Evening Sun Go Down Racism

Many of the short stories featured in The Best American Short Stories of the Century contain issues similar to those that we face in today’s world. From the racism found in “That Evening Sun Go Down” by William Faulkner to the discrimination against religion in “Defender of the Faith” written by Philip Roth, this collection of short stories have recurrent and relevant themes.
Taking place near the start of the Twentieth Century, racism was ordinary in Jefferson, Mississippi. Although the troubled race relations are not the main concern of the story “That Evening Sun Go Down,” the backdrop of the short story shows how racism characterized the South. The prejudice is evident in the characters’ actions as well as their words. For instance,

For example, the U.S. law enforcement is still biased against African Americans. In a study conducted by the University of California, evidence of bias in the killing of unarmed African Americans in comparison to unarmed white Americans was found. The probability of an unarmed black American being shot by police is on average around 3.49 times greater than the probability of a white American. Through a 2015 analysis of law enforcement's use of lethal force, it was found that there was no correlation between the area's police killing rates and the level of violent crime in an area. Minorities are also regularly subjected to investigatory stops while white Americans almost never experience them. However, I don't believe all of the racism is intended. Many of these stereotypes put in place by society unintentionally incline officers to act in a biased manner. While still present, the racism minorities experience today is less severe than the time “That Evening Sun Goes Down” took place.
Religion played a big role in “Defender of the Faith.” Not only was it the cause of the war, but it helped define Grossbart and Marx’s relationship. Grossbart used their shared religion to manipulate Marx and get out of doing things. Claiming he felt disconnected from his faith in this environment, Grossbart conned Marx into giving him special treatment. Eventually, Marx saw through his schemes and sent him with the other soldiers to the Pacific. The only possible way of defending the Jew’s faith was to defend all of the recruits and to watch out for all instead of one