Critical Reflection #5: Fears and Tears: The Poisons of the Human Heart
What?
The difference between the majority and the minority is a difference of influence. According to Baldwin, the majority is defined as those who have the most influence in their society (Baldwin 216). The minority can be defined as those who have little or no influence in their society. In relation to how politics in the United States have played out since its foundation, the minority has always been the starting point for immigrants. They willingly cede their status, their identities and realities from wherever they come from, in order to eventually become part of the majority. They do this for a multitude of different reasons and factors, but the universal desire to become part of a community and a country is what stays constant.
Even if that means one has to lose their voice in the society they wish to join.
… they took their places as a minority, a minority because their influence was so slight and because it was their necessity to make themselves over in the image of their new and unformed country (Baldwin 217).
What is interesting, however, is Baldwin’s language in this text implies that under no circumstance is influence permanent nor static.
…”majority” does not refer to numbers, and it does not refer to power. It refers to influence (Baldwin 216).
Baldwin also ends the prompt by stating that “we” are the majority. This dismantles the power structure of a traditional majority and empowers individuals to believe that they can have an influence on their world (Baldwin 221). Moreover, that sets up the responsibilities the majority has to the minority.
— the majority is you. No one else can do it. The world is before and you need not take it or leave it as it was when you came in (Baldwin 221).
What gets in the way of the responsibility that the majority has is this fear Baldwin mentions in the text. On page 220, he states…
They do not really know what it is they are afraid of, but they know they are afraid of something and they are so frightened that they are nearly out of their minds.
Fear is a powerful emotion. And when comes on an individual and societal level, fear of the unknown is what divides people, not just the majority and minority, from one another.
So What?
Paul Farmer illustrates how misunderstanding, how the vestiges of inherited hatred continue to poison and fester in many human hearts across the world.
Living in the Bay Area, the minority is not seen as a minority. I feel as if the more diverse a community becomes, the more likely it is that the majority acts in betterment for all. In truth, majorities and minorities will always exist. However, a responsibility and a certain kind of accountability must be held by the majority to make sure that the minority is not exploited and does not suffer, in terms of health, financial security and overall ability to thrive. To solely coexist is not enough. We must all be willing to uplift one another and put the feelings of fear aside. This is how progress can truly be made.
Now What?
Baldwin’s fear has followed humanity throughout all of history. Xenophobic, conservative stances are not new to American politics. Nativism was a position in existence long before the present day.
However, Baldwin’s fear is absolutely in full motion and running rampant through many people’s heads in our society, one of whom is in a position of executive power.
In terms of how this relate to the community, which is Kid’s Club at the Canal, I am working with I can only say that I worry tremendously for how these children will be affected by the hate that is trickling down to them. Most of the children at Kid’s Club are of Latino descent. They come from a low-income neighborhood. Most of the families there are part of the working class.
In terms of the overall political climate, Latinos are one of many immigrant groups that being targeted as part of a problem by the figures of authority in our government.
I constantly think of these things: Do they fully realize their reality? Do they have hope for the future? Is their identity truly their own? How are they effected by this right now? How about in 5 years? 10 years? How will their children fair?
It is something that makes me think more and more about the further the semester goes on. And the more I can consequently understand and validate the purpose of what I am learning.
