ipl-logo

Troy Wiggins Letter To My City Summary

1043 Words5 Pages

Troy Wiggins article “Letter to my City” is an emotional reflection of his experiences of living life in the city of Memphis. With Memphis being well-known for its crime rate history and overall concerning representations of Black communities, Wiggins narration provides the negatives of being involved with Memphis in general. His use of pathos, organization, and diction and imagery allows Wiggins to demonstrate a Black man’s perspective on facing racism, lack of overall safety, and hypocrisy of Memphis’ quality of living. Wiggins argument is heavily based on his opinions and his use of his personal experiences drives his points further. “I don’t want to watch endlessly looped videos of black and brown people’s slaughter and share sadface emojis …show more content…

He consistently adds the phrases “There are dead and dying black people everywhere,” “Memphis don’t love me,” (Wiggins, 2017, as cited in Fredlund, 2020, pg. 213) and uses words such as “dead,” “dying,” “blood,” “murder,” “police,” and “blue life.” (Wiggins, 2017, as cited in Fredlund, 2020, pg. 212) Wiggins cannot stress enough of the issue of the danger black lives are under and the blatant racism in the depths of Memphis. Especially the pattern he demonstrates of the danger being due to police brutality. His phrases are downright unfiltered and have the weight of many who have suffered living this similar life. As for the words used, they’re negative and add onto the overall message of the article. Also, “rich people’s,” “poverty,” and “not-rich black people” (Wiggins, 2017, as cited in Fredlund, 2020, pg. 212) are phrases that Wiggins provides as evidence that there is an explicit divide of treatment in the community he lives in due to income and skin color. The claim of Memphis loving everyone is contrasted by the real experiences and lives that are presented by Wiggins which further shows the hypocrisy of the way the city markets itself. He wants black lives to matter, and his story of nearly dying and having this fear of police makes the audience sympathize with

Show More
Related

Summary Of Race And Inequality In Detroit By Thomas Sugrue

729 Words | 3 Pages

Whites took “the wretched conditions” of Paradise Valley as “the fault of irresponsible blacks, not greedy landlords or neglectful city officials,” and because housing was a “powerful symbol of ‘making it’”, whites in Detroit saw this plight as “personal failure and family breakdown,” (Sugrue, 216-217). As a result of the social changes which emerged during the postwar period, Sugrue explains that “Detroit was… torn by cataclysmic violence…” (Sugrue, 260). Sugrue’s claim that, rather than taking the riot of 1967 as the catalyst for urban crisis in Detroit, one must understand a number of factors which preceded the riot in order to understand this issue, is well-defended by numerous anecdotes detailing the the history of Detroit since the postwar period.

Read More

Black Crime By Sudhir Venkatesh: Book Review

715 Words | 3 Pages

Not many PhD scholars or professors are able to get in a black crime neighborhood which is poor, stay for seven years and fail to answer this question: “how does it feel when a person is black and poor in addition?”Most of the studies done in this book were done in safe, sanitized ivory towers. This piece of writing portrays neoliberal capitalism on the lives of working class people among the blacks (Venkatesh, 2009). The community views government leaders such as social service workers, Chicago Housing Authority, government agencies and the police differently. Most of these government officials are perceived negatively.

Read More

Summary Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

388 Words | 2 Pages

He points out that Birmingham is the most likely divided and racist city in the United States. The author explains that Birmingham has many unsettle attacks towards African American (King, par. 8). Martin Luther King, Jr. states that when an opportunity appeared to talk to the economic

Read More

Black Citymakers Book Review

596 Words | 3 Pages

Dominic Akandwanaho HUID: 40871950 AAAS 16: Sociology of the black community TF: Khytie Brown In his book, Black Citymakers: How the Philadelphia Negro Changed Urban America, Marcus Hunter addresses a critical aspect of scholarship about structural racial discrimination and inequality that had not been previously given much scholarly examination. He attempts to explore the responses and reaction of people in weak positions—the truly disadvantaged, to systemic racial discrimination and social inequality. Specifically, he examines a black community in the Seventh ward of Philadelphia —a community that, according to previous work done by W.E Du Bois in The Philadelphia Negro, is faced with many social ills such as poverty and crime.

Read More

The Role Of Isolation In August Wilson's Fences

572 Words | 3 Pages

This book clarifies the significance of how black families endured discrimination and internal problems in their homes. Internalized oppression was the root of the tense relationships in the Maxson family. Troy has suffered many years of racism, which promotes him to protect his children from the harshness of society. In act 1 scene 3 Troy states, “The colored guy got to be twice as good before he got on the team.” Troy Maxson feels that the whites will never let his son get ahead in college sports.

Read More

Rhetorical Devices In Letter From Birmingham Jail

1740 Words | 7 Pages

He says “Its [Birmingham] ugly record of brutality is widely known. Negros has experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches in Birmingham than in any other city in the nation.” (pg. 2), which shows what African Americans are living through. It also shows the fear they were living through.

Read More

Summary Of The Tulsa Race Riot Of 1921

1439 Words | 6 Pages

The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 was an extremely shocking and violent event in American history that unfortunately resulted in the absolute destruction of the prosperous African American neighborhood of Greenwood. In the book, "Death in a Promised Land: The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921," Scott Ellsworth provides the readers with a comprehensive account of the not just the riot, but also its causes, and most importantly, its aftermath. The author shifts his focus throughout the book about the economic, political, and social factors that contributed to the extremely high tensions between the African American and white communities that were in Tulsa. By doing so, light can be shined on what many believe was the root cause of this atrocity. He also vividly

Read More

Political Players In Driving Detroit By Galster

579 Words | 3 Pages

Ultimately, their basic duty was keeping the color line intact. The book describes what the city of Detroit went through as “turf wars”. Keeping the blacks away from the whites. Galster points out that the “local government in Greater Detroit, on behalf of their white citizens, employed several techniques to main the color line, including zoning, occupancy restrictions, and harassment” (Galster, 2012).

Read More

Coming Of Age In Mississippi By Anne Moody

1111 Words | 5 Pages

The African Americans in Centerville were so worried about being able to provide for their families that they began to forget about supporting one another. After Till’s death Moody expressed “resentment toward Negroes” because they are “cowards” for letting the Whites kill innocent individuals in the Negro community (Moody 136). Also was mad at herself and the African Americans “for not putting a stop to the killings or at least putting up a fight in an attempt to stop them” (Moody 202-203). Moody began to create generalization towards African Americans and how they are scared to speak up because they are “brainwashed” and “Mr. Charlie is giving them crumbs” (Moody 287 and 374). Mr.

Read More

Race Discrimination In Baltimore Essay

446 Words | 2 Pages

After recent protests in Baltimore, Badger (2016) explores the nature of policies set in the early 1900’s that have shaped the city of Baltimore, and that continue to have an effect on their quality of life. Actions such as redlining and urban renewal have perpetuated poverty and segregation in the same neighborhoods today as 75 year ago. This article calls attention to the effect of system-wide race discrimination in Baltimore, and how policies create a cyclical link between race and disadvantage in communities. Racial disparities across many subsystems have created a system of race discrimination in which it’s emergent effects implant uber discrimination into our culture and institutions (Reskin, 2012). Reskin (2012) explains how emergent discrimination intensifies disparities within each subsystem and creates systems of race discrimination.

Read More

Heroes In Dragonfyre And Jury Duty

1213 Words | 5 Pages

A hero is ,“a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities”, but the definition of a hero is different depending on the person who is asked. When people are children their heroes are usually their parents or their favorite superhero at the time. Many people also base their idea of a hero from what they see on t.v and in movies. Doctors/nurses, the police, firemen, and the armed forces are the everyday heroes that people usually think about when trying to define a hero. Today’s prime examples of heroes in fantasy are The Avengers, Batman Superman, and Wonder Woman.

Read More

Jail Arrest

648 Words | 3 Pages

There is concentration on the black community in Montgomery, Alabama. This section of the text explores the way in which city officials made attempts to destroy

Read More

Summary Of A Letter To My City By Troy Wiggins

1112 Words | 5 Pages

The article, “A Letter to My City” written by Troy Wiggins for the Memphis Flyer in July of 2017 expands on the issue of the increasing number of deaths of black people in the city of Memphis. Wiggins is a life-long Memphian who is not only concerned with the issue, but also lives in fear of the issue himself. Because Wiggins lives within the city, he is exposed to the white supremacy and police brutality that is taking place in Memphis every day and uses his writing to share his opinions on the matter. Over seventy five percent of the deaths within Memphis (which already has a higher than average death rate) every year are black men. Wiggins writing in “A Letter to My City” effectively uses repetition, compares the issue at hand to millennial trends, and expresses his ideas by using everyday sights for Memphians.

Read More

Summary Of Just Walk On By Brent Staples

756 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout his essay, Staples is able to make the audience understand what he has to deal with as a black man. Staples does this by using words and phrases such as, “...her flight made me feel like an accomplice in tyranny” and “... I was indistinguishable from the muggers who occasionally seeped into the area…” (542). By writing and describing how he (Staples) feels, the audience is able to get an inside look into how black men are treated and better understand why society’s teachings, play a vital role in how we see each other. Staples’ powerful writing also allows the reader to take a step back and see how as a society, people make judgements on others based on appearance alone.

Read More

Martin Luther King's Speech: Critique

1229 Words | 5 Pages

He informs people with the brutalities and injustice being caused to black community and tries to arouse a feeling of empathy and sympathy. Moreover, the delivery and diction being used are quite potent. The diction being used is mainly formal with shades of informal phrases in order

Read More

More about Troy Wiggins Letter To My City Summary

Open Document