Nathaniel Welnhofer | Canisius College (original) (raw)

Papers by Nathaniel Welnhofer

Having been born in Ghana and emigrated to the United States at the age of nine, Yaa Gyasi unders... more Having been born in Ghana and emigrated to the United States at the age of nine, Yaa Gyasi understands the life of Africans and African-Americans-more importantly the connection they have with each other. In her novel, Homegoing, she demonstrates the oppression wrought on by colonialism, imperialism, and slavery by following a family's lineage dating back to the seventeenth century. These issues remain in memory for white culture, yet their effects are still being felt to this day in the black community. Even after Brown v. Board of Education, there still remains much housing segregation that leaves the poor neighborhoods with failing schools-thus creating a cycle of poverty. Gyasi illustrates the struggles of each generation in the family, which further paints the cycle of oppression that exists. She also shows that institutions put in place by white culture have historically failed African-Americans and Africans alike. I argue that Homegoing shows the implications of colonialism imperialism, and slavery, which displays the connections they have to the struggles in the black community today. Ultimately, Gyasi suggests that the oppression that black people face today is largely systematic, as they were forced to live in a culture and society that favors white people. Gyasi's Homegoing uses characters that have been subjected to such oppression. Sadly, these stories are all too familiar with those among the black community. Their oppressors, western culture , subjugated the native African people to benefit their own gain through use of institutions like education, religion, law-enforcement and slavery. Michael Omolewa explains in his article "Educating the 'Native,'" that the English colonizers had pushed Euro-centered ideals and culture that were "ill-suited and irrelevant" to African people (Omowela 269). Furthermore, Africans had grumbled as they noticed new values like "intolerance, hatred, 'cutthroat competition,' disharmony, pride, arrogance, and even cheating" (Omowela 269). Beyond the physical exploitation of black people throughout slavery, Melissa Harris Perry explains the stereotypes that stemmed from it that persist to this day in her book, Sister Citizen. She claims the origin of the Jezebel stereotype as an excuse for white slave owners to sexually exploit their black slaves (Perry 56). By labeling black women as "hyper-sexual," they were painted as the perpetrator in sexual encounters as opposed to the white male. In today's world this has evolved to lessen the word value of black women in regards to rape allegations. This is just another sinister example of the continuity of slavery following its legal death. Backlash against these institutions from the black community have been met with much resistance, sometimes resulting in violent, deathly outcomes from those same institutions-mainly the law enforcement. Not even the United States Constitution is free of blame, as Devon Carbado explains in his article, "From Stopping Black People to Killing Black People," the Fourth Amendment has been interpreted to legalize racial profiling (Carbado 125). This leads to the racial discrimination we see in arrests nationwide-thus spinning the cycle of oppression and poverty. All protagonists in Homegoing are disillusioned to these institutions and white culture, which mirrors the feelings of many in African-American communities today. Slavery was just the beginning of the exploitation and oppression that African-Americans would have to face for centuries. By comparing the horrors of slavery to Hell, Gyasi demonizes the slaving industry and those involved. Ness, born a slave, is the primary channel through which Gyasi illustrates the life of a slave. Gyasi describes Ness's life at the first planation as, "In Hell, the sun scorched cotton so hot it almost burned the palms of your hands to

Having been born in Ghana and emigrated to the United States at the age of nine, Yaa Gyasi unders... more Having been born in Ghana and emigrated to the United States at the age of nine, Yaa Gyasi understands the life of Africans and African-Americans-more importantly the connection they have with each other. In her novel, Homegoing, she demonstrates the oppression wrought on by colonialism, imperialism, and slavery by following a family's lineage dating back to the seventeenth century. These issues remain in memory for white culture, yet their effects are still being felt to this day in the black community. Even after Brown v. Board of Education, there still remains much housing segregation that leaves the poor neighborhoods with failing schools-thus creating a cycle of poverty. Gyasi illustrates the struggles of each generation in the family, which further paints the cycle of oppression that exists. She also shows that institutions put in place by white culture have historically failed African-Americans and Africans alike. I argue that Homegoing shows the implications of colonialism imperialism, and slavery, which displays the connections they have to the struggles in the black community today. Ultimately, Gyasi suggests that the oppression that black people face today is largely systematic, as they were forced to live in a culture and society that favors white people. Gyasi's Homegoing uses characters that have been subjected to such oppression. Sadly, these stories are all too familiar with those among the black community. Their oppressors, western culture , subjugated the native African people to benefit their own gain through use of institutions like education, religion, law-enforcement and slavery. Michael Omolewa explains in his article "Educating the 'Native,'" that the English colonizers had pushed Euro-centered ideals and culture that were "ill-suited and irrelevant" to African people (Omowela 269). Furthermore, Africans had grumbled as they noticed new values like "intolerance, hatred, 'cutthroat competition,' disharmony, pride, arrogance, and even cheating" (Omowela 269). Beyond the physical exploitation of black people throughout slavery, Melissa Harris Perry explains the stereotypes that stemmed from it that persist to this day in her book, Sister Citizen. She claims the origin of the Jezebel stereotype as an excuse for white slave owners to sexually exploit their black slaves (Perry 56). By labeling black women as "hyper-sexual," they were painted as the perpetrator in sexual encounters as opposed to the white male. In today's world this has evolved to lessen the word value of black women in regards to rape allegations. This is just another sinister example of the continuity of slavery following its legal death. Backlash against these institutions from the black community have been met with much resistance, sometimes resulting in violent, deathly outcomes from those same institutions-mainly the law enforcement. Not even the United States Constitution is free of blame, as Devon Carbado explains in his article, "From Stopping Black People to Killing Black People," the Fourth Amendment has been interpreted to legalize racial profiling (Carbado 125). This leads to the racial discrimination we see in arrests nationwide-thus spinning the cycle of oppression and poverty. All protagonists in Homegoing are disillusioned to these institutions and white culture, which mirrors the feelings of many in African-American communities today. Slavery was just the beginning of the exploitation and oppression that African-Americans would have to face for centuries. By comparing the horrors of slavery to Hell, Gyasi demonizes the slaving industry and those involved. Ness, born a slave, is the primary channel through which Gyasi illustrates the life of a slave. Gyasi describes Ness's life at the first planation as, "In Hell, the sun scorched cotton so hot it almost burned the palms of your hands to