The saying goes, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks;”John Oliver Killenshad something to prove.
The above picture is a representation of the Harlem Writers Guild. The Harlem Writers Guild was started in 1950, by a group of black authors, including: Rosa Guy, Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Willard Moore, Walter Christmas, and our very own John Oliver Killens.
Killens was a man of many hats. He began his life in Macon, Georgia with parents who focused on education and an appreciation of black culture. The path that Killens took to becoming a founding member of the Harlem Writers Guild was not the path that most novelists take. Before World War II, Killens ( who was born in 1916), John Oliver bounced around the education system after graduating from one of the only black secondary schools in Georgia. Killens made stops at Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Florida; Morris Brown College in Atlanta; and Howard University in Washington, D.C. before he dropped out of Robert H. Terrell Law School before his final year.
After serving 4 years in WWII, Killens was awarded the position of master sergeant. Then came the writing. Killens had a lot of experiences, and had a knack for putting them onto paper in story form. When he, along with his friends living in NYC, started the Harlem Writers Guild, Killens wrote about maintaining black dignity and securing rights. Youngblood (1954) was practically written by the Harlem Writers Guild, as most of the work they did was in a small apartment.
Then Killens wrote another novel about being black in the military. And Then We Heard Thunder (1963) was often thought of as Killens’ autobiography. This novel delved into the hardships of war and the acts of racism that occurred even between brothers in arms.
In 1971, Killens comes out with The Cotillion or One Good Bull is Half the Herd. This novel unlike any of the novels that Killens had written previously. After years, nay, decades of writing novels about the hardships of blacks in a white society, Killens decided to write about something that was being greatly overlooked.
The dichotomy between those in the radical black power movement and those attempting to further their careers and lives through running with the “in crowd” proved to be a very interesting one within the black community in the 1960’s. The Cotillion was a deviation from the norm for the Harlem Writers Guild. Killens had seen enough of the changing black society and wanted to make sure the world knew of it. He chose to use satire to depict the social construct of black society in the 60’s. Killens also chose to write from the perspective of a woman. Yoruba, the protagonist in Killens’ Pulitzer Prize winning novel, gives a good perspective of both the socialite climbing of her mother, while also respecting the militancy of her “Captain.”
Killens changed the style in which he wrote because of the fact that he saw situations in society that he needed to address. I think that he used satire because a book that was too harsh on either movement (social climbing v. militancy) would have been deemed “against the cause.”
“Harlem Writers Guild.” N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2013.
The texture of hair is a commonly discussed topic within the Black community, especially for women. Most Black women see hair as their crown and glory; something that is worthy of pride, however there’s much critique. This critique of appearance is readily seen within the community, and even in the Black Arts and Post Soul eras.
In the song, I Am Not My Hairby India Arie, there is a portrayal of this common theme surrounding hair and its texture. The song opens open up with women laughing at Indie Arie because of what she had done to her hair. The song develops with Arie’s journey of her different hair styles, eventually going into the choir which simples states “I am not my hair, I am not this skin, I am not your expectations no” her response to the fact that hair is such a determinant. The women talking and laughing continues with some women agreeing with her hair choices, while other criticizing. The second verse describes how the writer feels about society’s view of hair and about a woman who has lost all of her hair because of chemotherapy, but performing in front of the camera confidently.
Growing up with my mom and grandma owning a hair salon, I can really say that I understand the views of women regarding their hair. Hair within the African-American (especially Black Women) community can also be linked with privilege. Regarding Arie’s song, women are very critical about their hair, no matter how it looks. Being nappy or natural to some is very unappealing to many because of the amount of work it takes to maintain. India Arie’s own journey travels not only through time but also through hairstyles and stages in a female’s life. Within the transitioning of this song the author realizes that it is not the importance of the way the hair looks, but about what is beneath; what lies within. She speaks of a woman who has lost all of her hair, yet performing in front of thousands on television. This type of confidence deters from physical appearance, and moves to the whole individuals.
Within John Killens’ book, The Cotillion, the main character Yoruba is seen being put through very crazy practices in order for her to be the perfect black woman in her mother’s eyes. Her mother is very infatuated with not only “keeping up with the Jones’” but being better than many of her “lower” counterparts. Yoruba’s mother portrays this societal view that appearance is everything, which is true to an extent. Her mother leaves no room for Yoruba to actually embrace the fact that she is black, and to embrace all of being black, and being one with her people, which at times she struggles with.
From hearing India Arie’s I Am Not My Hair, it can be noticed that black women can wear their hair in an array of fashions: straight, curly, an afro, or natural. There’re varying views regarding hair and exactly what “Good hair” is. There are individuals who feel that those who use perms to straighten their hair have “good hair.” Others also think that individuals who wear their hair in its natural state have “good hair.” Having naturally good hair within the Black community is something that most want; hair free of tangles and nappyness. Urban Dictionary states that good hair is “A popular term in the African-American community, used to describe a black person’s hair that closely resembles the hair of a typical white person (i.e. soft, manageable, long, as opposed to “nappy” or “bad” hair). The closer your hair is to a white person’s, the “better” your hair is.”
In 2009, model Tyra Banks aired an episode called “What is Good Hair?” on the Tyra Banks Show. This episode featured many different Black women and children and their differing views on what it means to have “good hair.” She episode shows the critique that African-American women have for their own hair. Along with the critique, there seems to be so much controversy within the African-American community about women wearing their natural hair, as previously stated. View the videos below as they show some very important facts and startling information behind children’s perception of their own hair and the history of black hair within the African-American community.
Video clip from the Tyra Banks Show, episode: What is Good Hair?
The history relating to African-Americans texture of hair is actually quite startling. Not only were the roots of the situation regarding heritage, but it was about survival and opportunity for many African-Americans with the 19th and early to mid 20th century. Tyra Banks also invited the Ayana Byrd and Lori Tharps, the authors of Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair, who gave some historical insight on the way that African-American men and women.
The term “good hair” did not originate as a term of beauty, contrary to popular belief; it was a term that was derived as hope for survival. This term, good hair, evolved out of slavery, women and men who had silkier hair, like that of the master’s were more likely to end up in better situations. These individuals were more likely to be freed upon their master dying or being a house slave, which gave them more opportunities to better resources and things that they weren’t permitted to do such as education. Byrd and Tharps remark in their closing that once slavery ended, these terms and behaviors were still embedded within our cultural psyches and reason there is a lot of controversy today.
Video clip from the Tyra Banks Show, episode: What is Good Hair?
In this link above, we hear some startling information. Tyra brought children and their mothers which proved to be very interesting conversation. (For the whole episode, click HERE) All of these children were beautiful and arguably have “good hair” however there was once child who preferred to wear here Hannah Montana wig because she felt as though people liked her better with it on. Prior to this clip, the mother’s were on the stage, and her mother talked about how she tells her daughter that she is beautiful, and that she does not need to get her hair relaxed. She has a tighter curl in her hair, though when straightened is very long.
Video clip from the Tyra Banks Show, episode: What is Good Hair?
This issue of hair may seem very simple and unimportant to people that are not of cover, but like aforementioned, it is something that is embedded into our psyches, and passed down through many generations. It appears that this, the struggle of black hair, and the critique that African-Americans specifically women, are affecting them psychologically from early ages.
One of the children, Malia (who is half African-American and half Latino), said that when she sees someone with hair like that (pointing to an afro wig) it makes her think of someone of lower class. This is extremely startling, no child that is 5 years old should hear anything like that! It indeed has a great psychological contribution because her mother made up at the age of 11 that she would have a child with a man of another race, due to hair. Her reasoning behind this was the fact that she was teased, picked on and called names such as “bald headed” and “nappy headed.”
Though we see that there is a lot of critique regarding natural hair, having “good hair” is not always a great thing. Kalayshia, age 5, appeared saying that she wants her mother to cut her hair off so that the children at school will stop teasing her. By just looking at her hair, you can notice that it is very long, to her waist and not seemingly course. Her mother even professed the fact that not only does her daughter come home from school crying because of being picked on, but she has also had other students to pull out handfuls of her hair.
In Danzy Senna’s, Caucasia, the two sisters, Birdie and Cole are completely different. Cole is of a brown complexion with courser in comparison to Birdie’s light complexion and “good hair.” Birdie and Cole were of mixed race, and due to complications the family split up, with each parent taking the child that looked like themselves. The mother had no knowledge of black hair and the daughter walked around looking like a mockery because of the mother’s lack of knowledge. However, there is an emphasis that is put on the connection between hair and race. Hair is also a form of identity, as can be determined through my various resources, even Caucasia. Birdie resents her father because of having to pass as a Jewish girl with her mother. She strongly embraced her roots, both White and Black, because they were apart of whom she was holistically.
When typing in the term “African-American hair” there are many results that come up. Some individuals with straightened hair, some chemically others heat, there are individuals who have natural hair exposed. All of these women are smiling or have a fierce countenance. The pride of being African-American and black exhumes from them, also the freedom of choice. These women look happy that they are able to take pride within themselves. As seen in the previous media, we are now in an age where African-American women are allowed to express their own unique beauty, instead of conforming to the Eurocentric hairstyles.
Trailer for Chris Rock’s documentary, Good Hair
There is no way that I can begin to even speak on the topic of hair, without mentioning Chris Rock’s famous documentary, Good Hair. Chris Rock travels all over the United States interviews individuals about what it means to have “good hair.” An interesting thing about this trailer is that not only does Rock interview everyday people, but also celebrities. Famous individuals such as Rev. Al Sharpton, Dr. Maya Angelou, Raven Symone, and others help him along his journey of discovery regarding hair. This document speaks of the many processes that African-American women undergo in order to get “good hair.” There is also critique within this documentary as Rock goes around California trying to sell individuals natural, African-American hair with no success. There were even beauty supply storeowners that mentioned how no one wants nappy hair; it is all about the straightened, processed hair.
Throughout history and time, the Black Arts Movement and Post-Soul, there is a steady critique of African-American regarding their hair. It seems to be very questionable whether or not this natural hair is the glory of a crown or worthy of a perm.
Works Cited
Killens, John Oliver. The Cotillion; Or, One Good Bull Is Half the Herd. New York: Trident, 1971. Print.
Larsen, Nella. Quicksand. New York: Negro Universities, 1969. Print.
A painting by Margaret Bowland, this features African American women in white-face, suggesting a forced ideal of the European standards of beauty on an already individual and beautiful race.
Women have always been viewed as sexual beings, with their beauty put on display for all men to look at, admire and dream about. Over the years, due to the highly visual nature of attraction, people have developed standards of beauty that are based mainly on what you look like, rather than who you are.
Traditionally, the American standard for beauty has been based off of the European standard, featuring “smooth blonde hair, light colored eyes, and fair/light skin all compiled on a thin, tall figure” (Women of Color), and even African American women are expected to live up to that, in the minds of the white person. Unfortunately, magazines and other examples of pop culture that people see every day are out there, displaying the American standards of beauty, in directly pressuring women, especially black women, to strive for those ideals that consider an American woman beautiful. Even magazines intended for African American women contain advertisements for hair relaxers and straighteners, or skin bleachers and lighteners, anything to help black women embrace whiteness and break out of the cultural chain mail that is their African heritage. It also suggests a type of class mobility that can only be possible with the embracing of these “white” techniques of beauty (Women of Color). Any way you look at it, black people are being told that the more white they look, the better chance they have in modern society.
Rihanna on the cover of Vogue. Notice how her skin looks so light, one could almost think of her as just very tan
African American women have constantly been subjected to the pressures that come along with living in American society, especially the challenge to look “white” and blend in to the European conceived ideas of beauty.
The above image displays a group of African American women displaying their African American characteristics, such as dark skin and hair, with the tagline “My Black is Beautiful.” It calls to mind the idea of women coming together to show off their pride in their cultural heritage, and the idea that they do not have to be European to be beautiful. It shows a confidence in where they come from that is not matched by any alteration of beauty on the market today, merely because it embraces the women’s natural skin color and hair color. While it is not the most perfect example of pride in blackness, it is certainly one of the better examples. Contrast this image to the one directly above it, featuring Rihanna on the cover of Vogue Magazine, where her skin has clearly been lightened to showcase a different standard of looks. Rihanna is a beautiful woman and an internationally known pop star, and one of the things that is most recognizable about her is the darkness of her skin and features. However, this magazine cover paints her as a light skinned woman, posing to play into the current standards of beauty placed upon American society today.
Vogue Magazine has gotten other backlash from certain critic about the fact that they do not use many black women on the cover of their magazine. One woman, Thandie Newton, has publicly stated that she does not want to be on the cover of Vogue, because of the lack of African American women that they feature on the cover.
“Don’t get me started on black people being on the cover on big magazines. It’s so preposterous. I mean, I’ve been on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar four times; I’ve been on the cover of InStyle four times, but Vogue, not once,” she explained in an interview with Pride magazine.
“And people say to me, I mean literally, people have said to me, ‘What have you got against Vogue that you don’t want to be on their cover?’ And I just laugh.”
“They [Vogue] don’t feel the need to represent because it doesn’t make any sense to them. It’s just baffling to me, but as usual America will dictate the ways things go and a magazine like Vogue will just follow America,” she said. “But it’s like, don’t you want to trail blaze?” (Bossip)
Newton feels that Vogue magazine has not taken the chance to feature black women on the cover, and feels like they should start doing so before she will be on the cover. As exhibited, again, by the cover photo featuring Rihanna, Vogue has sometimes found a way around displaying black women in their true colors: with skin lightening techniques and airbrush tricks.
Yet another imposition of cultural standard is the idea that black women have to have some part of their body that is bigger than another, thus adding one specific point of interest for people to look at, something memorable for other people to hold on to. Look at celebrities like Nicki Minaj, and you will see the big butt, enhanced lips or crazy style that is meant to set black women apart from the mainstream, allowing them to be a cut above the rest, memorable in everyone’s minds for what they look like rather than who they are. Nicki Minaj’s style has always been one of “>enhanced sexual display, and her butt has always been memorable, simply because of the sheer size of it. People have talked about her butt for years, ever since she broke into the music industry back in 2007. However, while she, and other starts have been known for one specific part of themselves, one memorable body part that is meant to stick out in the mind of the American public, there is still another standard of being that is prominent among black women: the full-figure.
Full figured women are also considered beautiful in the African American society. Actresses like Queen Latifah and Jennifer Hudson (pre Weight Watchers), are admired in society, even revered, and act in feature films, such as Last Holiday and Dreamgirls. Each of these women have been able to grow their acting careers, despite their size. While white women are criticized if they gain even a little too much pregnancy weight (think Jessica Simpson or Kim Kardashian), black women are able to maintain a positive public image, as long as they stay within a reasonable full-bodied figure. Think of the movie Hairspray, as a good way to illustrate this phenomenon. Taking place in the early 1960’s in Baltimore (at the beginning of the integration movement), the movie’s main character is an overweight white girl who receives backlash from the white, skinny head of the hit TV dancing show she wanted to join. Queen Latifah stars in the modern remake, playing the full figured record store owner who helps lead the integration protest. The clip below features a hit song from the movie, “Big, Blonde and Beautiful.”
As the clip suggests, this song features messages of using a full-figure as empowerment, something that is to be rejoiced rather than criticized. Celebrating who you are is a key theme of the song, and the whole movie is an example of the double standard of beauty that exists. The weight of the white characters is what is criticized, while the skin color of the black characters is what is noticed about them.
The full-figured tradition of black women is not always a positive thing. There have been statistics suggesting that the full-figuredness of women is branching into unhealthiness. Since the black community has created several “beauty biases: [a woman being] shapely, curvy and, to a majority of people on the outside looking in, fat,” many black women strive to meet these ideals because they see how those who do are revered by society (Brice). Unfortunately, thanks to those standards, black women are more likely to be overweight, and are more susceptible to diseases that are brought about by weight, such as type-2 diabetes and high blood pressure (Brice). “According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 54 percent of black women are considered overweight and obese. Black women are 70 percent more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white women” (Brice). This is not to say that there are some black women who are thin and healthy and take care of themselves, for example Michelle Obama and Beyonce, but the statistics shown are what the standards of beauty are doing to the American people.
The standards of beauty for African American women to have a fuller figure have been more prominently featured lately. Pick up certain literary works written by African American writers, and you will find the descriptions of any woman to hold true more traditional, thin, African images rather than the full figured ideals that many black women are striving for today. Any literature written in the Post-Soul and Black Aesthetic will feature descriptions of beautiful African American women who are thin and happy and so beautiful that the main man in the novel cannot help but fall in love with either her traditional beauty, or the African beauty that she displays.
“An observer would have thought her well fitted to that framing of light and shade. A slight girl of twenty-two years, with narrow, sloping shoulders and delicate, but well-turned, arms and legs, [Helga Crane] had, none the less, an air of radiant, careless health. In vivid green and gold negligee and glistening brocaded mules, deep sunk in the big high-backed chair, against whose dark tapestry her sharply cut face, with skin like yellow satin, was distinctly outlined, she was—to use a hackneyed word—attractive. Black, very broad brows over soft, yet penetrating, dark eyes, and a pretty mouth, whose sensitive and sensuous lips had a slight questioning petulance and a tiny dissatisfied droop, were the features on which the observer’s attention would fasten; though her nose was good, her ears delicately chiseled, and her curly blue-black hair plentiful and always straying in a little wayward, delightful way. Just then it was tumbled, falling unrestrained about her face and on to her shoulders.” (Larsen 4-5)
This description of Helga Crane from Nella Larsen‘s Quicksand features the description of a beautiful girl, whom everyone would love to get to know, and every man would be lucky to date. She is described as attractive, with a captivating mouth, something men would really admire. While Helga Crane is a mixed race girl, she is still a thing of beauty, and described in the dark lines befitting her. It is almost like the author truly understands the American standard of African American beauty of the time, and strives to make the reader understand that as well.
In contrast, John Oliver Killens describes his main female character Yoruba in The Cotillion as “black and princessly Yoruba, as if she’d just got off the boat from Yoruba-land in the western region of the then Nigeria.” (Killens 1) Killens is describing his character with references to her African heritage, showcasing the beauty in her that does not come from the Americas. This type of description also serves to the purpose of setting Yoruba apart from the other women. By showcasing her African features rather than her American ones, Killens is telling the reader that this woman is special.
African American women have been looked at as people that need to be changed, something that needs to be altered to the European standard of beauty here in America. Margaret Bowland’s painting featured above showcases the altered changes that the white man has tried to make to black women so that they fit in better with the standards of beauty that we hold near and dear today.
There is no doubt that one’s identity defines their unique persona. Being white vs. being black both come with a unique set of characteristics. However, identity is frequently used to exhibit performance. Oftentimes being black or being white goes beyond simple identity; color is also used for performance.
There are numerous places where one can see racial identity being used as a means of performance. The picture below is from a blog by Crystal Sykes in which she reflects on her own experience of being black in San Francisco. This picture is interesting because it portrays a black girl among several white people; she is thinking to herself, “I’m not your black friend.” In this particular blog post, Crystal writes about hipster racism. In other words, being above racism but still making snarky remarks. The people in her community saw her blackness as different, as something unique and “cool.” This shows how blackness can be perceived as not just a person’s identity, but as something to be exhibited. If Crystal had used her white friends’ intrigue about black culture to her advantage, this would be an example of blackness as performance.
Black in a sea of white
Authors from both the Black Arts Movement and Post Soul portray racial identity as a means of performance as well. The protagonist of the novels from this time period usually use his or her skin color to their advantage; performing and appealing to the desires of the particular crowd.
In Paul Beatty’s The White Boy Shuffle, the protagonist Gunnar exemplifies blackness as performance. Unlike Crystal, uncomfortable in a city filled with white people, Gunnar embraced his unique situation and used it to his advantage. Gunnar says, “I was the funny, cool black guy. In Santa Monica, like most predominantly white sanctuaries from urban blight, “cool black guy” is a versatile identifier used to distinguish the harmless black male from the Caucasian juvenile while maintaining politically correct semiotics” (Beatty, 27). Gunnar goes on to say, “I learned early that white kids will believe anything anybody a shade darker than chocolate milk says” (Beatty, 28). Gunnar had the ability to appeal to his white class mates. He embraced his racial identity and used it to his advantage. Being black gave him a sense of empowerment, not defeat.
Whiteness as performance is also portrayed in the media of popular culture. In the movie White Chicks, two black men must disguise themselves as white women in order to protect the multi-billion dollar fortune of two white girls. This comedy portrays whiteness as performance using satire. The satire lies in the fact that two successful black men must present themselves as two dumb, white blonde chicks. As they present themselves as white girls, the audience for which they are performing is white as well, making the situation even more ironic: white people are being deceived by black people who are pretending to be white.
In Danzy Senna’s Caucasia, there are several instances of whiteness as performance. Walter Marsh’s family is a good example of whiteness as performance. Birdie’s mother Sandy referred to wealthy white people as wasps. Walter Marsh, she said, was a real wasp. Sandy said, “The proof was the layer of dust covering their house–and the way Walter sucked on a toothpick, picked his nose, hacked into his hand, and performed other blatantly rude personal habits in public, oblivious that they might be offensive to the people around him” (Senna, 155). This portrays whiteness as performance because being a wasp means being white and wealthy but trying to keep it hidden. The Marsh family doesn’t want to come off as rich and uptight so they let a layer of dust cover the tops of all of their fine things; this is a performing act to keep up appearances and portray themselves as being laid back and casual.
Birdie and her mother are both living as white. However, Birdie is not actually white; she is able to pass as white by telling others that she is of Jewish descent. Both Birdie and Sandy have to continually “mask” their true identities in order to appear as white and to appeal to their particular audience.
An example of whiteness as performance in Caucasia is when Birdie confronts Samantha about her blackness. Birdie was uncomfortable with whiteness as performance but her mother’s words to trust no one were always ringing in her ears. One night at a party, she found Samantha, the only other black girl:
“What color do you think I am?
Nora said you were Jewish. I saw you wearing that start thing they all have to wear. Yeah, Jewish. Why do you ask?
I’m not really Jewish. It’s a lie.
What do you mean?
I mean, I’m not Jewish. My mom’s not Jewish. She has to be Jewish for me to be Jewish, really, and she’s not.
As I said it, I wondered, for the first time, if the same was true with blackness. Did you have to have a black mother to be really black? There had been no black women involved in my conception. Maybe that made us frauds” (Senna, 285). This is the first time when the protagonist becomes entangled by her own set of lies. While blackness and whiteness as performance can be used positively to enhance the perceived persona of a character, this performance can also entangle and become a messy web of lies; using identity to perform can become damaging to a person’s real identity.
This damaging effect is particularly seen in John Oliver Killens’ The Cotillion. Yoruba is an African American girl whose mother insists that she attend etiquette training classes and be in a cotillion. While this particular cotillion consists of all black women, cotillions are originally a tradition of white southern females and are used as a way to introduce young females to society. So from the beginning of this novel, blackness as performance is seen everywhere.
This has a damaging effect on Yoruba, however. While her boyfriend Ben AliLumumba is telling her to embrace her blackness, Yoruba’s mother is telling her to try to not be as black as possible but rather to simply acknowledge her blackness and to leave it alone. This creates tension within Yoruba. She wants to please her mother and win the scholarship offered by the cotillion but she also loves and respects Ben Ali and simply wants to live as a black girl, free of all the stress and drama that the cotillion entails.
One way that blackness as performance is portrayed in this novel is within the mayhem of the politics of appearance. John Oliver Killens focuses part of a chapter on hair. In a discussion between Yoruba and her mother he writes:
“Come. Come, dearie, I’m going to buy you a lovely wig. Come. I forgive you. Come.
A wig? Forgive me?
She shook her head. What could she say to her mother? What could she do?…No wig for this Black and beautiful child, not even for her mother’s sake. She had made her debut into truly Black society. And there was no turning back” (Killens, 213).
Natural, black, beautiful
This is an interesting turning point in the novel because Yoruba turns from whiteness as performance to blackness as performance. She was once black in a white world filled with white traditions but is now truly living as black, despite what society is expecting of her. When Yoruba refuses to wear a wig, or better yet, when she cuts off her permed hair, she is not just being rebellious, she is making a statement against performance. It is always an attempt to be white when black women straighten their hair. If a black woman really wants to be seen and respected as black, then she must get the perm out of her hair and wear it naturally. This politics of appearance is a breaking point for Yoruba.
It is not just black girls straightening their trying to be black, however. There is also a great deal of whiteness as performance in The Cotillion. There are scattered scenes of white girls who try to portray themselves as black. Killens writes of whiteness as performance very humorously, “Earlier, three white girls had arrived at the ball, as invited guests, wearing Afro wigs and darkly tinted contact lenses, and had been refused admission, roughed up, third-degreed, searched for weapons, threatened with arrest, called trouble-making yaller niggers, and so on, until finally they compromised their firm convictions, removed their wigs and declared their whiteness, at which point they were immediately admitted with abject apologies and Southern hospitality” (Killens, 222-223).
This part of the novel puts whiteness as performance into a different light than blackness as performance. Blackness as performance is a way of getting by; it is Yorubas way to come out into society and to be accepted by her white counterparts; it is Lumumbas way of being accepted by Yorubas family. Blackness as performance is not always something that is preferred or desired by individuals, but rather, it is expected. Whiteness as performance, however, is something that is optional. For instance, in this scene, the white girls didn’t have to dress up in wigs in order to impress the black persons at the cotillion. In fact, their performance caused them to be beaten. By being white, they are already naturally accepted by society.
What is also interesting, is that in a novel like The Cotillion, it is not just the women who are subject to performance; the men are equally subjected to this politics of appearance and performing act. When Lumumba comes to the door to greet Yoruba one night, he is decked out in the finest clothes. Killens writes:
“She opened the door to greet her lover (she was all grinning smiles again, unknowingly) but her beloved was not there. In his stead there stood a colored dude all decked out in a mucho sharp American suit. Brown, herringbone and truly worsted. White on white shirt, green polka-dot tie, brand-new, gleaming, wing-tipped shoes. So sharp he was almost bleeding. Crew-cut like the Ivy League” (Killens, 146).
What is interesting about this scene is that just a few pages prior, Yoruba’s mother discussed how she felt towards Lumumba. “Lady Daphne was finally convinced that there was something to this Black boy, when they did a portrait in the white folks’ most prestigious paper. The New York Times had covered a reading he had done at the Truth and Consequences Cafe uptown. Yoruba showed The Times piece to her mother, who glanced at the news article and stared long at Lumumba, beard and woolly head and all. Her sole comment was ‘Humph!’ (Killens, 145).
This scene is interesting because the mother is 100% for blackness as performance but from a white perspective. For example, she doesn’t accept Yoruba with natural hair, only with “white” hair. In this scene, we see that she doesn’t approve of Lumumba for Yoruba because he is “woolly-headed.” But once Lumumba has received the stamp of approval from the white community, she begins to like him a little bit more.
This scene portrays an interesting twist between whiteness as performance and blackness as performance. This novel does a play off of both types of performance as we have seen. Even though all of the major characters are black, there is a confusion of performances because the mother is forcing a white identity onto her black daughter. I found this novel to be particularly useful when tying together the two types of racial identity performances because it does indeed incorporate a mixture of the two.
However, what we see from both perspectives across media and these three novels is that color goes beyond identity, it involves performance as well; performance that can enunciate identity or manipulate identity.
Multimedia Cited:
First Image: No author. n.d. [Identity]Retrieved from www2.fi.edu
Second Image: Sykes, Crystal. 2013. [I’m Not Your Black Friend]. Retrieved from www.thebolditalic.com
Black barbershops have always been a place where community members, young and old, come together and unite over a haircut. The overall experience of getting a haircut is actually much more than just a haircut. It is a time when people can converse and discuss anything from sports to politics.
There is quite a bit of activity going on in the above image. Some men are playing a simple game of checkers. Others are sitting quietly reading the newspaper to themselves. And then there is a young boy on the right side of the image who is getting his haircut. His mother seems to be peering over the barbers’ shoulder in an attempt to instruct the barber on how she wants her sons hair cut. All good mothers have at one point or another instructed a barber on the specifics on how they want their children’s haircut. The image truly illustrates that there is a lot going on in this barbershop just like many that are similar to this all across the world.
The image also shows that boys and men of all ages come and participate in this barbershop dynamic. There is a young boy, some middle aged men, and some senior citizens who are in the barbershop which creates a unique setting to discuss a wide variety of topics. Also, there are sports pennants on the walls as well as important newspaper articles that were important during that time.
The barbershop dynamic also plays itself out in one particular scene in John Oliver Killens’, The Cotillion. Matthew is involved in one scene in particular where his experience sheds light on what the barbershop dynamic is all about. The scene talks about how his experience was not nearly as simple as going for a haircut. He notices that a wide variety of topics are being discussed and that is what makes this experience one that is a learning experience. As Matthew puts it at one point, the conversations are “soul talk” more than anything.
The barbershop scene and the image of the barbershop truly are where boys and men can come together and bond over the shared experience of getting a haircut. I personally, have been going to a black barbershop for the past five years of my life with my two best friends who have grown up going to this same barber. When I enter the barbershop I immediately get a feeling of a community and felt like I was just “one of the guys”.
In summary, the barbershop dynamic is one that helps boys and men come together and get away from their daily lives even if just for thirty minutes. It truly is a valuable experience and one that brings the community closer together.
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