream" by Dr Frank L Douglas.
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Ngozi Onyibor
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Re: The author and racism

Post by Ngozi Onyibor »

Having to work extra hard to prove yourself because of the color of your skin is demoralizing. I think the author handled it quite well. Perhaps his background had a lot to do with his resilience and will to succeed against all odds.While he might not have experienced racism in Guyana, he mostly likely experienced class discrimination.
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Post by Joy Catap »

His bravery challenges mine. I have a friend who is studying in the US and she's brown. Even browns are being discriminated there. What more if you're a black? His courage and determination speak volumes to me.
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Post by Zeix »

In a land where the author lives discrimination is bound to happen. How you deal with it will determine which path you will be following. His courage is a nice impact to those who face the same everyday
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Post by briellejee »

Nisha Ward wrote: 06 Aug 2019, 06:30
OliviaLouise wrote: 02 Aug 2019, 07:24 I think the intensity of overt racism varies geographically today. Back then, however, it was everywhere. I imagine it must have been surprising to Frank to have to deal with this issue since it was so different back in Guyana. It’s terrible. I think he handled it l really gracefully.
It really is. I keep seeing people wonder how he didn't face racism in Guyana, but the truth is that when your population is majority non-white, the face of racism is quite different. There's also colourism to factor in, which he did mention.

I believe this is why he was surprised when he encountered it in the US because it's a different kind of racism to what we in the Caribbean deal with.
Huh, this makes sense. About the colorism, it did mention about his cousin who is a tad lighter than him who received special treatment. But I didn't know that's what surprised him about the racism in the US. Thanks for this Nisha. I am learning a lot! :tiphat:
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Post by amjohnson13mommy »

Reading what his professor said made my heart sink. But the way he handled things shows he has a lot of inner strength and courage.
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Post by DC Brown »

Lunastella wrote: 01 Aug 2019, 19:36
DC Brown wrote: 11 Jul 2019, 20:47
Nisha Ward wrote: 06 Jul 2019, 09:42 So in the book, when Frank gets to the US, he experiences instances of racial discrimination that he hadn't in Guyana, from one of his professors saying that he would never be a scientist to Ciba Geigy's DLs not wanting to give him Max's job in full because of his ethnicity. This is obviously still a problem the world over, but the author makes it a point to confront these because he has a different experience of it. What do you think of Frank's experiences in this area and how he confronts them?
He was brave and stuck to his principles. Unfortunately, racism is still alive and well in the US. Just last year, a friend and I went to a restaurant in a northern state and the staff did not want to serve us because my friend is black. I was shocked. She was not.
This is terribly sad and enraging. And this is why books like the one we're discussing are fundamental. I don't mean to pry but may I ask how did you react to the staff's attitude? Did they apologize?
How did I react? As if they had said nothing at all. I just said we were there to eat lunch. They did not apologize. But they did serve us lunch.
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Post by María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda »

DC Brown wrote: 06 Aug 2019, 22:07
Lunastella wrote: 01 Aug 2019, 19:36
DC Brown wrote: 11 Jul 2019, 20:47
He was brave and stuck to his principles. Unfortunately, racism is still alive and well in the US. Just last year, a friend and I went to a restaurant in a northern state and the staff did not want to serve us because my friend is black. I was shocked. She was not.
This is terribly sad and enraging. And this is why books like the one we're discussing are fundamental. I don't mean to pry but may I ask how did you react to the staff's attitude? Did they apologize?
How did I react? As if they had said nothing at all. I just said we were there to eat lunch. They did not apologize. But they did serve us lunch.
It must take a lot of self-control to keep quiet in such a situation. How unfortunate that they didn't even apologize. Thank you for replying, I was genuinely curious and didn't mean to pry.
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Post by Nyambura Githui »

I think Frank confronts the discrimination he faces with courage and resilience. He puts a lot of hope to people who face the same things.
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Post by Wanja Hannah »

Florence Nalianya wrote: 10 Jul 2019, 06:30 The author faces several instances of discrimination in the USA to an extend where a lecturer feels he can't be a scientist and doesn't deserve that kind of education. At some point, the racist think he can't have a job for he is black.
His determination sees him through and I tend to believe he must have had a strong support system.
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Post by SavannaEGoth »

Racism is a bit of a touchy topic. We all know it still exists, and yet many turn a blind eye to it or refuse to aknowledge it when it arises. It's extremely unfortunate, and I think it's very brave of people to highlight their experiences with it and how it negatively affected them. Racism isn't okay in any form, and making more people aware of the struggles that people face due to racial conflict is important.
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Post by ObsessedBookNerd »

I don't like to read books on heavy topics. I don't think this is the type of book that I would enjoy reading. I don't want to read a book on racism. I will pass on reading this story.
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Post by Wallaceo »

The author went ahead and showed us that racism exist in many forms. That it was not only whites that are racist against blacks but blacks are also racist against other blacks. In today's society it is called colorism and the author did a great job at displaying all aspects of racism throughout his novel.
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Post by essyallan7475 »

I feel the author face alot racist issues in his life. And took it with it head held high. He was proud of what he was and not ashamed
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Post by UnicornKnight »

I think it's sad that although this happened in the past, very little has changed with what we see in terms of racism today. The author handled this issue well, choosing to take the high road and work hard in order to prove his worth. It's sad that people of color have to work harder to get the same amount of respect.
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Post by Nathan Berner »

briellejee wrote: 01 Aug 2019, 10:13
Nathan Berner wrote: 29 Jul 2019, 13:10 I think it was quite inspiring to see how he handled racial discrimination. He handled it in such a peaceful way. They say the best revenge is living your best life, I think he definitely triumphed discrimination in that sense.
By not minding the bullies, he surely did both parties a favor.
Yeah, I agree. I think peace is the way to go, especially when there was such a good opportunity for him to not choose peace.
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