TED ANKARA COLLEGE / 11-A
“ Life Ain ’ t No Crystal Stair ” But is Worth Climbing !
Gaye Alay
30
Some are born with a silver spoon in their mouth : A privileged household , a sheltered life and opportunities always presented to them . Some others , on the other hand , do not get to enjoy such privileges , but face countless obstacles .
Recently , we studied a poem that portrayed the life of African Americans ; “ Mother to Son ” by Langston Hughes . It made me wonder : How come people created a division among people based on the colour of a human being ’ s skin ?! White people , the ‘ superior race ’ - had the luxuries of better living conditions , social life , and education . Black people , on the other hand , were faced with the challenges and were smashed under the ‘ burden ’ of their skin . It must have taken real courage for a black person to defy power and flourish in a white-dominated world , and this is exactly what made them powerful enough climb the stair of life .
Power begins to be taken from minorities early on in life . Clearly , the mother in the poem has not had formal schooling , as this first obstacle , a black person faces within their community , education . Starting from preschool . Racism manages to bear its fangs even into such a playful and innocent environment . Turns out , black students are more likely to be suspended from preschool than white students . Black students make up about 50 % of preschool suspensions when only 26 % of white students receive suspension ( 2014 , Owen ).
A great life lesson to be learnt from the struggles of black people is , the obstacles that life puts in our way can be used as steppingstones for personal growth . Today , there are wide varieties of African Americans who have proven to be great leaders in a wide range of fields ; from arts to sciences , sports to politics . The cards may have been dealt unfairly ; yet , is it not worth the struggle ? History of humankind shows that it is .
References :
Hughes , Langston . “ Mother to Son ”. https :// www . poetryfoundation . org / poems / 47559 / mother-to-son
Owen , Cliff . ( 2014 ). Black pre-schoolers far more likely to be suspended . Black Preschoolers Far More Likely To Be Suspended : Code Switch : NPR