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"Barrack Obama; America's First Black President"

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"Barrack Obama; America's First Black President"

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As we all know, Barrack Obama was our first president of color, which was a huge mile stone for America. The article explains that not only was he elected, but he did and exceptionable job in the position. This gave the United States a great amount of trust to his race, and showed us that we truly are equal at the end of the day. The fact that he did a good job gives no reason to discriminators to complain. This event in history empowered and inspired the black race. Also, this event changed the American identity, forever. In the novel, "Their Eyes were Watching God,", Jody was indeed the mayor of the town, but that compared to being  the president of the United States is just a stepping stone. In conclusion, the power and privileges of other races have been enlarged significantly.

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Amazing Grace - The Obama Years: An Oral History | HISTORY

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As the first African American President, Obama was determined not to make race his legacy. However, the issue remained at the center of the policies closest to his heart.

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"1947: Jackie Robinson: sixty-five years ago, an African-American took the field in a Major League Baseball game"

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"1947: Jackie Robinson: sixty-five years ago, an African-American took the field in a Major League Baseball game"

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In this article, the author describes what it was like for Jackie Robinson to be the one to break the color barrier, in baseball specifically. It talked about him handling the abuses of discriminators in a graceful manner, and how this dramatically helped pave the way to the Civil Rights Movement.Yes, he indeed was hurt and discouraged by false and negative acts made by spectators, but Robinson didn't let it phase him or his career path. In the novel, "Their Eyes Were watching God,", Janie had a very similar mindset. Throughout her  relationship with Janie, she was trained to not speak out on the things she believed in, join in on any activities that interested her, and more. However, she also learned from this treatment. Along the way, she began to act out on these activities and she began to slowly become herself. Especially, after Jody had died, she took a turn that nobody had expect and ran off with Tea Cake; a new man who nobody knew much about. She did not care nor worry about what her peers had thought of her, and she didn't allow it to affect her path in life. After putting up with all of the nonsense, she was happy with her decisions, just like Jackie Robinson. Today, we will always have spectators no matter what. But, of course, we as a country have gotten much better with this issue since the publication of this novel.

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This very popular song contains lyrics that center around women's achievements everywhere. When she sings "She's just a girl she's on fire,", it's perceived as saying that women are calming yet demanding individuals, like fire. The song continues to empower women all of the globe, stating "She's living in a world and it's on fire, feeling the catastrophe, but she knows she can fly away,". This relates to the novel, "Their Eyes were Watching God," because Janie was indeed in a world on fire, with damaging and soul-wrenching circumstances everywhere around her. And like the song had said, she knew she could fly away, and she did. Her and Tea Cake ran off to the everglades, and they recognized themselves as equals.  Today, women still suffer from mistreatment and discrimination, but not as nearly as bad as what Janie had been going through. For example, Janie wasn't allowed to attend the festival in her own town due to the rules of her husband, Jody.

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Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (Official Video)

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Their website- "Our Mission".
This organization has a mission of addressing all around the wold the idea of women's discrimination and unfair treatment. Their goal is to put an end to issues such as sex trafficking, sexual violence, etc. They do this by accepting donations and attract followers whom have the same beliefs and concerns. Today, organizations are accepted and appreciated in today's society. Although, if we rewind a few hundred years, its simple to see that this same existence would not be equally as wanted. Women back then I'm sure wanted the same rights and privileges as men, but nobody was exactly willing to stand up for that. In the novel, "Their Eyes were Watching God", however, Janie eventually acted upon her not-so-popular opinion and ran off with Tea Cake. She, as a women, was expected to mourn over the loss of her abusive and controlling husband, but she didn't care. When she came strolling back into town when everything was said and done, she was discriminated for letting her hair down and not being all dressed up like she was expected to be.

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In this poem by Maya Angelou, lives a colored woman. She repeats the same type of question that is based on the fact that "they", as in the discriminators, don't like to see her doing well, and being happy. The women describes herself in all positive words, and shows her confidence and happiness off through her writing in the face of the hatred. This connects to "Their Eyes were Watching God", when Janie is seen by the rest of the town that she is so unbelievably happy with Tea Cake. The townsmen label her and assume things, but really I believe that they were just jealous that Janie could experience such love. When she comes sauntering back into town after Tea Cake has died, she had let loose, let go of all of her worries, and didn't bother to talk to anyone.

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But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully,
Come, you may stand upon my
Back and face your distant destiny,
But seek no haven in my shadow.
I will give you no hiding place down here.

You, created only a little lower than
The angels, have crouched too long in
The bruising darkness
Have lain too long
Face down in ignorance.
Your mouths spilling words

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But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully, Come, you may stand upon my Back and face your distant destiny, But seek no haven in my shadow. I will give you no hiding place down here.

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The poem, written by Maya Angelou, contrasted the lives of the free and the discriminated. A free bird is said to leap, fly, and feel the sun on its wings. A caged bird, however, is said to be tied down, "standing on the grave of its dreams,", and singing a song of freedom that is heard by the distant hill. The deeper meaning behind this poem is the fact that the free, unstereotyped people have been opened to the world their whole lives, and will never understand what it is to be discriminated, labeled, or "caged".  They are opened up to opportunities of success immediately. The people who are such things, will never get the chance to live up to their full potential. They can scream, cry, or "sing" for freedom with their fearful voices, but they will never be at the same advantage. Like a bird with clipped wings at a young age, discriminated, black people are placed on a lower scale at a very young age for not particular reason. In the novel, "Their Eyes were Watching God,", Janie's grandmother immediately clipped her wings, temporarily, at a young age of 16. She forced her to marry a  man by the name of Logan Killicks because he seemed to be a successful man, which was just the start to Janie's downwards spiral of racial and gender bias experiences. Today, forced marriage isn't as popular, but,  black people are set back in society rather than the average American white male.

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Maya Angelou, "Caged Bird" from Shaker, Why Don't You Sing? Copyright © 1983 by Maya Angelou. Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.

Source: The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou (Random House Inc., 1994)

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Caged Bird by Maya Angelou | Poetry Foundation

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This short story emphasizes the fact that women are held to expectations much different than men. For example, since we are women, we must not chew with our mouths open, we are not supposed to squat down, we shouldn't ever wear clothing that is too small or too raggedy. This is all because we are women. Now for men, they have never been held accountable of these limitations. They've never had the taste of restriction. Its just that easy for them to think "that's just how it is". These adopted mannerisms from times long ago usually go unnoticed, until a women disobeys them. Just like Janie, in "Their Eyes were Watching God,", We are expected to act in such a way. In the beginning of the novel when Janie strolls back into town, the people gasp and shame upon her because of her overalls and her hair that was being let down. Even the other women judged her. Today, this issue isn't as sever, but we are still expected to act "lady like" and act with similar gestures and manners.

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"Why I, as a black man, attend KKK rallies."

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"Why I, as a black man, attend KKK rallies."

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Daryl Davis, a black man, has gotten to know the KKK leader, Roger Kelly. They started off talking very consciously, and Kelly even brought his armed bodyguard to their meetings. However, as time passed and they had gotten to know each other more, they both realized their own views and respected them. The two men started to have dinner together, and Kelly stopped bringing his bodyguard. In a CNN interview, Kelly claimed that he respected Davis more than most of the white men in the crowd. This TED talk reveals the thought of communication. We all know that bias racism still is alive today, but thankfully, Darryl Davis went right to the source itself and found some answers. When you talk and communicate with different people that you do or don't agree with, you learn from them. Like in the novel, "Their Eyes are Watching God,", Janie learns from Tea Cake, a younger man that she wouldn't have never thought she would learn from. Since she was sheltered from learning and affection while married to Jody, learning even a simple game of chess by Tea Cake was a huge mile stone for her. Today, women now have different rights and privileges than back then; we are now basically at the same level as men, which means we can learn and be successful on our own.

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Why I, as a black man, attend KKK rallies. | Daryl Davis | TEDxNaperville

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Novelist, Chimamanda Adichie, speaks out on the idea of the power of a single story, after discovering her cultural voice throughout her journey. While sharing her very own personal experiences and misinterpretations, she conveys the fact that a single story can set a traditional view on the topic and stereotype the people involved; especially when the storyteller is  at a higher power than the listeners. For example, in the 1500's, a Western writer traveled to Africa and set the standard view on the continent and the way people talk about it today. When he explored, he only saw one small portion of Africa, the part where poverty has stricken it. Upon his return, he described the natives as "beasts" that have no home. Since then, the image has not changed much within our minds. Also, when Adichi was younger, she viewed literature as a home of the white, blue eyed characters. However, when African writes, such as Zora Neale Hurston, began to publish novels, she realized that people like her, could also be a part of literature. In hurston's novel, there was one of the first black protagonists, Janie. This is direct proof of how much a single story can alter our culture, forever.  Looking into these examples more, it is safe to assume that the power of a single story has a massive effect on how we treat and think about certain subjects.  This source ties back to the thought of racial bias, and how colored humans are automatically labeled as the "unpredictable" race. Unfortunately, these stereotypes still live today in our society due to the countries history of assumptions and situations.

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Please [contact us](https://www.ted.com/contact) and let us know what happened.

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White privilege is defined as an advantage to the white race, and this article provides multiple examples of how America portrays this trait, consciously or unconsciously. For example, the flesh colored band-aids or law enforcement biases.People have claimed that white people have been born with an automatic advantage, despite the ones that truly work for their spots in society. It is also claimed that this trait affects the lives of colored citizens socially, economically, and physically. White privilege is known to go unnoticed, however, when it is, it makes people very uncomfortable when it is pointed out. Of course, not all white people agree with this trait nor believe in it, but, it still creeps around and sneaks up behind us when it is realized. In the article, the author claims that a colored person is to be quickly prosecuted and judged, where a white individual is given more time to speak up for themselves and share their side of the story. In the novel, "Their Eyes were Watching God,", Janie was placed in jury of all white men, and she didn't get to speak until the very end of the trial; during the process, she had to sit there and listen to the men shame upon her. Today, white privilege may still exist, although, it is not this sever. Due to laws, acts, and amendments placed in the constitution, people of all colors have many of the same opportunities, if not the same. Unfortunately, biases and favors are still embedded in our culture, due to the history of our country. America has significantly moved forward on this topic, and I believe that it will continue to.

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