Homer Plessy: Standing Up (or should-I-say Sitting Down) for Equality (Adrienne Mitchel)

On the block day this past week in class we watched an informative documentary titled “Many Rivers to Cross: Into the Fire” that shed light on what American ideals in history were accessible to African Americans and what ideals were not. The portion I found most interesting in the documentary was the story of Homer Plessy, a mixed-raced American with African blood who appeared Caucasian. The documentary explained that Plessy boarded a whites-only railroad car, told the conductor he was black, and refused to leave in an attempt to be arrested. His actions were extremely bold, considering lynching was very common during that time as a punishment to blacks when they “needed to be taught a lesson.” However, Plessy knew that because he was so fair skinned and appeared white (only being ⅛ black), there was no chance he would be lynched because to onlookers it would seem as if a white person was being lynched. Plessy’s plan was to go to the Supreme Court to prove that the 14th Amendment, that guaranteed “equal protection of the laws,” did not work. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the 14th Amendment was not violated because the railroad cars were “separate but equal.”

Homer Plessy’s story intrigues me because it illustrates the stupidity and ignorance that is racism. Had Plessy not told anyone of his African ancestry, he would have been fully accepted by the whites. Conversely, if Plessy looked completely black, yet had still been ⅞ white, the whites would act condescending and violent toward him, despite him being almost completely white. Plessy’s story makes me wonder if the way that I look impacts how others perceive me. Being half Asian and yet looking very Caucasian, I can somewhat relate to Plessy in the sense that my ancestry doesn’t coincide with my appearance.  

As new generations become more interatial and lose cultural traditions, should race play a factor in our everyday lives? Should colleges and jobs exclude applicants on the basis of “diversity”? Should people be stereotyped because of their appearance? Can’t we all just be treated as people, with no classifications to subdivide and separate us?