The views that Bharati Mukherjee and James Baldwin have in common

The views that Bharati Mukherjee and James Baldwin have in common

In his essay, “stranger in the village”, James Baldwin explains his experience in a small Swiss village. When Baldwin visits the village in Switzerland, he realizes that he is the first black person ever to visit the village. Although everyone in the village knows his name and that he is a friend to a local woman and her son, Baldwin experiences a sense of alienation and isolation from the people around him. Baldwin is treated as a stranger by the villagers; children shout “Niger! Niger!” and the villagers are curious about his physical appearance.

In the essay “American Dreamer”, Bharati Mukherjee gives an account almost similar to Baldwin. Mukherjee moved from Calcutta India to the United States, where she experiences both self and cultural transformation. Being an immigrant, Mukherjee had to find a new cultural identity because she was no longer a “majority” but among the minority group of multicultural student. During her years in the University of Iowa, Mukherjee fell in love with Clark Blaise who was a Canadian; and the two later got married. Although Mukherjee felt accepted in the United States, when she moved to Canada, she felt like she did not belong. Mukherjee says that “I thought of myself as an expatriate Bengali permanently stranded in North America because of destiny or desire” (Mukherjee, 1997). During that time, majority of Americans accepted cultural diversity, while others felt that all legal immigrants should be locked away. Mukherjee remembers how Lake County School in Florida taught students that European and American cultures were more superior to other cultures.

Baldwin and Mukherjee experience almost similar experiences of discrimination in the societies they find themselves in. In Canada, Mukherjee felt like she did not entirely belong because society was still conservative about other races. Mukherjee says that she thought of herself as an “expatriate Bengali stranded in North America because of destiny or desire” (Mukherjee, 1997). Mukherjee says that she experienced some level of loneliness which she could not acknowledge too. In those particular years, Canada officially resisted cultural diversity. Even though she spoke Canadian language, Mukherjee was still treated as a stranger. Baldwin experiences the same isolation in Switzerland, where he is treated as a stranger and as an individual who is not human. Just like Mukherjee, Baldwin has some friends in the village, but still, the villagers view him as a stranger (Baldwin, 1955). Children would shout “Niger! Niger!” when he passed near them and other villagers touched his hair and rubbed his skin to see if the black colour would peel off.

Baldwin says that European imperialism makes white people fit whenever they go. Unlike whites, blacks experience an unavoidable internal turmoil and rage whenever they find themselves in a white society. White people treat blacks as “irredeemable savages” which makes blacks lack the sense of freedom and belonging in the white community (Baldwin, 1955). Mukherjee experienced the same racial isolation as Baldwin when she first landed in Iowa. Everyone in the University of Iowa was white and a Christian except her and other six international students who were Asians and considered “exotic”. Mukherjee recalls that in 1994, Lake County School in Florida was teaching its students that American and European cultures were superior to other cultures. Precisely, both Mukherjee and Baldwin experienced racial segregation in the societies they found themselves in.

Both writers share the idea that American culture is different. Mukherjee describes it as being unique in that, unlike European culture which embraces homogeneity, the American culture embraces the utopian heterogeneity. Baldwin notices it is the culture of the village where he was residing to buy African Americans to convert them to Christianity. The custom makes the European culture archaic and racially oriented. Mukherjee and Baldwin share a common point of view that American culture rejects the identity of the ‘others’. Mukherjee having grown up in Calcutta as a young girl her identity was already established.  When Mukherjee moved to America, she had to find a new identity since her previous identity would not be handed from generation to generation (Mukherjee, 1997). Baldwin states although white Americans accept black people, they still wish for the “Mythical innocence” of going back to a country where black men do not exist.

Baldwin states that white men seek to conquer and convert people whose identity differs from white Americans. In the Swiss village, he was residing in, and black people were bought and converted to Christians. The white people did not recognize their original identity but rather wanted to assimilate blacks into their culture. Baldwin says that the desire to go back to a “mythical innocence” makes the white Americans exclude and terrorize black people rather than acknowledging that the blacks are American citizens just like the white people.

Similarities and differences in the ways “white” Americans view immigrants and “black” Americans.

White Americans have different perspectives concerning immigrants. About 62% of Americans believe that immigrants strengthen the economy of the country through their work and talents. The other percentage believe that immigrants are a burden to the country because they consume resources like housing, healthcare, and jobs. 83% of Democrats support the idea that opinion that immigrants strengthen the country while 11% of democrats have a conflicting opinion. On the hand, only 38% of Republicans believe that immigrants are a strength to the country, while almost half of Republicans feel that immigrants burden the nation (Brown, 2019). Black Americans, on the other hand, view immigrants, particularly Latinos as economic competitors. Due to such economic interests, African Americans support the idea that immigration should be restricted. Other black Americans, notably the middle-class blacks, do not entirely support the restrictive laws on immigration.

Many Americans believe that race relations are generally unpleasant and that the country has not made adequate efforts and progress towards racial equality. Research by Pew Research Center indicates that there are profound distinctions between white and black people regarding their view on racial differences and immigrants. Americans find it difficult to accept the black and other immigrants because they believe that doing so would demean their status as white men. Such mentality stems from the idea that the white men invented the present civilization, which is more superior and the only one that matters. The white Americans view immigrants as a tribute because they want to convert and assimilate them. Majority of white American see the immigrants as inferior and that their superiority over the immigrants should not be questioned. Black Americans, on the other hand, have no thoughts of conquest but rather feel controlled and intimidated by other immigrates.

Regarding the efforts of the country to promote racial equality, both black American and white Americans agree that the country has not done enough to promote racial equality. A growing number of people believe that the government needs to put more efforts in addressing racial equality and discrimination against immigrants. Both black and white American believe that being white helps one get ahead in terms of economic prosperity and realization of the American dream. About half of black Americans believe that being black or Hispanic put individuals at a disadvantage. Majority of white Americans, on the other hand, believe that being white helps a little in getting ahead. About 52% of black Americans believe that being black affects the ability to get ahead due to racial discrimination. However, white Americans believe that the inability of immigrants to get ahead is caused by a lack of role models and family instabilities.

Regarding the treatment of immigrants by the criminal justice system, both white and black Americans believe that immigrants are treated less fairly as compared to Native Americans. Approximately six-in-ten black Americans say that immigrants are treated less fairly than whites when being hired, in payment and job promotions, in stores, when voting during elections, or when seeking healthcare services (Bouie, 2013).  Majority of immigrants say that they have experienced discrimination and unfair treatment in various contexts because of their ethnicity.

In conclusion, in the essay, “stranger in the village”, James Baldwin explains his experience in a small Swiss village. Although everyone in the village knows Baldwin’s name and that he is a friend to a local woman and her son, Baldwin experiences a sense of alienation and isolation from the people around him. In the essay “American Dreamer”, Bharati Mukherjee gives an account almost similar to Baldwin. Being an immigrant, Mukherjee had to find a new cultural identity because she was no longer a “majority” but among the minority group of multicultural student. Baldwin and Mukherjee experience almost similar experiences of discrimination in the societies they find themselves. White and black Americans perceive immigrants differently in terms of how immigrants benefit or burden the country. However, the views of black and white Americans regarding some issues like treatment of immigrants concur.

References

Baldwin, J. (1955). Stranger in the Village. Notes of a native son, 159-75.

Brown, A. (2019 April 9). Key findings on Americans’ views of race in 2019. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/09/key-findings-on-americans-views-of-race-in-2019/

 Bouie, J (2013 January 28). How African Americans View Immigration Reform. Retrieved from https://prospect.org/power/african-americans-view-immigration-reform/

Mukherjee, B. (1997). American dreamer. Mother Jones, 22(1