Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Last year, I was on Twitter (not calling it X) when I came across a tweet. The tweet featured an article about a school board meeting that discussed this book after it was banned. I became curious so I clicked it.
South Carolina’s school board decided to ban this book by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Mrs. Mary Wood assigned this book to her students at Chapin High School. However, after reading a few pages, some of her students became uncomfortable and ashamed. These students reported Ms. Woods and expressed their feelings to a school board member. After a few meetings, this book was banned. I became more curious on why because Ta-Nehisi Coates is a black man whereas these students are white. What did he say to make them feel a way?
So I bought it and read.
Between the World and Me is a letter by Ta-Nehisi Coates (T.C.) for his then 15 year old son, Samori. T.C. wrote this letter to reflect on his life and provide it as testimony to display the racism that was created and put in place in America’s society. I won’t speak entirely on the book for those that want to read it. But I’ll put a spotlight on some on the experiences T.C. speaks on.
T.C. breaks this book up into 3 sections. In one of the sections, T.C. elaborates on his time growing up in Baltimore, MD where he was exposed to drugs and violence. T.C. recounts when someone who he thought was his mans, pulled a gun out on him when they were kids. T.C. also speaks on how being a student at Howard University made him realize more about Black history and how the variety of Black culture is deeper than what is highlighted in the common school textbooks. Memory lane then shifts to a night out with Samori in NYC leading to a white man threatening the call the cops on them. And then in another section; T.C vulnerably speaks on how his mans from college, Prince Jones Jr, was murdered by an off duty black cop.
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After reading this book, I now understood why these white students felt a way. This book must have given them the realization that the Dreams and Nightmares Meek talks about isn’t just a song; it’s America’s reality.
The reality that, in order for white people to live out their American dream, non-whites, especially black people’s mind, body or soul has to be sacrificed. The reality that, black and brown people are forced in a position to normalize their nightmares. We can further analyze this book or just look at history, but the fact remains that white people created racism. Created racism to protect their race’s ideology and way of life.
Although slavery was abolished in 1865 and the civil rights movement gained the people more access in the 1960s, due to racism, white people still created ways to have limitations on black people.
T.C. tells the story of his mans getting killed by a black cop in 2000 because he’s providing a physical example of how American society is indirectly still teaching all people, including black people, that black people are first to be seen as a threat or less than. How regardless of your skin complexion, you must still judge one based off the color of their skin. Why you think it was so easy for those 5 black cops in Memphis, TN, to murder Tyre Nichols in 2023?
During the Reconstructive era, American society put in laws such as the “Black code”. This black code limited black people’s rights and made it easy to criminalize and imprison. Or how in this decade, lawmakers, like in S. Carolina, passed a bill banning critical race theory. Which according to Bryan Anderson of AP, critical race theory (CRT) “centers on the idea that racism is systemic in the nations institutions and that they function to maintain the dominance of white people in society”.
Black and brown people’s mind, body or soul will forever be at risk because they don’t want you having these talks. Conversations create awareness. Awareness can create action. American society is run by a democracy. They understand their power in numbers. So, it also might be understandable why United States supported Israel; The only middle eastern country also ran by a democracy.
Idk but this food for thought. This book can be found on Amazon if you need. It’s about 150 pages.
