Race as a Tool for Both Oppression and Liberation

Dear Janette Gordon Reed,
    In your book, The Hemingses of Monticello you discuss the how the so called “privileges” of the Hemings family shouldn’t be perceived as of greater privilege because acknowledging such in a positive manner implies that by living a lifestyle more so similar to that of their white masters than the slaves working in the fields, the Hemings were of greater happiness or freedom.   I found this idea to be interesting because it draws a parallel to Higginbotham's idea that race can be a tool for both oppression and liberation, two conflicting qualities.  On one hand, you argue that the Hemings family posed greater privilege and freedom than their blacker and therefore more oppressed fellow slaves, which could be considered the oppression aspect of race.  However, on the other, the Hemings family's greater proximity to the Jefferson family also meant that they lost some of the unified culture of the slaves of the time, due to the fact that they lacked the autonomy and independence that accompanied working in the fields.  In fact, you discussed that the slave's extra labor may have been a worthy sacrifice for its cultural benefits.  Given your thoughtful analysis I worry, many people hearing of the Hemings family situation would assume that they were better off than the other slaves at Monticello. However, with a bigger scope, it can just as easily be argued that this was not the case. This reiterates the idea that race must be viewed with a wide reaching lens and analyzed from multiple perspectives and viewpoints.  Anyways, thank you for the much-needed perspective.

 All my best,
Tatum Hall

Comments

  1. UnknownJuly 20, 2017 at 8:38 AM

    Dear Ms. Nina Simone,

    During an interview, I noticed you mentioned a "Lost Race" among Black Americans. In your music, you indicated that you try and push people to ask questions, ask where they are from. Specifically, you ask your listeners to ask about their origins, because through slavery, all African Americans have formed one single ancestry, thus blurring any previous lineages. Interestingly, I have noticed you are not the only one who has noticed this concern. Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham also touched on this topic: "In the crucible of the Middle Passage and American slavery, the multiple linguistic, tribal, and ethnic division among Africans came to be forged into a single, common ancestry." I think that even though you talented individuals are from different spectrums, you saw the same point, the same problem with identity among Black Americans. I love how you both question the same idea my class and I have discussing in class: yes, black nationalism created an identity, a community, but ultimately, not knowing where one came from in terms of country or culture can be isolating. I think your two points really add a specification to the umbrella term of "identity" and also points out the cloudiness African Americans may face when they question where exactly they came from since they had no choice but to be meshed into the "single, common ancestry." Thank you for using your music as a vessel for African American students to not only connect with, but be inspired to raise questions about their own origins.

    Thanks,
    Dilan

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