Yes, many of my works discuss race because my academic expertise is in American politics and the African American political participation. I do not claim, as you have, to be not focused on race and ethnic identity. I specifically put Black in my name to indicate that my intellectual prism, as is the case with all of us, is from that of person who has distinct experiences. For me, that’s being a black straight American man from a urban neighborhood living in the 21st century. Those experience filter how I see the world and how I process it.
For example, the articles you read on the Midwest did not say the discussion should be centered on Blacks, but should include Blacks. It’s not about who lived in the Midwest first, or what level of worker they were. They are saying we are part of how this place came to be and are as much of the fabric of the Midwest as any other group.
It is not a zero-sum game where an emphasis on one group subtracts from the power or story of the other. It’s about growing the discussion to include all the characters in the story. It doesn’t negate from the hard work the German immigrants did to build places like Illinois, to hear about a black man founding Chicago. Every drop of sweat it took to create the modern American Midwest, whether Native, Black, Asian, Latino, or white was essential to get it here. Which drop of water in the ocean is the most important? They all are.
As long as you see discussions or race and ethnicity as a battle between groups for dominance, or power, or resources rather than a challenge to widen your perspective beyond your own experience, you’ll be unable to enjoy the full tapestry of human expression.
The Midwest, like the rest of America, has countless stories of individuals, families, communities, religions, ethnicities, and races. They all have and will play necessary and vital roles in making it what it is. Many of these stories have been untold. Why not hear them all?
