Frantz Fanon Racism

Race and racism are topics that have been widely discussed and disputed overtime. While initially supported by science, race and racism have been now proven to be social constructs. There has also been a change in how academic literature talk about race and its transformation throughout time. Most authors agree that race is felt at a systematic, infrastructural, and a personal prejudice level. Today, movements such as Black Lives Matter (BLM) look to create a support network of ideologies while combating these forms of racism. Frantz Fanon, a 20th century theorist became one of the most important race theorists when he revealed that race also impacts the individual on a psychological level. In conversation with BLM, Fanon illuminates the lifelong

Throughout his life Fanon struggled to feel fully human. This is a fight for him because of the constant gaze and recognition of others that he is a black male. He demonstrates his point to the reader by repeating the phrase “look, a negro” (Fanon, 108-117). The phrase appears throughout the text and as it does, his reaction changes. The repetition of this phrase acts as an illustration of the constant acknowledgement of race that he feels by the colonial gaze. The chapter can be seen as an excerpt of him walking through the world, constantly under the gaze and subject to the objectification of the white world around him. At first, he gives a slight smile, amused by it. As the chapter continues, “look, a negro” becomes his defining call instead of being another human. This wares him down, resulting in frustration, dehumanization, and alienation. Frantz explains, “In the white world the man of color encounters difficulties in the development of his bodily schema. Consciousness of the body is solely a negating activity. It is a third person consciousness” (110). Fanon describes how as a person he came into this world and his sense of self was transformed (Lecture, 2/9). He finds himself objectified through someone else’s eyes again and again. As a result, he is also hyperaware of his movements and sees himself from the view of those surrounding him. This alienation from self objectifies him to feel dehumanized and overly conscious of his