A Marilyn Goldstein painting that I saw in a private collection in New York spoke more loudly to me than any I’ve ever seen. I saw a Black woman, wearing a beautiful hat, maybe even a hood around her shoulders showing she was a college graduate, but she had no face. It’s like she’s a nothing, a face that doesn’t matter, a face not worthy of painting, a person who doesn’t matter.
The painting made me think about our country, the Great Melting Pot where we are supposed to all blend together to make a great people. The painting made me think about how we aren’t a melting pot and how badly we have fallen short of carrying out the honorable words in our Declaration of Independence that states “all men are created equal.”
Prejudice should not exist in a country based on such excellent declarations, yet it has and still does.
The passing of the 13th Amendment in 1865 abolished slavery in the United States, but it didn’t abolish prejudice. We all know that Black people never got equal rights, especially in the South. They couldn’t use the same bathrooms white people used, couldn’t drink from the same water fountains, couldn’t attend the same schools, had to sit in different sections in the movie theater, had to sit in the back of a bus, and on and on. I recently read about Sundown towns, something new and shocking to me, and it made me feel sad and angry.
Did you ever hear of Sundown towns? They existed in many towns from 1890 to 1968, sometimes in whole counties. These places had local laws that banned Black people from being there after sunset. That meant no Blacks could pass through, spend the evening, or reside in those towns. And, the punishments could be quite severe for anyone who didn’t abide by those laws.
A sign on Route 14 in Mississippi: Whites only within city limits after dark. A sign posted at the entrance of a Georgia town: Whites only.
“The Negro Motorist Green Book” was published in 1936, and was updated every year until 1966. It was a travel guide for Black people to keep them safe from racist dangers. It informed them of towns and places to avoid, and places where they would be allowed to eat and sleep. I recently watched the 2018 movie “Green Book,” based on that book. I recommend it if you haven’t seen it.
It’s hard to believe such awful conditions could exist, and within the last century. It is worth noting, too, that the awful situation often extended to Asians, Mexicans, Jews and Native Americans.
I try to imagine myself in their shoes. We all need to imagine ourselves in their shoes. That kind of imagination would wipe out prejudice.
More than ever I appreciate how Martin Luther King Jr. peacefully led marches and brought about legislation to end segregation. He made a difference just as Mahatma Gandhi made a difference in gaining India’s independence from England; just as non-violent protesting students brought an end to the Vietnam War, and the huge AIDS quilt brought worldwide attention to the disease. Peaceful voices speak loudly just as this painting spoke loudly to me.
Carole Gariepy lives in Phillipston.