The Fight for Racial Equality - Essay Example

Black Skin, White Masks The fight for racial equality has long been considered a lost cause. However, many individuals did come up to fight for equal rights and privileges. The coming up of these individuals is assisting people in overcoming the racial prejudice folks have faced for decades. Some were world leaders; others may not have been world leaders, but their contribution in the making of history is remembered to this day. Examples in different nations and countries include Martin Luther King and Jesse Jackson from the United States. Then there was Nelson Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu from South Africa who fought the apartheid system for their people. This fight has taken time, and it may take more time before the racial prejudice is eradicated entirely from society (Noble 48). In Black Skin, White Masks, the author wanted to bring the attention of the reader to the racial injustice that many of the people suffered. This paper will address some of the statements in the book, and what they might have meant as they had an impact on society. Fanon Frantz was a published author who championed the fight against racial discrimination through literature. His fight for the Algerian people against colonization from the French was deeply appreciated. His analysis on the manner in which individuals were passionate about their rights against colonization was brought out in many of his works. In Black Skin, White Masks, he brings about the issue of hybridity among the African people, and the role they played in bringing about anti-colonial cultures. The acceptance of ‘hybrids’ into the French system was seen as a means to oppose colonial practices, and a means of accepting cultures across borders. By neither applying his works to either assimilation or white supremacist regimes, his works received a lot of attention (Fanon 56). In one of his famous statements, Fanon describes the manner in which Africans are racialized and forced to live. He insists that black people must put on a facade for them to get by in the white community. This is so as to allow them to have the right access to some of the elementary provisions of life. What Fanon implies in that statement is the manner in which race has deformed the manner in which people live, whether black or white. When the whites want to dominate the African continent, they have to rely on their skin colour to express their dominance and superiority. They are enslaved in their thinking that being white is the reason why they should be feared. The manner in which Africans are racialized is to show of the white superiority that Europeans might take as an advantage (Noble 54). Fanon describes this as a psychological phenomenon that has had traumatizing effects on the coloured people. The European culture portrays African culture in a poor light, and the fact that there are Africans being promoted to second class citizens in France does not help matters. In the first place, assimilated Africans usually start developing a negative attitude towards their own people, and their place of origin (Fanon 57). The process of colonization, to some Africans, presents a chance to some of them to become superior like the Europeans. That is why some of them choose to get assimilated, and become citizens of their colonial masters. The fact that they are doing this is a show of the feeling of inferiority they exhibit. Another problem presented by Fanon in his statement about whites and blacks being crazy is that colonization is made normal. Also, the attitude toward the European culture is made desirable. This makes the statement quite understandable because, people are made to consider the European way of life being better than what Africans are accustomed to in their land. This creates a problem to all those who are willing to fight against the colonial system. The system is hell-bent on retarding the efforts of the people who fight against oppression, and any assimilated Africans are aiding them in these attempts. What they fail to comprehend is the fact that, they might never be regarded as Europeans, even if they got assimilated and lived among their colonial masters (Ching-Liang 65). The colonization period had individuals and societies believe that there was no other way in which people could better their lives. It is difficult to eliminate the sense of being alienated. It is difficult to overcome this sense, especially if one gets reminded of it every day of their existence (Ching-Liang 89). Being second-class French citizens is something many individuals do not get to forget. Discrimination does not stop just because one gets approval to be part of a society. People do not change. This is what Fanon wanted to bring out in his fight against colonization. For all groups advocating for the assimilation of the African people, black skins, they would never get the opportunity to belong to something real. How one’s perception about their nature affects their everyday life, depends solely on their experiences through life. The colonization period affected many individuals. Fanon was part of making a difference among all the affected parties in many affected regions. The problem came as a result of the inferiority complex that was exhibited by the Africans, and the superiority complex by Europeans. All these have different driving forces for the individuals involved. The psychological process that takes over individuals during the colonial period, men and women, cannot be filtered through normal values and beliefs of a different group. This is what the colonization psychological phenomenon suggests (Fanon 60). Europeans often had a hard time fitting in so; they made Africans look like the inferior race. At least then, they would have something to compare themselves to that would make them superior. The European race would use negritude to define its top standing in the social order. Colonization is bound to turn any civilization into something different. The mode and the way of life may change depending on what the colonial masters decide. The most probable manner in which the colonies often change try to adapt to their colonial masters way of life. In the coloured person, there is the constant fight to alienate his/her thoughts away from their situation. The situation, being colonial oppression, offers coloured individuals a way out of their predicament and misfortunes. By protesting against anything that may not be right, people feel alienated (Fanon 60). In the fight against oppression and discrimination, Fanon brings out the fact that, after being humiliated, coloured people move to a state of despair. This then brings out the attitude they may harbour toward their own race, or the more dominant race. There is a conviction that arises in many of the coloured people in different fields of the world. During the time of colonial oppression, one might have had a difficult time trying to fit in with one group. Take, for example, the medical profession. If there was a student studying medicine, there is the presence of a conviction that they may not get the recognition as members of that field. This problem arises and promotes negative conviction for both races that are involved in putting the subject in that predicament. There is the belief that their true worth, as human beings, is not being realised (Fanon 60). This is regardless of the illiteracy or education level they might have attained. The perception Negroes generated did not favour the positions most of them were in at the time. They, at times, had to get in positions that would create the illusion of power over their oppressors (Fanon 61). During that period, colonial regimes would allow for individuals to have access to diverse fields. This is if they paid homage to their masters, and be loyal to them. This was the only way to go about getting around the system. However, this did not insinuate that individuals were particularly proud of what they were to do. All the moves that coloured individuals made would have been directed at the regimes present. However, not all were doing it to prove their superiority or inferiority. Some did this just to get by, and be accepted. The policies in place assisted them to do this. They, however, would not be considered true members of the superior European culture or race. Fanon’s statement brought out the true psychological nature of individuals tired of oppression. The oppression came in the form of individuals who thought their culture, race, and the way of life was better than another. They, however, failed to realise that without this other race, they could not define themselves (Fanon 61). It is an absolute fact that folks choose to ignore, but Fanon brought it out for everyone to see. The white superior culture needed the less superior, black race to sustain their European culture and the way of life. Resources and raw materials were taken from regions where the inferior races called home. Without them, what would define them and their race? It is something that Fanon wanted to bring out in many of his works about all that went on during the colonial period. In conclusion, individuals need to free themselves from the psychological prison they have built around their lives. Black people will not be considered an inferior race for the rest of their lives. This is regardless of where they are in the world. This is something they should start believing in whenever they decide to do something. In France, the situation should not be any different. Africans have a right to be considered French, and not second-class French people just because they are coloured. The behaviour of Negroes should not border on the psychoanalytical process that many may label black folks with; in whatever they do (Fanon 61). This may assist individuals reduce the discrimination and prejudice that is associated with coloured folks around the world. Works Cited Ching-Liang, L. Gail. White Skins/Black Masks: Representation and Colonialism. London: Sage Publishers, 1996. Print. Fanon, Frantz. Black Skin, White Masks. New York: Pluto Press, 1952. Print. Noble, J. Alfred. African Identity in Post-Apartheid Public Architecture: White Skin, Black Masks. Burlington: Ashgate Publishers, 2011. Print. Read More