Kiese Laymon: Black Man's Burden

Black Man’s Burden

It’s has been a very discussed topic whether the colour of ones skin still can be a burden in today’s society or not. For instance are the black people, and especially in South America racism is a big issue. Thus racism is weakened compared to centuries ago, it is still present in not only a big part of America but in the rest of the world as well. Racism is one of the main issues, that the American author Kiese Laymon is dealing with in his writings. Laymon is black himself and in his work “How to slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America” he shows us his personally story, which is filled with trials and reflections that lightens under-appreciated aspects of the modern American life. In the following essay I will
This was a part of his everyday life. To outline the central problem that this text is dealing with, it is important to emphasize that ones skin colour is still very important in many societies today. For instance there is the real life episode with the Police Officer Darren Wilson who shot and killed the 18-year old young black unarmed man named Michael Brown. These racially issues are the ones Laymon has been struggled with during his upbringing. It is therefore these issues he wants to draw attention to in his essay. Laymon speaks of personal experiences in his works, and this type of argumentation is called ethos. He is using ethos to emphasize the burden that comes with for blacks in a white-controlled society. I believe that Laymon’s intention with his writings is to make people live their lives as they wish and intend to. That is why “freedom” is a very important point in Laymons writings. This is further shown in the essay: “How free can you be if you really accept that white folks are the traffic cops of your life? Mama tells me that she is not talking about freedom. She says that she is talking about survival.”1 This quotation is very important, because it highlights Laymons life values compared to Laymons mother, who always taught him to be well behaved in a society controlled by white people. Laymon was well behaved in his early years, but after
Laymon therefore took distance to his mother, when she once pulled a gun to his face. To Laymon this complex of problem was about the freedom that the black people weren’t in possession of in Mississippi. To Laymon’s mother it was a matter of survival, and therefore it was very important to her that they would fit in as much as possible. Thus Laymon has gotten death treats; it has not stopped him from writing or drawing attention to these issues. Overall, Laymon is using ethos to make his audience relate as much as possible through his personal experiences during his upbringing in Mississippi. An episode that Laymon uses and which supports the theme racism is when an undercover “white” cop once pulled a gun at him. We most assume that this cop, called John Deere, pulls a gun at Laymon, Troy, Cleta and Leighton because of their skin colour since Deere shouts “Nigger lovers” at them. By using ethos Laymon achieves to get his audience attention since Laymon’s personal experiences are truthful, chocking and provocative. His writings however are aimed to a wide American