Citizen by Claudia Rankine Book Analysis

African-Americans are a minority that are usually stereotyped by white people, and the world in general. African-Americans are most often portrayed as poor, uneducated, and very often as criminals. In the book Citizen, Claudia Rankine speaks on these particular subjects of stereotyping deeply. African-Americans are still experiencing hardships every day that stem from slavery such as racial profiling, and stereotyping. Their citizenship which took many centuries to gain does not protect them from these hardships.

 Rankine writes a lot throughout Citizen about the hardships of stereotyping, and racial profiling. “Your neighbor tells you he is standing at his window watching a menacing black guy casing both your homes. The guy is walking back and forth talking to himself.” (Rankine 15) This is an example of a white guy who is completely unharmed, and unbothered stereotyping a blackman as a criminal. He is racially profiling by making the assumption that he is a threat because, one he's black and two, he is pacing back and forth.  “Anyways he wants you to know he called the police.” (Rankine 17) The African-American man did nothing to the white man yet he still called the police because he felt he was in danger with the African-American man being in his presence.

Another example of stereotyping Rankine writes  about is the assumption that African-Americans are poor. “All of them that we see are so poor, someone else said, and they are so black.” (Rankine 85) Unfortunately this is a big issue in our economy. The net worth of a typical white family is nearly ten times greater than that of a Black family. I'm not saying that blacks can not be wealthy and that they are poor but when you are presented with a statistic along the line of a white person having a lot more wealth than an African-American, that is the assumption most people are going to make. It's unfair that this is how African-Americans are represented and, unfair that they do not have equal opportunities as a white person. “One needs to be white to be truly successful.” “Relationship between the white viewer and the black viewer immediately become one between white persons and black property.” (Rankine 34) It seems that it is whites vs blacks in our world. That the whites will always be better and more successful than any colored person. Even while being out in public at a restaurant or grocery store, whites will racially profile an African-American and assume they do not have enough money to be there. “The man at the cash register wants to know if you think your card will work.” (Rankine 54) Things like that happening are unfortunate for an African-American because it can take a toll on how they feel, and it's embarrassing to be asked a question like that around lots of other white people because you already know what they're thinking of you.

The last form of stereotyping Rankie addresses in the book is the assumption that African-Americans are not educated. “And when the woman with multiple degrees says, I didn't know all black women are educated.” Not all African-American women are educated but the white lady was stereotyping, making the assumption that it's not normal for an African-American to have any type of education due to their skin color. Not only do whites make the assumption that African-Americans aren't educated they also assume that because they are black they shouldn't be allowed to do the same things a white person can and have those same opportunities. “Her black body didn't belong here” (Rankine 26)

For African-Americans in the U.S being of color can create a lot of hardships and struggles in their everyday lives. Not only do they create hardships but it also can take a toll on them mentaly when the world is making African-Americans feel like they don't belong. People in the world make African-Americans feel like they aren't normal, that they can't or shouldn't be allowed to do things like a white person and sadly these hardships they go through are always going to be present.

In the same way that Citizen focused on the stereotypes, and racial slurs that are made of African-Americans, I have experienced the hardships of being partially African-American. I have been called names and made fun of, I've experienced many people making assumptions about who I am based on my skin color, and people belittling me because of my character. 

Growing up for me was quite difficult. I am half African-American, and half Hispanic. I was raised by a single mother in a good neighborhood and went to an all girls private school for the majority of my life. Being in an all girls private school most of my class was white females, to be exact it was all white girls except for me and one other student. When I was transitioning from middle school to high school my mother got a new job and I was taken out of the private school and put into a public highschool. I can not express enough how hard this was for me.

People tore me into pieces at my high-school. I was racially profiled everyday, constantly being told “you act like a white girl”, “your family has to much money for someone who’s black”, “you live in a white neighborhood”, “your clothes are too nice for someone whos black” “there's no way you've traveled out of the country, where’d your mom get that money from”. The craziest part of these things being said to me, is they were all said by African-American people. Being in a public highschool really opened my eyes to the assumptions that the world creates for African-American people, and what people expect from an African-American person, and like Rankine wrote about these hardships can take a toll on who you are. “We are drowning here “ (Rankine 85) “The worst injury is feeling you don't belong so much” (Rankine 146) I felt both of these quotes very deeply. In high school I never felt like I fit in with any crowd, and like I was an alien to my own people. But in the end all the hardships I faced were a big lesson and a part of making me become who I am today. “It wasn't a match I say, it was a lesson.” (Rankine 159)

Reading the book Citizen really made me think a lot about how African-Americans are mistreated, misjudged, and misunderstood in the U.S. Reading this also made me realize how it can be so easy to judge without even knowing a person and from now on I'm going to be more understanding and aware of myself and my thoughts about others. It's unfortunate that African-Americans are dealing with hardships everyday, and they have been for centuries, and sadly it seems like these hardships are never going to stop.