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Beloved by Toni Morrison

© Audrey McCrone

The racism in Beloved by Toni Morrison somewhat relates to racism today. As a caucasian, myself, it's difficult understand what was going through the minds of America's forefathers when they bought and sold people for labor, as was reiterated in this period-conscience novel. One can imagine the torturous forfeiting of children: a mother uncertain of her child's whereabouts and well-being. In this novel, Sethe was branded, lashed, but also thought of as a baby mill by her master, likely to create more slave labor. This outdated brand of thought is absolutely inhumane.

Today, in comparison, racism moves beyond slavery, though not without its scars. Through Beloved, I can sympathize with the tremendous suffering that occurred. Sethe's mother was hung, and her husband was murdered. Seethe was uneducated (by exclusion) and relied on instinct to get by. I truly don't find that to be the case today. Black people have rights today, and the NAACP demands this, for good reason. People, in general, deserve to be treated fairly by being afforded equal opportunity.

Racism in the 1800s notedly intense, slavery was a main concern during the Civil War. Civil disputes these days over racism wind up in courtrooms, sometimes met by violent protests (eg. Cinncinnati, OH). The American media puts much emphasis on racism. Perhaps it helps us to remember that some people are still bigots, and that some people yet teach their children to hate (namely the Ku Klux Klan, which most Americans are not members of). Free speech means we must tolerate a certain amount of harm, as individuals. Harm in the sense that we are forced to face the racism that perpetuates in our society.

By contrast to Morrison's chosen time period, slavery is not a daily part of our lives, and hasn't been for some time. I hope we've greatly moved beyond that glaring brutality in our history. Americans generally have respect for people who work hard, regardless of skin color, which wasn't the case in Beloved, when blacks were property. If someone is wronged today, no matter what their ethnic background, they have the right to a fair trial before a jury of their peers (ideally). We live in harmony, if compared to the time period Morrison wrote of.

There are notable racial injustices currently, however, such as the predominance of black men in the American prison system. Of course, American citizens must approach this issue as unbiased, which can be difficult because it's still such a heated emotional topic. It seems we could ease much racial tension by simply eliminating the word "race" from our language, a word the American Association of Anthropology rejects in their Statement on Race. How about the word "ethnicity" instead? The U.S. Census still asks the race question for questionable statistical reasons.