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Cause And Effect Of Racism In The 19th Century

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Words 1107
Pages 5
Jestine Whitaker
Final Cause/Effect Essay
ENC 1101-58495
19 September 2014
The Effects of Racism
Racism as of today does not affect most like it did in the 19th century. For example, Richard Wright is an author and was a slave, therefore he has lived the horrors of racism. This monstrosity cost many people their lives. Racism is a controlling violence of words and over all power of one. Today, it is illegal to practice racism anywhere around the world. Racism has many effects on a person but believe it or not the actions of one’s control, one’s educational levels, as well as how a person is to see another person is the most significant. Back in the early 1900s the white men of the South wanted to control the black men, women, and children; …show more content…
It had the effect for a person to not see the full potential in another person. Racism made the whites think they were always going to be better than the blacks. The white people never thought that blacks could amount to be anything greater than slaves. The white people back in the earlier years had the most hatred, cruelty, and were heartless. In the story “The Library Card”, the white man Mr. Falk, gave Richard Wright his library card only asking him that at the end of his readings to give him the outcome. Richard could never truly tell Mr. Falk, because Richard saw how the white man viewed, seen and thought of the blacks. Richard states “I did not discuss my readings with Mr. Falk, who had lent me his library card; it would have meant talking about myself and that would have been too painful.”(Wright, Richard 325) This forced Richard to keep his knowledge to himself. He had changed and he could not allow anyone to know or see his change, or they would abuse him with words or even violence. Richards’s landlady asked him, “Son, what is this you keep on reading?”(Wright, Richard 325) Then she states that she, “hopes he knows his own mind”, in a tone implying that she doubted if he even had a mind. (Wright, Richard 325) This led Richard to think if any other black person thought or even read the books he has read. It makes you wonder when people will view others with no racism, because everyone is equal but with a different life

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