A Graduation Ceremony Story and a Racist Twist

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It wasn’t until her, her family, and friend Bailey were walking up the hill to the school, when she started to feel the pressure of the moment. At the graduation ceremony everything was going smooth, until the principal’s speech left her in doubt of bad news coming. She was right, moments later two white gentlemen took over the stage and the speaker’s post. The man speaking was Mr. Eduard Donleavy, who was running for election and took the graduation ceremony as a great opportunity for him to introduce his plans for the future. The author described his speech as ignorant, self-centered, and humiliating. Suddenly her dream of having a wonderful graduation disappeared. The ceremony turned to a nightmare of forced listening to a speech full of statements that she believed and hoped were avoidable. The speaker, in less obvious way, talked about the Negroes, how they are meant to be farmers, maids, handymen, and washerwomen, and no matter what education they get, that is the prewritten destiny. She started believing that she is not strong enough to run against the wall. His speech has finally come to an end. He left the room with the same confidence as he has entered. The author, the graduates, as well as the rest of the audience who were black, were left with mixed thoughts but mostly full of hate and humiliation.
The time for Henry Reed’s speech has come. Henry was author best friend from school. As the class valedictorian, he and his teacher prepared a speech called “To Be or Not To Be”. But Henry, while being just a child, was already well educated and mentally grown up young man. So instead of making his speech for the audience, he turned his face to the graduates and started to sing the Negro National Anthem. Soon all the graduates joined him, as well as most of the audience.

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