Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Haley Scholars (Group 1) Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah's "The Finkelstein 5"

[Haley Reading Groups Spring 2022]

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah's "The Finkelstein 5" is one of the most powerful, inventive, and scary short stories we've read for our online reading group.

The tale focuses on the outcome of a brutal and terrible racist situation where a white man was found not guilty, though he admitted killing black children. In response, groups of African Americans begin killing random white people in crazed acts of anger and vengeance.    

There's so much to consider with this story. The racist killing of black children. The violent acts of revenge. The racial profiling. The ways the main character considers levels of blackness. And more. 

What most captured your attention about this story? And why?

70 comments:

Linda H. said...

What captured my attention most was the violence. The author described every act of violence in detail and it was a bit hard to read. The black trauma in this book isn't real but things like that happen. People still have violently racist thoughts about others based on their skin color that they may or may not go through with.

Noah Phillips said...

Something that really captured my attention was the brutal atrocities visualized in the text. The depiction of a man's acquittal after decapitating five young black children with a chainsaw, and using self-defense as the excuse is absolutely vicious. Obviously the story is slightly exaggerating but I think this amplification of reality is what truly enables readers to understand how racist and cruel white oppression was.

LaTrina Brown said...

What captured my attention the most about this story is how familiar it is with today's time, history repeats itself. What went on back then is still continuing today. A white man can admit to killing black children in "self-defense" and get away with it. This story reminds me of many unfortunate situations that have occurred in today's time. Not only were the racist individuals acquitted, but they caused uproar around the entire country such as with the George Floyd incident.

Alexis S. said...

What captured my attention most about this story was the extremely violet descriptions of the events that took place. I was shocked and kind of scarred after reading the first two pages about the cause of death to the Finkelstein 5. This story although extremely violent, did show parallels to real world situations and how racism is still very prevalent today.

Josephine Kanyi said...

The scale of "blackness" captured my attention the most. It's such a common feeling among black people to try and tone down their respective cultures with the goal of not being discriminated against. When a lot of us code-switch because most of the spaces we are in aren't safe for us to be ourselves, abandon our native languages and cultural practices, and even change the way we dress to try and take any attention off of us. It is so troubling how despite how much progress we think has been made through the years, we always arrive at the realization that nothing has changed but we've rather gotten accustomed to living lives that don't disrupt the oppressive "norm".

Josephine Kanyi said...

The scale of "blackness" captured my attention the most. It's such a common feeling among black people to try and tone down their respective cultures with the goal of not being discriminated against. When a lot of us code-switch because most of the spaces we are in aren't safe for us to be ourselves, abandon our native languages and cultural practices, and even change the way we dress to try and take any attention off of us. It is so troubling how despite how much progress we think has been made through the years, we always arrive at the realization that nothing has changed but we've rather gotten accustomed to living lives that don't disrupt the oppressive "norm".

Samantha A, said...

The blatant injustice stood out to me the most due to the accurate similarity to the current justice system. The white man was let off with obvious murder of children due to him feeling threatened, but if this crime was done by a black person with the same excuse they would get the death sentence. It is a shame and truly unfair that black people have to think about turning down their blackness to appear less "threatening" just to help ensure they can make it home at the end of the day.

Samantha A.

Alleson H. said...

What caught my attention the most was how the white man was let off with out serve punishment. It’s upsetting because you can see how not only in this story but today as well people are often times let off the hook when it comes to African American murders. It’s also scary because we see the same thing now a days when African Americans aren’t served justice there’s usually uproar, not as brutal as this story but still uproar.

Melanie M. said...

The portrayal of the Finkelstein Five is what caught my attention the most. It was very reflective of how the justice system and people will try to make seem as though black kids are older than they are or that they were dressed a certain way so they deserved to be murdered or hurt. The blackness scale also caught my attention because it is something I think about when I am out in the world. I know some people will recoil if I act too "black". It is an interesting take on racism and how it can wear on a person's mental being.

Taiye J said...

A lot of this story captured my attention due to the fact that it is a very real, believing story. The rating of the main character's blackness was very shocking to me, because no matter how one is looked at they will always see the color of your skin. His blackness increased or decreased with applying "accessories"; tone of his voice, clothing choices, and even who he associated himself with. Another aspect that shocked me was that the white man was found not guilty, it was shocking but, at the same time it was not. In the early 1900s whites were seen as doing no wrong and African Americans were the only ones seen as being the issue. The story of the murdering of the 5 black children is very insane as the white man decapitated them all with a chainsaw. It's hard to think that this man would go free as he took the saw from his car, "Why couldn't he just drive away if he were able to get his saw from the car?" The kids only picked a fight because, the man wanted to pick one. Highly unfair and uncalled for.

McKenna C. said...

This story was disturbing, but it’s so realistic and stuff like this is still happening today. It’s sad to see how bad this justice system fails and leaves minorities feeling more distant and foreign. The fact that a grown man felt threatened enough by a few young black kids to mutilate these children’s heads from their bodies is mindblowing to me.

McKenna C.

Unknown said...

Saniya Buck
This story is very eye-catching, but what caught my attention the most is the violence that was going on. The way that it is described is frightening especially after reading the first couple of pages. I feel that this story is definitely based on real information that is very unacceptable, that's why it's great to know your history.

Keaira C. said...

This story definitely captured and held my attention the entire time. The story started off by addressing the many truths and stages of growth of Black people. As a black young woman, I can reflect and think on the times when I was younger, and I felt that I had to adjust and bring my "blackness" down for others. Even today, in a lot of environments this is a feeling that I can still feel and is a real current day feeing and thought process. I think it was also captivating that the amount of detail, gruesome and vivid, was powerful enough to create clear images that seemed to stick with me throughout the remainder of the reading. Of course, the clear and existing discrimination stuck with me as well, and the fact that racism, injustice and unfair treatment still goes on today like this, is an injustice within itself.

Paris S. said...

Something that caught my attention were the detailed descriptions about the violence that occurred in this story. While reading, it became a little disturbing and shocking to visualize those violent descriptions, specifically the story of the Finkelstein Five. However, this story can exemplify the type of racial violence that occurs in the world today.

Kelsey H said...

What captured my attention the most was seeing how this story is familiar with what’s going on around the world now. History is definitely repeating itself and like back then nothing is being done about it and many white people get to walk away without getting punished. Another thing that captured my attention is the violent descriptions that were being used. I say it’s a good and bad thing because it shows how many black people were and are still treated and shows sympathy to the world to see what is being done. But sometimes I would say it’s bad because of the horrible things that have happened to our people. We don’t wanna keep hearing/reliving the horrible tragedies.

Kahleea said...

This story was full of shocking and capturing events. What captured my attention the most was the similarities to events today but to the extreme. The exerts from the trail when Mister Dunn is being questioned, show us the ridiculous defense white men use all the time. Mister Dunn insisted on focusing on how the children look older and more aggressive than reality. He kept defending decapitating children claiming her was protecting his children from them. His ability to show no remorse and be proud of his behavior captures the attitude of most defendant in racially motivated murders. The jury’s inability to see this event for what is, caused the outrage of vigilantly justice.

Kahleea W

Ta'mya Cummings said...

What captured my attention the most was the white man being able to get away with killing the black children. Although is it not shocking that the outcome came out to him being not guilty, but it caught my attention because similar things still happens to this day. Many African Americans who just so happened to be killed by a white person have a hard time trying to get justice, and it is not fair that the outcome would be different if the roles were reversed.

Nijay Spellman said...

What immediately caught my attention was the name that was given to the five innocent black children who were murdered, The Finkelstein 5. The name reminds me of The Exonerated 5(the group of black teens who were falsely accused of rape). We are always suffering the most when it comes to racism, which results in a movement and a never-ending cycle of us seeking justice.

Nijay S.

Zaria Hankins said...

What most captured my attention was how realistic the situation felt. Something that felt realistic was the way the main character describes his awareness of how his blackness is perceived by the white people he encounters. The idea of "dialing back" your blackness to make white people feel more comfortable is a very real thing that many people have to deal with every day. Another aspect that felt realistic was the way the lawyer defended the murder of five black children by referring to the white man's American right to feel the need to protect himself. This excuse has been used many times in similar real-world situations. I think the story parallels real life and while the descriptions in the story are unsettling they are real reflections of the violence that results from racism.

Chaianna Curry said...

One thing that really caught my attention during while reading this story was Emmanuel’s reaction to the verdict on the Finkelstein 5 case. The pain he felt was alive in his body- until it wasn’t- and all he felt was “a cold nothingness” (p.3). I think that has become a normal reaction among a lot of my peers concerning stories of black trauma. A lot of us are either numb or desensitized to that type of violence, for various reasons.
-Chai Curry

Anonymous said...

What caught my attention the most was the fact that he woke and dialed his "blackness" down for his phone call. It was so automatic, that he did not think twice about what he was doing. This continued as he become more conscious or woke. He dressed a certain way that really did not align with who he was. He talked in a way that would make him more appealing. He even made sure he had a receipt before the cashier asked him. Is this really what life has come to? The answer is yes. Even his father told him how to manage his blackness before being taught basic life necessities. When he was shot, he was able to be fully himself. Sadly, it was at the expense of his life, yet he knew this.

Alexis H.

Kiya R. said...

One aspect of this story that intrigued me the most is the "scale of blackness" Emmanuel constantly refers to throughout the story. He constantly adjusts his behavior based on this scale to be seen as "less black" and to protect himself from racism, and this is extremely saddening. He often hides his anger and pain, dresses in a certain way, and talks in a certain way because certain things Black people do are criminalized, such as being angry.

This concept shows that many constructs in our society today, such as professionalism and our criminal justice system, are based off of white supremacist ideals that will always oppress Black people, and it sad that we have to constantly think about how we may be perceived simply because of our skin color.

Tamia Flowers said...

What drew my attention to this narrative the most was how similar it is to our own time; history tends to repeat itself. What happened back then is still going on now. A white man can get away with murdering black children in the name of "self-defense." This narrative reminds me of a number of tragic events that have taken place in recent years. We hear about the injustice of Blacks and how this white man felt nothing for his actions for killing these black children.
-Tamia Flowers

Raven Ginger said...

What most captured my attention about this story was how crazy but true the story was. It seems impossible for someone to claim they feared for their life, so they went to their car and got there chainsaw instead of calling 911 in that moment or even leaving once he got to the car. But it’s what happens these days and only the poor victims and their families are punished for it. Also, the fact that he claimed the 7-year-old girl tried to attack him even though her body being found farthest away says that she was running for her life, and he chased and killed her. But the Jury still found him not guilty just make makes my blood boil and blows my mind but that's the world we live in!
-Raven Ginger

Jania Garrison said...

Something that captured my attention the most after reading this story was how the jury felt that the killing of the children was justified. I was shocked to read that they felt that because the children were not in the library reading, they could see why the man cutting their heads off was justified.

Chelsea Cooper said...

What captured my attention most was the emotions of the people. I could feel the the pain of the nice neighbor who threw the cup across the room. The tears of emmanuals father, and the anger of his mother. Everyone was extermely angered and confused by the outcome of a man that told every detail of what he did to thoses children, and justice was not served. The way emmanuel switched to a "cold nothingness". was scary for me. This is what African American people feel on a daily when situation like this destroy our people.

-Chelsea Cooper

Daniel Allison said...

The parallels between the incident in this story and many real-life events caught my attention the most. The detail about the chainsaw was a little over-the-top but besides that, the comparisons to real events were obvious. This made the story more disturbing since it makes you think about what if this same exact incident happened in our world?
-Daniel Allison

Elizabeth Kyande said...

What stood out for me the most was the violence descriptions and the fact that people use 'self-defense' as a form of justification recklessly. When I read this story it got a little personal for me. I am from Kenya, its a country to the East of Africa and we face something called 'Tribalism' its a little similar to 'racism' but it involves tribes instead of skin color. In 2007 we had mass killings of tribes vs tribes (mostly the major tribes who are dominant in number) and the country was in chaos. A lot of people died, houses got burned, families got separated. It was really a dark time for Kenya but things are different now. This story however brought back so many personal memories words could barely express them.

Jalen White said...

The thing that really captured me was the sad true life ties to the real world. It seems like this instance of justice not being served happens too frequently in real life, and this story just takes that notion and cranks it up to the absurd. That feeling of expecting justice and then being met with hurt and anger is all too real, and that reaction to go our and outwardly express that said anger strikes this as a very bold horror story.

Jalen W

Kayla Person said...

My attention was caught in the very beginning when Emmanuel talked about scaling down the blackness in his voice. I feel like this is something most black people can relate to. I find it sad that we still find the need to change ourselves to fit in the workplace, school, and other environments.

-Kayla P.

Jasmyne R. said...

What first captured my attention in this book was how Emmanuel was always trying to "turn down his blackness" all the time. For example, for his interview, his "blackness" was at a 7.6 at first, so he wanted to change clothes so that it would then be at a 4.2 for the interview. It's honestly sad that black people felt, and still feel like, we have to dim down our personality and appearance in order to be accepted in a society that is so heavily focused on white behavior and "perfection". What also caught my attention was how the court justified George Wilson Dunn's killings by saying the children weren't in the library learning or reading so he had the right, basically, to kill them. So much of what has happened in the past is repeating in our present. People, whites specifically, can harm and/or kill a black man or woman and the court would find nothing wrong with this, or would try to justify why it was done.

Phoenix Johnson said...

The author's detailing is what captured me the most. The stories and violence was captivating but the details gave more reality and emotions. The detaling also kept me intrigued and engaged.

Anonymous said...

My attention was most captured by the relevance of this story with events of injustices from both the distant and more recent past. This story is fictional and may seem farfetched to some (the manner in how the children died), but horrible crimes like this are sprinkled all throughout our past. I recently watched the new series of Emmet Till's death and the brutality and the verdict of the crime against him mirror that of The Finkelstein.

_Jacqueline Smith

Dasmin W. said...

One thing that captured me was how realistic the story is to today. The violence in this story can be linked to the brutal unjust violence and discrimination done by police officers against black people. The white man is found not guilty can be linked to how bais and unjust the justice system is towards black people. The outage from African Americans in this book can be linked to the riots over the summer. The story is a reflection of current events.

- Dasmin W.

Brooke Harris said...

What caught my attention most was the reality of situations seen in violent cases when dealing with black people. In terms of a book, it is easy to just kind of shrug off and glimpse over until there are instances that someone might relate to personally or because of others' experiences. It also makes me think of stories like this that could be happening or could've happened without anyone knowing about it and that in itself is disturbing and scary. Imagine how many instances there are daily where someone had sick opinions and carried out demented ideas, and others agreed and justified their actions just because of how people look. It is sickening.
-Brooke Harris

SylveA’sha Radley said...

What captured my attention the most, was the fact that the justice system made an excuse for why he cut the heads off of five black children. So what if they were loitering and was not actually reading inside the library. They didn’t deserve to be murder. He should have been punished for the crime that he committed. This to me was not a fair trial at all. Justice should not be determined by what race you are. You do the crime you do the time.

Byron Coulter said...

Something that caught my eye was just about the events in general. Though cutting the heads of 5 children sounds asinine and just out right unbelievable. We as the public only see what the media can put out and/or hear the stories from victims of these acts. There is something that tells me that behind closed doors and the many unsolved murder cases, that something as heinous as this happened all the time but wasn't seen or heard about ever.

William Akpan said...

The vividly described violence was the aspect that caught my attention the most. The violence of the killings of the black children was intense, but also hearing the justification behind it and the excuses that were made on his behalf. It shows the unfairness of the justice system that something as brutal as this would be able to happen without proper consequence and accountability.

Oyeyemi Efunkoya said...

As someone from a different place of the world which is africa, but came here 3 years I can definitely relate a lot. The story was disturbing, it felt i was in that world, which i realized that it's basically what happening in today's world. But we all say we want the justice system to be change, but we realize that we are not working towards that change. It's very sad to see how bad this justice system fails.

Anonymous said...

Ashanti Y.:

What captured my attention most was all of the violence going on throughout the scene. The author made sure to go into a very detailed description of all of the horrific scenes so far in the book. Although these things have not happened these opinions and ideologies still exist

Walter Carroll said...

The thing that most captured my attention was the obvious parallels to real life in this story. Although this story may have been an extreme example of the injustices that go on the concept was the same. All too often white people are able to commit heinous crimes and get away with them, while the black people that retaliate or even do crimes that aren't as bad, get punished far harder and without the same grace.

- Walter C

Nyah C. said...

Something that stood out to me was Emmanuel having his blackness on a scale. This sounds unusual to us because it's scaled out of 10, but we don't even realize that this is something we do all the time. We are constantly trying to adjust the way we dress and the way we carry ourselves to appear the least intimidating and the most accepting. Our skin, like in the story, is already something that sets others on edge about us, so we try to compensate in other ways by changing our voices and clothes.

Erin Myers said...

K Carter said...
What captured my attention the most is how much it correlates to the present day. White people still aren't being held accountable for acts of violence committed against black people. I feel like the story is showing what will eventually happen if things like this continue to happen in our society.

February 13, 2022 at 11:42 AM
(Originally posted to https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=595859379914711075&postID=4236014451974994464&page=1&token=1644857431182&bpli=1)

Carah F. said...

I really enjoyed the detail and gory. It made the story so realistic and relatable, yet still absurd. Police brutality and a lack of equality in the justice system is something that is very apparent today. Due to social media and technology, everything seems to be live streamed in extreme detail. This occurred often throughout the story through the new channels, flashes of the court cases, and the violent killings. However, when reading this, I thought something this bad would never happen in real life. If someone obviously murdered 5 children in broad daylight, there is no way they’d get away with it. \

Carah F.

Torian henry said...

What captured my attention most is how the author did not hold back in their details and descriptions to help the reader visualize the horrible truths and events of our culture. The reading is extremely representative of society today with the trauma and hardships placed upon people of color.

Torian Henry

Ebonie Byrd said...

This story really captured my attention due to the attention to detail. The way the author details the the slaughters in the story are gruesome. I think this exaggeration from the story helps put a spotlight on black issues. And also shows how many times the victims never receive the justice they deserve simply because of their skin color.
Ebonie B

Tiana J said...

What captured my attention the most in this story is how they described the different levels of blackness. I once took an African Centered Psychology class that touched on this same concept and described how some people were only considered "black" in certain aspects. Ex: origin, physical features, family structure. However, as seen in this story having black skin regardless of how someone may define how "black" you are makes you subjected to racism and violence
-Tiana Jackson

Kiarra Chark said...

What most captured my attention was how aware Emmanual was about his own blackness. Emmanuel was able to adjust his blackness based on each individual situation. He made his blackness rise and fall as he looked for justice for the innocent black kids that we're killed. This was interesting to me because I could relate this to my own life. I too know how to adjust the level of my own blackness to fit certain situations so that it can benefit me in life.

Kiarra Chark

I'Lysa W. said...

The dehumanization of the human lives through such heinous as beheading children is so inhumane and disgusting, yet the disregard and the leniency towards such obvious inhumanity is what continues to amaze me. I am nearly numb from how often stories such as this occur for those that look like me. I do not expect justice. I am just numb.

Darius Campbell said...

What really captured my attention was how closely related this story is to America's legal and justice system. A white person was able to do something heinous to a group of black children and still get away with it. Also the news on TV is extremely similar in the story compared to America. There is a clear divide between people for and against the verdict, and they make there stance on the topic crystal clear.

-Darius C

Anonymous said...

What captured my attention most about this story was how something that is still very apparent in todays world (police brutality) is highlighted and how the Black people retaliated to the injustice. Although it is gory I find this interesting because I have read and heard different opinions from Black people saying that we probably won’t get the justice we deserve until the oppositions feel that pain that we feel and have their loved ones harmed and killed unjustifiably. I am not an advocate for violence but we have had enough of police and Caucasian counterparts performing such acts against us.
Jamie Tabron

Kai Binta Steward said...

What captured my attention was how Black children are often stripped of their youth. In this case their youth and their humanity. This story talks about a reality of a time when a White man could openly kill Black children and his life would still hold more value. The description also was extremely disturbing, appropriately but quite jarring.

Philip Bowen said...

What captured my attention about this story was how relatable this story was to the times we are going through now. It showed there is still no justice when it comes to white men openly killing black kids and getting away with it. The details in how the events were described also caught my attention because of how gruesome and disturbing it was.

- Philip Bowen

Tiffany E. said...

The thing that most captured my attention is that George Dunn felt "threatened" by 5 young black children. Even though they weren't threatening him, that's the only reason that they could think of because there is no justification for doing such a thing. But things like this happen all the time and that's the crazy part.

-Tiffany Ellison

Lexis Lewis said...

What captured my attention the most is at the end when Emmanual was shot in the head. The description of when Emmanual was shot was very vivid and detailed. With the details given, it makes me wonder how do the people that die in the hands of the police feel in their last moments, even if it was not by a gun. Emmanual was shot after he dropped the weapon which happens offen in times we are living in now when African Americans are shot by the police.
-Lexis Lewis

Mahlik G. said...

What most captured my attention about the story was the white man killing black children. It was very unsettling to me because he admitted to killing the black children and still wasn't found guilty; he could've avoided the situation by walking away or just getting in the car to leave.

-Mahlik Good

Kalonji said...

Nana Kawame's use of satire and the unfortunate irony that points to events that have happened in the U.S. in recent years is what caught my interest the most about this story. The following quote illustrates exactly what I mean by this, "...because the children were basically loitering and not actually inside the library reading, as one might expect of productive members of society, it was reasonable that Dunn had felt threatened by these five black young people and, thus, he was well within his rights when he protected himself, his library-loaned DVDs, and his children by going into the back of his Ford F-150 and retrieving his Hawtech PRO eighteen-inch 48cc chain saw" (p. 2). The evidence was clearly lied out and Dunn's use of a chainsaw was clearly over the top and an objective/ reasonable person would have left the scene if they truly feared for their life. Somehow the justice system in this story found a way to justify what most logical people would view as unnecessary, unlawful, and murderous killings. "Basically Loitering", obviously shouldn't give a person the green light to kill 5 unarmed people, especially if those people are kids, and the means is beheading them with a chainsaw. This story is an over-the-top and satirical way of describing injustice and systematic racism that we have seen in our very own legal system, for many minorities who seek justice the cards just are too stacked against them at times.

-KJ Rumph

Ehriana . C said...

What I found most interesting about the story was the author describing the blackness scale in multiple parts of the story. The situations in which he describes the level of blackness are all situations that we as black people go through on a daily basis. Every time the author mentions the scale it's like I can vividly picture what is going on in the story. Me personally I attended predominately white schools growing so when he is describing the main character learning how to control his blackness at a young age I can definitely relate because I used to do the same thing.

-Ehriana C.

Janielle F. said...

What captured my attention the most about this story was the graphic violence. I don't want to say that it isn't realistic or that people haven't or can't be hurt in this way but it's hard to read about, much less think about. This was a really hard story to read.

Anonymous said...

What shocked me and captured my attention most about this story is the how the violence was described. It is very sad that this is the world we live in considering the parallels I got between this story and the manhattan 5.
Fatima Bashir

Anonymous said...

I was most drawn into the story due to amount of violence taking place in this story. The descriptions of what was happening was easy to visualize and it was not a pretty sight. Those innocent young black children who were murdered is upsetting. A realistic aspect I recognized was the fact that during trial it was pointed out that the they had the American right to "protect themselves". I feel like we se that today and that there are many people that get out of doing prison time after they've murdered innocent people. Seems as history continues to repeat itself in many different ways. Many also the same.

Rotrisha Epps

Erin Myers said...

Meghan N.:
What captured my attention the most was the author's vivid description. It's almost like we are able to really sense everything that occurred which was truly traumatizing. African Americans have numerous situations where justice is not received due to the color of their skin and overall inequality which is not fair. Being African American automatically subjects you to violence.

geonel m said...

What caught my attention during this reading was the title of the chapter and the patterns it has with a more common story. The title the Finklestein 5 reminded me of the Central Park five trial. In both narrations, five black children are the center of attention. In one story, they are accused of rape and incarcerated, and in another story, the black children are killed. In one story, an individual confesses to the murder of black children yet walks out free, but in another story, they are falsely incarcerated and spend time in jail. However, in both cases, the 5 black children are innocent. I am wondering if the author was inspired by the Central Park five story.

-Geonel M.

Cheyenne Carpenter said...

The entire story captured my attention, but what had me most shocked was not only the violence but how detailed and explicitly graphic the violence was written in. It is not really shocking that this stuff happened to them because that stuff is currently happening now in America and I'm pretty sure it is happening in other countries as well. This story isn't hard to believe because white people today can kill an unarmed, non-threatening black person and get away with it with no charges or consequences.

Erin Myers said...

Cheyenne C.:

The entire story captured my attention, but what had me most shocked was not only the violence but how detailed and explicitly graphic the violence was written in. It is not really shocking that this stuff happened to them because that stuff is currently happening now in America and I'm pretty sure it is happening in other countries as well. This story isn't hard to believe because white people today can kill an unarmed, non-threatening black person and get away with it with no charges or consequences.

Erin Myers said...

Blogger Arielle S. said...
Quite a few things caught my attention in the reading but the extremely detailed description of the murder was the most interesting. The details were almost chilling and my future career is crime scene investigation so I thought I would be fine. When it comes to pictures in class I'm usually intrigued but when envisioning it myself from the detailed descriptions it was a bit hard to read.

February 16, 2022 at 12:09 PM (originally posted to https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=595859379914711075&postID=4236014451974994464&page=1&token=1645647253042)

Anonymous said...

Anonymous K Carter said...
What captured my attention the most is how much it correlates to the present day. White people still aren't being held accountable for acts of violence committed against black people. I feel like the story is showing what will eventually happen if things like this continue to happen in our society.

February 13, 2022 at 11:42 AM (originally posted to https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=595859379914711075&postID=4236014451974994464&page=1&token=1645647253042)

David Bankole said...

What first captured my attention in this book was how Emmanuel was always trying to "turn down his blackness" all the time. For example, for his interview, his "blackness" was at a 7.6 at first, so he wanted to change clothes so that it would then be at a 4.2 for the interview. It's honestly sad that black people felt, and still feel like, we have to dim down our personality and appearance in order to be accepted in a society that is so heavily focused on white behavior and "perfection". What also caught my attention was how the court justified George Wilson Dunn's killings by saying the children weren't in the library learning or reading so he had the right, basically, to kill them. So much of what has happened in the past is repeating in our present. People, whites specifically, can harm and/or kill a black man or woman and the court would find nothing wrong with this, or would try to justify why it was done.

David Bankole said...

What first captured my attention in this book was how Emmanuel was always trying to "turn down his blackness" all the time. For example, for his interview, his "blackness" was at a 7.6 at first, so he wanted to change clothes so that it would then be at a 4.2 for the interview. It's honestly sad that black people felt, and still feel like, we have to dim down our personality and appearance in order to be accepted in a society that is so heavily focused on white behavior and "perfection". What also caught my attention was how the court justified George Wilson Dunn's killings by saying the children weren't in the library learning or reading so he had the right, basically, to kill them. So much of what has happened in the past is repeating in our present. People, whites specifically, can harm and/or kill a black man or woman and the court would find nothing wrong with this, or would try to justify why it was done.

Erin Myers said...

Breana B.:

What took out to me the most in this story was the white man being found not guilty. It didn't really stand out to me because this is like a broken record. The black community sees this all the time. It's hurtful and sends the message that black life doesn't matter. It reminds me of summer 2020 when the Black Lives Matter movement was at an all time high.