The Not-So-Evolution of Racism

Seeing the play "Native Son" performed at the Court Theater was the catalyst for my realization of how racism has changed over time. This play, set on the South side of Chicago in the 1930's, emphasizes the extreme racism of the time and how that majorly affected the lives and opportunities of people with dark skin living then. The play was ironic in a way because the victim also caused the murder, and the murderer was also a victim.

It's extremely clear in this play that in the 1930's, people with dark skin were completely and utterly dehumanized. The communists in the play - the victim and her boyfriend, tried to act like racism wasn't imprinted in their brains, when it clearly was. They treat Bigger like an unequal species - like he's of a different kind than them, but they were also interested in the crazy ways of the dark skinned people.

The racism of the time is the cause for why Bigger Thomas is the victim and the murderer, and also why the victim is the problem. Mary Dalton, so white and lavishly drunk and obnoxious, lured Bigger Thomas in for a kiss, and more. When her mother knocks on the door, Bigger must quiet Mary down, for he would get in big trouble for kissing a white woman - and to do this, he covers her drunken and giggling face with a pillow. However, Bigger accidentally kills her. Bigger was the victim of racism, which caused him to be a murderer and Mary Dalton, the instigator and victim of the murder, also brought about her own murder due to her obliviously corruptive actions.

It is safe to say that racism this insane isn't globally prevalent anymore, but I still think there are people out there that are not accepting of interracial intimacy. So, while we all would like to think that racism has washed away a lot since the 1930's, I really don't think we can accept that wishful thinking. There are racially-evoked killings happening all over our country a lot more often than we think, and institutionalized racism is as prevalent as ever.