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Post by Ms. English on May 31, 2022 7:10:46 GMT -5
Post your answers to the discussion question here. Make sure to read the responses of those posted before you and respond directly to them when appropriate before posting your own.
Looking further: What might Audre Lorde have to say about this childhood experience if she were still alive today? How might the election of Barack Obama as president have changed the way she looked back on this visit to Washington, D.C.? Imagine her possible reactions, and not just in a "things sure have changed" kind of way; try to consider ways in which her reactions might be mixed and even contradictory.
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Post by nateyat on Jul 4, 2022 10:02:35 GMT -5
This question is asked a lot. As African Americans leap over new mountains and do things that were never thought possible after being chained and then continuously oppressed, the question arises; "what would people from the past think of these accomplishments like a black president?". African Americans can sit in the same train cars as others, stay at the same hotels, and eat ice cream at the same dinners. African Americans are supposed to be left in astonishment about the bare minimum. It also allows Americans to negligent the progress that still needs to be made and be satisfied with the bare minimum of equality. I do think that Audre would be impressed by our first black president. It would give her a sense of belonging. However, after that emotion subsided she would question why there was not more. Our first minority president was not until 2009 and we have not had any others since. That is sad. Not to mention the fact that America has not had any other minority as president. Segregation is simply not democratic and should have never happened in the first place but yet there is an attitude in America that African Americans should be "grateful" when their people have equal opportunity to be put in leadership positions. Every time an African American makes a huge goal like the presidency it makes undocumented history and inspires a rush in the community of doing things that seemed impossible. It is unsettling that emotions like that were still occurring in 2009. Audre would be thrilled and would have a more fun trip but looking around and seeing all white and having the weight of oppression would still occur. She would still be exiting childhood into a world that does not fully accept her. That would not change because one black man fought to be in a position where he should have had equal opportunity in the first place to achieve. It would just show her all the work that is still left to be done and all the history that people of color are still left to make.
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Post by gabriellebuchanan on Jul 20, 2022 15:30:16 GMT -5
When Lorde visited Washington D.C. she experienced secretion, racism, and injustice. leading up to Barack Obama all the leading men were "White" and all she knew was " White". From what Audre Lorde had to experience first hand as a young girl in Washington, D.C. I think she would be proud to see someone of the same skin color as her reaching for the stars and leading this country. Not just Barack Obama but many African Americans today in society like Kamilla Harris Being the first colored women to be the vice president and many more. Just having the freedom to eat wherever, work wherever, and overall to not be treated so differently. Lorde would never have to question why she cant eat somewhere or have the fear of not being accepted places. Although history has progressed over time there's still racisms today. overall I believe she would be proud of how far we have overcame.
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Post by Aliah.W on Jul 24, 2022 15:02:16 GMT -5
I feel Audre Lorde would be proud of her descendants’ progress and bravery throughout the years, but would still expect more from them. I don’t think she would let us settle for where we stand today as a nation. I feel she would want us to keep fighting for equality until everyone is able to accept each other for who they are, and not judge them for what they look like on the outside. If Audre Lorde witnessed the election of Barack Obama, she would be overjoyed and feel she made a difference in the world; especially given the fact that she wrote a letter to the president the summer she went to Washington D.C. However, I don’t feel she would be satisfied by the way people are still treated today in America. African Americans are still mistreated in this country, especially by police officers. As you said nateyat, African Americans should not “be grateful” for getting the same opportunities any Caucasian person would receive with no struggle. So the question is, would Audre Lorde be content with the growth America has made and her role in it? Maybe, most likely yes. However, would she be satisfied with America and feel that it has reached its fullest potential? It’s our turn to make a difference in the world, and stand up for what we believe in as Audre Lorde did. Only then will we be a truly United Country.
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Post by Kate S on Jul 27, 2022 12:43:30 GMT -5
Audre Lorde would have a lot to say about her childhood experience if she was still alive today. I think that she would feel that there is definitely not enough reform taking place. While it’s great that by law anyone of any race, culture, or ethnicity are allowed into public places, it's ridiculous how slow it is taking to form a diverse and intelligent government to protect, represent, and organize its diverse population. I think that she would feel proud that she is a part of this movement, that she contributed to getting President Barack Obama into office with her story. Going back to Washington D.C. I think that there would be some feelings acknowledging how far America has come but I don’t think it would be feelings of contentment. There is still so far to go. I’m sure she hopes for an America where there is not just equality for all Americans but also equity and acceptance. There has been so much damage done with the oppression of Black Americans which can be seen, for example, by the economic gap between American citizens of different races or with issues of police brutality. Audre Lorde would urge Americans to keep fighting as we’re no where close to fully accepting and celebrating our diversity.
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Question 5
Jul 27, 2022 18:07:24 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by chanks on Jul 27, 2022 18:07:24 GMT -5
I agree with nateyat. It’s crazy that the thought of progress for African Americans has yet to prosper. Most of this progress does come from the bare minimum being in place and even with that there are still major issues within society. I agree when you said that Audre would be impressed by our first Black President, almost everyone in the community was ! For years, the black community has grown without role models and figures to look up to whether that was seeing themselves on television to the toys that they played with. Seeing someone that resonates with you and your family especially with all the history and what's going on now it’s refreshing. A fresh breath of air. You talked about the barrier that she should recognize with him becoming president and that’s important to know how not only Obama but other figures got to where they were. That’s why even the smallest accomplishments are praised and valued because anything that has been done was not expected back then. Then it’s also sad that those small things have to be celebrated because they are such small things and should’ve been almost like the bare minimum.
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Post by Cameron M on Aug 14, 2022 14:13:36 GMT -5
If Audre Lorde was still alive today I feel as though who she was telling the story to would change the tone. I feel as though if it were children in elementary school she would have told it in the same tone as a way to help the kids learn what she delt with in Washington with racism and segregation. Although if it were kids in highschool I feel like she would be more straight forward with it because after the trip she learned really what happened on that trip after he parents would try to cover up what was really going on and would really like to share an experience that stayed with her forever, also this group of kids are older and are more aware of this issue. I think the election of Obama might have changed her outlook after the trip, seeing someone that was not white would be nice to see as President because as a child and being an adult it has all been white men.
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Post by Ellen T on Aug 18, 2022 15:49:08 GMT -5
This question is asked a lot. As African Americans leap over new mountains and do things that were never thought possible after being chained and then continuously oppressed, the question arises; "what would people from the past think of these accomplishments like a black president?". African Americans can sit in the same train cars as others, stay at the same hotels, and eat ice cream at the same dinners. African Americans are supposed to be left in astonishment about the bare minimum. It also allows Americans to negligent the progress that still needs to be made and be satisfied with the bare minimum of equality. I do think that Audre would be impressed by our first black president. It would give her a sense of belonging. However, after that emotion subsided she would question why there was not more. Our first minority president was not until 2009 and we have not had any others since. That is sad. Not to mention the fact that America has not had any other minority as president. Segregation is simply not democratic and should have never happened in the first place but yet there is an attitude in America that African Americans should be "grateful" when their people have equal opportunity to be put in leadership positions. Every time an African American makes a huge goal like the presidency it makes undocumented history and inspires a rush in the community of doing things that seemed impossible. It is unsettling that emotions like that were still occurring in 2009. Audre would be thrilled and would have a more fun trip but looking around and seeing all white and having the weight of oppression would still occur. She would still be exiting childhood into a world that does not fully accept her. That would not change because one black man fought to be in a position where he should have had equal opportunity in the first place to achieve. It would just show her all the work that is still left to be done and all the history that people of color are still left to make. I really agree with what Nateya is saying here. I too believe Lorde would have been happy to see the first African American president and the progress both Washington DC and the rest of the country has made to shut down discrimination and racism. But, she also would have whole heartedly thought that further steps must be taken to continue to combat discrimination. Not only was Lorde Black but she was female and a member of the LGBTQ+ community. We have not yet seen a female president or a president that is a member of the LGBTQ+ community. We have also only seen one Black president in 2009 though 2016 and none after. There is also still discrimination on the Hill, representatives like AOC have faced hatred and abuse from fellow members of congress. Lorde would have seen the progress made by the US, something she helped with, and would be entirely grateful that steps are being taken to end racism and discrimination, but she also would of course fight for more rights, more action for females, members of the LGBTQ+ community and for people of color. All three groups, wether in the form of abortion bans, congress members calling for the abolishment of same sex marriage, or outright discrimination from all or the painful discrimination brought down by law enforcement against people of color, still face many problems in this country and Lorde would work as hard as possible to end this in the US.
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Post by BraedenDavis on Aug 18, 2022 21:11:34 GMT -5
I believe that if Audre Lorde were still alive today, she may be somewhat pleased that there is at least some progress being made today, but overall I believe that she would be disappointed and upset. While we are making strides to create a more equal environment for all people, we are not doing as well of a job as we should be. Although black people have the same amount of rights as everyone else, there are still major counts of oppression in this world that are not only not being stopped, but are literally being created. For example, there is still voter suppression; even though this is not new, there are new laws being passed in many states that promote voter suppression, and black people are a main target of this. I do believe that Lorde would have been pleased to see a black president, but she would be angry that more change wasn't enacted during or after the fact. She would be angry that not only black people, but all races are still being "othered". She would be angry that through all of this movement to progress forward and to fight for civil rights, that she would still have to live life on edge, waiting to see if she would get the short end of the stick just because she is black. Just because there isn't as much larger scale racism and oppression taking place in today's America, doesn't mean that it doesn't still happen on smaller scales.
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Post by ellastangl on Aug 19, 2022 13:27:50 GMT -5
If Audre Lorde were still alive, she would probably have mixed reactions about how things are today. I think she would be inspired and proud that a black president was in office. I also think it would change her views on Washington D.C. because she felt very unwelcome and out of place when she visited. Now, she might feel significantly more comfortable if she were to visit Washington D.C. again. She would see the progressiveness that has been achieved but also be surprised and unhappy that it has only gone so far; she would see that racism is still a major issue today. Lorde would be saddened by recent incidents like George Floyd that led to the start of the Black Lives Matter movement, and upset that the Black Lives Matter movement was even necessary in the first place. Although she would be happy that things have gotten better, I can not say she wouldn't be disappointed in the levels of racism and oppression still present today.
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Post by babydollbouncyballs on Aug 23, 2022 21:31:48 GMT -5
This question is asked a lot. As African Americans leap over new mountains and do things that were never thought possible after being chained and then continuously oppressed, the question arises; "what would people from the past think of these accomplishments like a black president?". African Americans can sit in the same train cars as others, stay at the same hotels, and eat ice cream at the same dinners. African Americans are supposed to be left in astonishment about the bare minimum. It also allows Americans to negligent the progress that still needs to be made and be satisfied with the bare minimum of equality. I do think that Audre would be impressed by our first black president. It would give her a sense of belonging. However, after that emotion subsided she would question why there was not more. Our first minority president was not until 2009 and we have not had any others since. That is sad. Not to mention the fact that America has not had any other minority as president. Segregation is simply not democratic and should have never happened in the first place but yet there is an attitude in America that African Americans should be "grateful" when their people have equal opportunity to be put in leadership positions. Every time an African American makes a huge goal like the presidency it makes undocumented history and inspires a rush in the community of doing things that seemed impossible. It is unsettling that emotions like that were still occurring in 2009. Audre would be thrilled and would have a more fun trip but looking around and seeing all white and having the weight of oppression would still occur. She would still be exiting childhood into a world that does not fully accept her. That would not change because one black man fought to be in a position where he should have had equal opportunity in the first place to achieve. It would just show her all the work that is still left to be done and all the history that people of color are still left to make. I agree with what Nateya said here. I do believe that Lorde would be proud to see both the first African American president in office and the progress that has been made to get there. However in the same regard I think she would still be somewhat disappointed in the progress made. As Nateya said our first minority president wasn’t in office until 2009 which was only a mere 12 years ago. With that being said we also have not had one since. The US population has not ever been properly represented in all 46 of our presidents throughout the entirety of our nation's existence; for Lorde her presidents were all white men. That only changed in 2009 for a brief moment; it does not account for other minority groups like Latinos, Native Americans, Asians, etc. Not only was Lorde black but she was also a woman and a member of the LGBTQ community which we hardly see represented in politics anyways and when we do they are discriminated against and face hatred and abuse from other politicians. So while I think Lorde would be proud to see a black president in office I still firmly believe she would be disappointed with the fact that we have only achieved the bare minimum in all that time.
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Post by rubyberg on Aug 27, 2022 11:38:03 GMT -5
Lorde writes about how Washington DC just resembles white to her. At the end of her essay, she uses the word "white" multiple times while explaining how she felt about DC after the encounter at the ice cream parlor. I believe if she was alive today, she would be joyful of the progress today, yet still wary of how African Americans are subject to racism daily. The literal and figurative sense of Lorde explaining how white DC is, could have changed once Obama became president.
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kyox
New Member
Posts: 11
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Post by kyox on Aug 28, 2022 1:37:31 GMT -5
If Audre Lorde were still alive, she would probably have mixed reactions about how things are today. I think she would be inspired and proud that a black president was in office. I also think it would change her views on Washington D.C. because she felt very unwelcome and out of place when she visited. Now, she might feel significantly more comfortable if she were to visit Washington D.C. again. She would see the progressiveness that has been achieved but also be surprised and unhappy that it has only gone so far; she would see that racism is still a major issue today. Lorde would be saddened by recent incidents like George Floyd that led to the start of the Black Lives Matter movement, and upset that the Black Lives Matter movement was even necessary in the first place. Although she would be happy that things have gotten better, I can not say she wouldn't be disappointed in the levels of racism and oppression still present today. I agree, i see her being disappointed in the fact we haven't gotten as far as we would hope. Things are still pretty bad at the moment and she would be upset to see that some people haven't and just won't change their views and opinions about colored people. I do think she would be proud to see a black president come into office though along with watching all the progress he and all supporters have helped make.
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sidd
New Member
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Post by sidd on Sept 2, 2022 21:43:48 GMT -5
Lorde would have felt very proud and disappointed in America today based on the portrayal of herself in the “Fourth of July'', seeing, as if she had witnessed Obama being President she would have been surprised that he had won his election on a national level, seeing as she would have witnessed people such as Chisolm and Revels being elected into governmental positions within her lifetime, but disappointed if she had seen his term and some of the discussions surrounding who he was and why he had won. Also, in a review of her trip to Washington D. C as a child, I feel she would have been relieved to know that black people no longer live in as much fear, or at least not to the same degree that she had faced as a child. However, she would be fully aware of the amount of reform and progress that still needs to go into the negative black experiences.
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Post by Talia Robertson on Sept 8, 2022 11:35:00 GMT -5
As an African American, I've been asked plenty of times if I'm happy with the progress that our country has made with the treatment of not just African Americans, but minorities as well. And, to that I would say I'm very grateful that our country has made progress but there is still lots more that needs to be made. If Audre Lorde were still alive today she would be very proud to see that someone like her was elected as the President of the United States. She would have a more positive experience visiting DC not only because of that but also because segregation has ended and she could freely eat ice cream in whatever ice cream parlor she wanted to. When walking around DC she wouldn't be constantly reminded of the oppression she has faced. But, I do feel like that excitement would wear off after a while, because she isn't going to be happy with the bare minimum. Yes we had a black president, but only one. Yes, we're no longer segregated, but that's the bare minimum of a human right. African Americans are still mistreated in this country because of the color of their skin. African Americans are still constant victims of police brutality, are still passed over for many jobs because of the color of their skin, and so much more. We are still somewhat seen as second class citizens in this country by many. So, she would feel some excitement about how far we've come, but her feelings about how the Fourth of July doesn't mean anything to her because it doesn't truly represent freedom for African Americans, would still remain the same in my opinion. Because, there is still so much more that can be done, it's not enough.
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