Gregory Howard Williams Life on the Color Line Essay -- Williams Life

Gregory Howard Williams Life on the Color Line Life on the Color Line is a powerful tale of a young mans struggle to reach adulthood, written by Gregory Howard Williams - mavin that emphasizes, by daily grapples with ad hominem turmoil, the absurdity of race as a societal invention. Williams describes in heart wrenching detail the privations he and his brother endured when they were forced to remove themselves from a vitality of White privilege in Virginia to one where survival in Muncie, Indiana meant learning quickly the cold hard facts of being Black in peel that appeared to be White. This powerful memoir is a testament to the potential love and determination that can be exhibited despite being on the cusp of a nations racial conflicts and confusions, one that lifts a young person above crushing social limitations and turns oppression into opportunity. Williams is defiantly a man of two worlds. In one world he had promise and comfort, in the other he lived in deprivation and repression where one had to work in run to just survive. Williamss recollection of his ? life on the color line? is a unique testimonial of the life of an individual who has walked in both the shoes of a White man and hence those of a Black man. His story provides examples of real life experiences and events that can further the research of social psychologists by offering insight into the understanding of many social psychological theories and concepts, such as modern racialism, in-group favoritism and confirmation bias just to name a few.From beginning to end the reader is bombarded with all kinds of racism and discrimination described in horrific detail by the author. His move from Virginia to Indiana opened a door to endless threats of violence and ridicule order towards him because of his racial background. For example, Williams encountered a form of racism known as modern racism as a student at Garfield Elementary School. He was up to win an academic achievement prize, yet had no management of actually winning the award because ?The prize did not go to Negroes. Just like in Louisville, there were things and places for whites only? (Williams, 126). This form of prejudice is known as modern racism because the prejudice surfaces in a subtle, safe and socially acceptable way that is easy to rationalize. Another form of racism experienced by the author is blatant racism whi... ...Williams had been White.Ingroup favoritism is the tendency to discriminate in reinforcing stimulus of an ingroup over members of the outgroup. The author experienced ingroup favoritism when the coach of his basketball team decided to drop Williams from the varsity team in order to replace him with a white, B-team player who was not as well developed a basketball player as Williams. Many of the stereotypes we encounter and hold straight off were formed because of events in the past, which were formed to rationalize and justify past social and political agendas. Many of the ster eotypes that we now hold today were learned long agone and have been passed from one generation to the next. This book has forever inspired me to believe in the value of each child and discourage racist attitudes wherever I encounter them. Gregory Howard Williams encountered many hurdles growing up and successfully defeated them all. He could have easily confirmed the expectations of his negative peers and developed into a self-fulfilling prophecy, further instead he chose to shun his stereotypes and triumph over incredible odds. Works CitedWilliams, Gregory Howard. Life on the Color Line. New York Plume Book, 1995.