Going Against the Grain

       In the beginning of the Chapter “Going against the Grain” the reader gets a historical perspective of African Americans and the role of literacy in the fight for equal rights. The chapter also explains the role of the African American women in the black community. These women served as the glue that kept the family together; she was nurturer and the doctor to the family when people were sick. These women were essential to the village by solving people’s issues and essentially becoming the providers for their families. Black women were seen as the survivors of the community and could help others do the same. They held a certain mindset through the struggle in which authors Loewenberg and Bogin referred to as sustaining“wholeness” through such tough times.

<!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]-->Although African Americans were fighting for equal rights in America it was proving to be a very difficult task throughout time. African Americans wanted to be viewed as human beings rather than just black people. America’s flaws began to show after the American Revolution as the Declaration of Independence claimed to demand equal rights for all mankind but failed to include black people as human beings. Jefferson elaborates on this as he suggest that black people should have human rights but goes on to say that they should not be equal to whites. I view Jefferson as a hypocrite because he claims to agree that black people should be respected but he continues to keep slaves on his plantations which rob them of their freedom and self-respect.

Benjamin Franklin was also a major advocate for equal rights of African Americans towards the last years of his life. Franklin was president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society and used this role to take initiative and write a letter to the congress with his concerns. Franklin explains in the letter the seriousness of slavery and its effects on its principles on the nation.

Black people's freedom was a controversial topic for the people of America, some people felt that they should be free and some saw no problem with them remaining slaves. Some political figures felt the need to stand up against them as a whole but some of them wanted to avoid controversy within the newly formed country.