Issues In How To Be Black By Baratunde Thurston

How To Be Black by Baratunde Thurston is a hilarious account of Baratunde’s life coupled with input from “The Black Panel” (which included one white man to keep things diversified). It’s through his comical approach that the reader is forced to look earnestly and seriously at the issues the black community faces every single day. Baratunde starts by having the reader asses their “celebratory skills” concerning Black History Month. This introduction is both humorous and engaging, pulling the reader deeper into memoir. He then addresses many stereotypical questions and assumptions around black culture, including swimming, emotions, careers, school, drugs, Africa, names, “level of blackness”, and more. He shares memories of his mother and father, experiences being the “minority” in a mostly white school, and dealing with Nigerian’s who refused to accept his name, not to mention his participation in an Ankobia program taught by Pan-African activists. By the end

He is considered creative and original, as well as one of the most influential African-American’s in today’s society. Based off of a life with an culturally aware mother, Baratunde was never confused about with ethnicity and his race. His mother kept artwork reflecting the soul of her black awareness and his name, though confusing to others in pronunciation, remained a source of connection for him to his roots in Africa. From then on he used his experiences dealing with racism and stereotypes as lessons to help him maneuver through life a little more smoothly. One particularly important moment being his senior trip to Africa, where we was able to visit Goree Island, “the final point of departure for many slaves headed to the Americas…” (121, Thurston). Another defining moment in his life was graduation when he came to the realization that, “I could be me and thus be black but not have to be black in order to be me.” (145,