Will Black people ever reconcile their duality?

Question

WEB DuBois wrote about it over one hundred years ago. The "double conciousness" of Black people. 100 years later Black people are still schizophrenic; still living to in two worlds at once; still having to say things like "I act one way around white people and another way around black people."

I know this does not apply to all of us. But if you have two personalities one of them needs to go. Dont you think?

Answer 1

This is a great question.

Firstly, I think it's important to realize the difference between what you speak of and making changes for non-racial purposes, such as speaking in a manner that can be understood by those who don't know your language/sub-language, dressing and/or behaving in a particular manner to appeal to people in a "buisness environment" or for the sake of business, and so on...
These are things which are completely understandable.

Now to address the actual question-

What you speak of actually has two "faces" so to speak. There are black people who alter their behavior when around white people as a result of fear and/or wanting to be accepted, and there are black people who alter their behavior when around other black people for the same reason(s). Many whites stereotype blacks as being ignorant, criminals (or future criminals), etc... if they don't adopt the "positive culture of the white man". And many blacks stereotype other blacks who don't conform to their definition of "blackness". I think the problem is deeply rooted in history. Have you ever read the speech that Willie Lynch gave on the bank of the James River in 1712? His purpose was to guarantee the enslavement of blacks by using division, and that is what his speech was about.

I'm sure you will understand exactly what I'm saying after reading the following quote from Willie Lynch's speech:

"My method is simple. Any member of your family or your overseer can use it. I HAVE OUTLINED A NUMBER OF DIFFERENCES AMONG THE SLAVES; AND I TAKE THESE DIFFERENCES AND MAKE THEM BIGGER. I USE FEAR, DISTRUST AND ENVY FOR CONTROL PURPOSES. These methods have worked on my modest plantation in the West Indies and it will work throughout the South. Take this simple little list of differences and think about them. On top of my list is "AGE" but it's there only because it starts with an "A." The second is "COLOR" or shade, there is INTELLIGENCE, SIZE, SEX, SIZES OF PLANTATIONS, STATUS on plantations, ATTITUDE of owners, whether the slaves live in the valley, on a hill, East, West, North, South, have fine hair, course hair, or is tall or short. Now that you have a list of differences, I shall give you a outline of action, but before that, I shall assure you that DISTRUST IS STRONGER THAN TRUST AND ENVY STRONGER THAN ADULATION, RESPECT OR ADMIRATION. The Black slaves after receiving this indoctrination shall carry on and will become self refueling and self generating for HUNDREDS of years, maybe THOUSANDS. Don't forget you must pitch the OLD black Male vs. the YOUNG black Male, and the YOUNG black Male against the OLD black male. You must use the DARK skin slaves vs. the LIGHT skin slaves, and the LIGHT skin slaves vs. the DARK skin slaves. You must use the FEMALE vs. the MALE. And the MALE vs. the FEMALE. You must also have you white servants and over- seers distrust all Blacks. But it is NECESSARY THAT YOUR SLAVES TRUST AND DEPEND ON US. THEY MUST LOVE, RESPECT AND TRUST ONLY US. Gentlemen, these kits are your keys to control. Use them. Have your wives and children use them, never miss an opportunity. IF USED INTENSELY FOR ONE YEAR, THE SLAVES THEMSELVES WILL REMAIN PERPETUALLY DISTRUSTFUL. Thank you gentlemen."

Answer 2

To the degree that black consciousness becomes a legitimate vocal presence in contemporary society, the more able black people will be able to overcome this dualistic opposition. There has been considerable progress in this direction and I think W.E.B. DuBois would be pleased by the current state of affairs in black consciousness in terms of wealth-building and political advocacy. However, I believe DuBois would encourage young black people to learn their history and to face the struggle against oppression within their own personal history and social pattern dynamics.

Answer 3

I don't think black people will ever reconcile their duality. It goes hand and hand with what else DuBois said---The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line.
The problem persists into the 21st century. Until this is reconciled, black people will have this double conciousness and "the veil" to contend with.

Answer 4

Yeah, I was like 8 and my brother and are friend lived by a forest and there was a dtch that you could swing across with this metal swing by holding onto it. Well it had just finished raining and I held on but I slipped and fell down 7 feet into some mud, I blacked out for about 1 minute

Answer 5

I think, somewhat, it's necessary, and almost instinctive, to act differently in different situations...I don't mean having different behaviors when one is amongst black people and white people....When speaking to people in positions of authority or high respect (parents, teachers, pastors, boss, supervisor, etc) most people don't speak the same way towards these people as they would when they're amongst their friends/peers...

Some people act one way around whites and one way around blacks....other people act one way around elders and another way around peers....We all have a sense of "double conciousness" to an extent....There are many occasions in which it is better to communicate with people on their level, or in a way that makes them feel comfortable, or vice versa... it's not always a negative thing...

Answer 6

In the long run? absolutely. Not now.

Bonny, you're addressing a segment within the Black community. Your concerns sound like those of Whites. Why do these kids go against the traditional stand? White kids do it too. Getting a good education itself is like pushing a mountain.

Answer 7

That is true. if a black person approached me with some mess, i would snap out and probably try to fight but if a white person did the same thing, my reaction would be totally different. i cant explain why, but it just would be different. we tend to act ignorant around our own and more laid back around whites. but i am the kind of person who hardly uses slang and dress and act like blacks and my own people are the ones who holler "oreo" in my face because i dont act like them. why is that?

Answer 8

Unfortunately, it's hard to do so. If you "act black" around whites, they will make negative assumptions about you. If you "act white" around blacks, many will not accept you as black enough. We've seen this with Barack Obama.

I think the first thing blacks need to do is to stop correlating proper diction and education with trying to "act white" and whites need to stop viewing differences in the ways blacks dress, talk (i'm not talking about improper diction - but just the style/tone of how we speak), and act around eachother as negative traits. We need to be allowed to be ourselves, whether that's eating fried chicken or watermelon, or bouncing to hip hop or laughing at Chris Rock.

It is possible for blacks to be educated and intelligent, all while wearing FUBU, Sean John and driving on 22' rims and wearing grills.

That's what we need to realize. All of us.

Answer 9

I don't think it's as much a 'black' issue as an across-the-board-cultural issue. People of ALL cultures, races, backgrounds tend to act differently when surrounded by their own...hispanics, latinos, europeans, etc.

Answer 10

no...i think black people express their duality differently these days

and the younger set doesn' t even understand what it means to act differently..they just behave badly all the time

I think we are just thrust into a world without our languages, cultures, etc (I mean that which came from Africa, purely, without American influence) and it makes us "schizo" like you said

Have a good one bruh