Racism: The Most Successful Agent For Change

Racism is a term crafted by society with prejudicial views; it is frowned upon, and yet people continue to be assertive, but I want you to stop and think, what for, why is colour separating us? It’s a preconceived opinion that is defined by the ideas of others in our society since racism has existed. When the expression agent for change comes to mind, it is an individual who acts as a catalyst for change; standing up for the rights of an issue impacting on society. However, the most successful ‘agent for change’ is challenging and, “without strategy, change is merely substitution not evolution.” (Llopis, 2014). Through the history of protest, the effectiveness of poetry and song writing have been praised and applied to anticipate and raise

Cooke was an extraordinary man who embraced this philosophy whole-heartedly through music, raising the awareness of the injustice of African-Americans, and eradicated the proverbial racial fissure (Ramsey, Dr. Guthrie, 2009). In 1964, he released his song ‘A Change is Gonna Come’ expressing the hardships beared by the African-Americans in the American society during the Civil Rights Movement, and his struggle with life as a ‘black’ man since birth, and his strong optimistic hopes for the future of his people. McKay was an established literary voice for social justice during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920’s; he is famously known for his novels, essays and poems, which kindled a new black identity (Networks, 2016). In particular, his poem Enslaved, published in July 1921, is about the rejection of the freedom of coloured people in America. While, both sources are powerful forms of protest we can analyse through the use of strong descriptions, which one is the best agent for

The phrase “long-suffering race,” allows audience to envision slaves working on a plantation while being beaten by watchers. The effectiveness of this, positions the audience in the perspective of slaves who felt pain and suffering over many centuries (KeyChieLover, 2013). It can also be analysed from the phrase “from the dark depths of my soul I cry,” broods over the desperation and anguish, McKay feels for his people and his determination to have his race be heard so that they can express themselves for who they are. In line ten, he mentions, “To the avenging angel to consume,” while leaving a biblical meaning behind it. He hopes and pleads to God that the ‘white’ man will be overpowered and obliterated, while the black man is the exodus and raises himself up. This imprints an image in the mind of those who are familiar with the Old Testament. It is simply a metaphor describing that the ‘white’ people are the dire Egyptians and the ‘black’ people are the Israeli slaves (KeyChieLover, 2013). While McKay applies a good amount of imagery through his work, he also establishes other poetic techniques. In line eleven, he depicts alliteration, “The white man’s world of wonders utterly,” It leaves a bitter but marvellous at the world the ‘white’ man built and how it seemed vastly different from Harlem at the time