By: Skye Dunbar and Morgan Stewart

 What do you think of us based off our appearance?  What do you think people think of you when they first see you?

 “ Between me and the other world there is ever an unasked question: unasked by some through feelings of delicacy; by others through the difficulty of rightly framing it. All, nevertheless, flutter round it. They approach me in a half-hesitant sort of way, eye me curiously or compassionately, and then, instead of saying directly, How does it feel to be a problem? they say, I know an excellent colored man in my town; or I fought at Mechanicsville…” 1. What problem do you think Du Bois is referring to? 2. In any situation have you ever felt or been hinted to that you were the problem, if so how did you feel?

 “ A world which yields him no true self consciousness, but only lets him see himself through the revelation of the other world. It is a peculiar sensation, the double consciousness, this sense of always looking at oneself through the eyes of others, of measuring ones soul by the tape of a word that looks on in amused contempt & pity.” 1. What do you think DuBois means by looking at oneself through the eyes of others? 2. Has it ever changed your outlook not only on your self, but others as well?

 “that sky was bluest when I could beat my mates at examination time, or beat them at a foot race, or even beat their stringy heads. Alas, with the years all this fine contempt began to fade ; for the world I longed for, and all their dazzling opportunities, were theirs not mine.” 1. What point do you think Dubois is trying to make here?

 “A silence then fell over the room. The indignant brother asked if anyone could “vouch for this white boy” More excruciating silence ensued. Now was my moment of truth; Woody turned plaintively toward me, but I would not meet his eyes. To my internal disgrace, I refused to speak up for him 1. Have you ever failed to defend another and regretted it? 2. What internal disgrace do you think Loury is referring to?

 “But that moment of truth in that south side church basement, and my failure in the face of it, have helped me understand the depth of my own need to be seen by others as ‘black enough’” 1. What does Loury mean by black enough? 2. Black enough and white enough are two commonly used terms of today have you ever been told this and how did this make you feel?  “I had feared that to proclaim before the black radicals in the audience that this ‘white boy’ at my side was in fact our ‘brother” would have compromised my own chance of being received among them as a general colleague, too. Who, after all, was there to vouch for me, had I been dismissed by one of the “brothers” as an uncle tom?” 1. Have you ever been alienated from your own because you supported another group

 “I am so much more than the one wronged, misunderstood, underestimated, derided, and ignored by whites.” 1. Have you ever felt trapped by your race or by expectations of others based on your apperance?

 The alternative seems so much more frightening to me- stifling the development of our children personalities by imposing upon them an invented ethnicity. 1. Should race or appearance have such a grip on peoples opinions is it possible to change this, if so how?

 What is similar between DuBois and Loury experiences and thoughts?

 DuBois, W.E.B. "From the Souls of Black Folk." The Human Experience: Who Am I. 6th ed. Littleton: Tapestry,, Print.  Loury, Glenn C. "Free At Last? A Personal Perspective on Race and Identity in America." The Human Experience: Who Am I. 6th ed. Littleton: Tapestry,, Print.