I was interested in the article “On Whiteness and The Racial Imaginary response”. It opened my eyes to thinking about the way authors and I myself as someone who likes to write portrays my characters. I had never really thought about white authors writing about black characters or Hispanic characters before. Now I catch myself thinking about it more. 

The authors of the article argue that authors should not write about the experiences of other people unless they have experienced it themselves or know people who have. If a white author is going to write about something that maybe they have never experienced then they should research it first and make sure they get it right. It’s hard to understand what someone has gone through if you yourself haven’t experienced it. We may feel sympathy for these people but we can’t fully understand unless it happens to us. This is why these authors point out that we must be careful in the way we portray our characters when writing a novel. 

The authors also explain that they want people to have the creative freedom to write about what they want while also being conscious of the material. When you’re writing about nonreal events you do have this creative freedom. We start to get constrained when we go into things that have actually happened. This is why it’s hard to definitively say what authors can and can’t write about because it depends on the topic. But this should open up our eyes into thinking about for example if a white person writes about Asian culture  We have to think about why are they writing about this topic and if they have had any experiences with this culture. If they haven’t then we must know if they did research on it or studied it we have to make sure that authors aren’t getting information wrong and that they aren’t portraying certain groups in only a negative way. This article just changes our perspective in the way we look at books. Yes we do have some creative imagination but at the same time we don’t and we have to make sure we are aware of what we write about in books. 

These articles by Hurston and Fanon both authors talk about the oppression they went through in their life. They Talk about how white people used stereotypes to define them.  They both state that their race and color of their skin should not define who they are. The people who should define who they are, are themselves. 

In the first article  “HOW IT FEELS TO BE COLORED ME” Hurston explains that she feels like a brown bag. She States “But in the main, I feel like a brown bag of miscellany propped against a wall. Against a wall in company with other bags, white, red and yellow. Pour out the contents, and there is discovered a jumble of small, things priceless and worthless” (Hurston). I feel like she is saying that people only see her for what she is on the outside and not on the inside. Once you get to understand who they are you will see that some of their true selves have been stripped away from them. 

In the second article “THE FACT OF BLACKNESS” Fanon explains how they are already being judged just by their looks and how other people perceive them. Fanon states “And already I am being dissected under white eyes, the only real eyes. I am fixed” (Pg. 261).  Before he can do anything he already feels like he is being judged. He feels like the world was set against him and there’s nothing he could do. 

Both Authors just want to feel accepted for who they are. They don’t want these stereotypes pinned on them. They want to feel equal in society and be able to be who they truly are. Both of these people have been oppressed in their life and they are sharing their story to educate people and to help make a change in this world. They want people to understand what they are feeling and what they have gone through. Hurston writes,  “A bit of colored glass more or less would not matter” (Hurston). This reminds of the saying rose colored glasses. When people don’t see a full view of the world they see a filtered view. People need to take off their colored glasses and see the world for what it is and be more accepting. They need to realize that their narrow mindedness needs to change. People need to be more open and understanding of one’s differences and not letting that define them as someone who is less superior but as something that makes them human and an equal part of society.