The Ethics of Living Jim Crow

The Ethics of Living Jim Crow opened my eyes to a whole new view of the racism against African Americans in the US. I had never heard of "Jim Crow" before and when I looked it up, I was surprised to find out that it was not a person but a set of unreasonable laws that separated the white and black people of America. It set up a system that classified the white Americans to be first class and the African Americans to be second. Some churches would even teach their followers that white people were the chosen ones, and African Americans were placed on this earth to be servants. After learning more about Jim Crow laws, it gave me a better appreciation of all the struggles Richard went through and how he handled them.

In school we learn so much about Civil Rights and all the terrible treatment African Americans endured over the years, but we never always get the straight facts from an African American who experienced it. Having this autobiographical sketch told in first person, I was able to see a different take on all the chaos and cruelty that occurred during the Jim Crow laws era. Though all the stories that Richard told were very extreme, one stood out in particular. The story where Richard got a flat tire on his bike and a white man offered him a ride. I was excited to read that a white man was finally reaching out and helping Richard, but of course it was too good to be true. The fact that white Americans cared so little about what happened to African Americans bothered me so much. I noticed how each little story shared the theme of being reserved and trying to blend in and never stand out. Richard pre-thought each move to make sure he wouldn't be intruding with the white Americans. He also made sure to know his limits when it came to approaching people or even riding his bike at night. He was always walking on egg shells and needed to be ready to react in the proper way even if it was the fairest.

Today, I think that the Jim Crow laws no longer exist, but there are still struggles that African Americans go through each day. Rather than physically being abused during the Jim Crow era, I think they are mentally abused today. For example, whether joking or not the n-word is still used today in high school even if it is in a joking way. Even though laws have been set, I still see a separation between the two races. Hopefully, this will continue to improve in the future, but I definitely think we need to keep progressing towards full equality.

" Talk of the Town"

September 11th, 2001 will always be a day to remember for the United States. No matter what age you were that day, you could feel a sense of sadness in the air. I was four and a half years old and can remember very little about that day. My mom has told me stories that she was getting my brother and I ready for pre-school when she heard on the TV something about planes crashing into the World Trade Center. She watched the TV with big eyes and tried to take in as much information as she could. A wave of sadness entered the room. As a little kid and not knowing much about America's position with other countries, I could only go off of my mother's initial reaction. Today, I would feel a little different about the tragedy that occurred on September 11th, 2001.


After reading these two articles, I feel that John Updike and Susan Sontag have very different takes on what 9/11 did to our country. Looking closer at the two articles, both agree that 9/11 changed America in many different ways. Digging deeper, Updike and Sontag have different opinions if those changes were good or bad, whether we deserved them or not. Furthermore, John Updike states "risk is a price of freedom...with its failings, this is a country worth fighting for". Updike sees the good in America. He believes we are doing things right by having such great amounts of freedom for all, and taking that risk is worth it because that freedom is the best reward. After 9/11, I feel Updike felt hurt. The country that gave its people so much and seemed to be doing everything right had been greatly damaged.  America did not deserve such a tragedy.

On the other hand, Susan Sontag jumped to the opposite side of the issue. She brought up facts about how we have bombed Iraq many times and she questioned how many Americans knew about all those bombings. The part of her argument that shocked me the most is she actually described the terrorists as "...those willing to die themselves in order to kill others...they were not cowards". She was basically supporting their actions and that America or the "world's self-proclaimed superpower" deserved to be knocked around a bit. Later on she also mentioned that our leaders were driving the public the wrong way. They were comforting people and saying that everything would be O.K. but really it wasn't. Due to the bombings, our country would have to enter another war which no one likes to hear. Also, she states "Let's by all means grieve together. But let's not be stupid together". Sontag shows some sympathy for her country here meaning yes, let's be sad about all the losses we had, but there comes a point when we need to snap out of things and find the best solutions so these issues never occur again. America needed this tragedy to wake up and solve some problems.

Personally, I would have to side with Sontag. I believe that Americans experienced a terrible tragedy, but we asked for it. We are always getting into other people's business and not caring about what they are feeling. For example, Sontag talked about the bombings in Iraq. Not many Americans knew about those and about all the innocent citizens who died those days as well. When we are hurt we make sure the whole world knows about it. Sontag also states "Our country is strong....But that's not all America has to be". I believe this statement perfectly describes our country. Yes, we are strong and work hard to help others and protect our citizens, but is there a point when we should rein in our egocentric superpower and let other countries run themselves. I definitely think so.