Black Like Me & The Fire Next Time Paper

Once, race and religion were two traditional structural components of society from the past, but today the two act as social dividers. The disconnection of people of varying beliefs and races as well as the misunderstanding of each other in societies are issues well interpreted in the novels, Black Like Me, by John Howard Griffin and The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin. Both authors would agree that something must be done to bridge the gap in racially segregated society. From a personal perspective, as long as there are people who think they are socially and spiritually different from others, there will always be misunderstanding between people.
Griffin feels it is necessary to understand the hardship of blacks in the United States of America. Through medications, bleaching and ultraviolet light, Griffin is able to temporarily change his skin color so that he can walk through the streets and understand the injustices faced by African Americans. Later on, the author moves farther south where he is faced with even more racism and begins to switch between white and black skin, understanding the different expressions given by society of both races. While white, Griffin finds that white people treat him with respect and black people fear him. But while black, Griffin is despised and neglected by whites and is welcomed warmly by blacks (Griffin, 1962).
After his journey through the southern states, Griffin returns home to his family and he publishes an article about his journey in understanding both races. Though he hears praise from many around the world, he sees the hate from his own people. People call him names and even threaten to harm him. By the end of the novel, the author concludes that both blacks and whites have misunders...

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...in order to focus on the goal of bringing The United States of America together as a society (Baldwin, 1963).
Today, I call myself an agnostic, leaving the understanding of god and ultimate beings out of my own reach much like how the author of The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin explained that people had to let go of Christianity for society to become what it effectively should. I am pleased that I was able to switch between both white and brown among both races because of the new perspective of understanding I have much like how John Howard Griffin was able to switch between white and black. The socially constructed concept of race and religion have proven to segregate people as colonialism had planned.

Works Cited

Griffin, J.H., (1962). Black Like Me. New York, USA: Signet Publishers
Baldwin, J., (1963). The Fire Next Time. New York, USA: Vintage Publishers