(white) america

A definition

The first thought that comes to mind when thinking about mythology is the ancient Greeks and Latins that tried to answer great existential questions and to explain the origins of the universe through rather imaginative tales involving gods, tragedies and natural catastrophes. As a matter of fact, Merriam-Webster defines the myth as a "usually traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the worldview of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon". However, the word presents a second meaning, which is the most relevant in the scope of this analysis: "a popular belief or tradition that has grown up around something or someone; especially: one embodying the ideals and institutions of a society or segment of society". In other words, the term myth also encompasses all those notions that, although common and widespread, are not necessarily true. They are narrations which pervade common knowledge and that, precisely for this reason, are difficult to detect and question.

It is striking that the dictionary selects an American myth—individualism—as a representative example to the sense of the word. Although said specific myth will not be taken into consideration in the present seat, other foundational myths of the United States will be delved into—equality and white supremacy.

An empty promise?

The Declaration presented itself not only as a great promise for the American people, but also as a source of inspiration for other nations since it was based on the concept that men had inalienable rights—equality, freedom, the pursuit of happiness—which could not be denied to anyone.

Even the Constitution—drafted in 1787 and ratified the following year—excluded slaves from the "general welfare" and "common defense" that seemed to be guaranteed for every American citizen. In fact, African-Americans were considered three fifths (3/5) of a person. Moreover, the Constitution ensured that the Transatlantic Slave Trade (that is, the process of importation of Africans to the U.S. with the purpose of enslaving them) persisted until 1808 and forced the return of those who had succeeded to escape.

The "why" behind slavery

"How could a nation support equality and admit slavery?" is a legitimate question. In order to attempt to give an answer, it is necessary to trace the reasons behind slavery.

Slavery is almost as old as America itself. Indeed, cotton and tobacco plantations were already active (especially in the South) in 1619. Alexander (2010) highlights that not all Blacks imported from abroad to America were enslaved, but they worked as endentured laborers, that is, they worked for a specific length of time or until their debt was paid. Although life conditions were harsh in both scenarios, endentured workers' rights were protected. However, as plantation farming expanded and demand for laborers grew, slavery presented itself as a more profitable and cheaper alternative for landowners. Alexander (2010) also points out that Blacks were carefully selected as ideal candidates since they were relatively powerless and they did not have any cultural means to rebel against their oppressor; on the contrary, American Indians had the power to fight back and enslavement of European people would have prevented immigration to the colonies. 

Does this mean that Whites were not enslaved? No, the situation was far more complicated: poor, enslaved whites existed but did not ally with blacks because landowners granted them privileges that Blacks did not have access to, thus encouraging a racial-based competition and rivarly. 

By the 1770s (which is exactly the period in which the Constitution was drafted), slavery had already taken root and a racial caste system was in place. To go back to the original question, slavery and equality coexisted because each of them was referred to different groups of people: equality was guaranteed only to wealthy whites, whereas slavery was normalcy for Black people. Africans, just as Indians, were considered an inferior race made of brutes, with limited intelligence and capabilities than light-skinned people. The soon-to-be-born nation, predicated on equality, freedom, and justice did not consider Blacks (or Indians) as citizens whose rights had to be protected.

Slavery was formally abolished with the Emancipation Declaration in 1863; the emphasis here is in the term "formally". As a matter of fact, although the Declaration freed slaves, the freedom was illusory since the Declaration was issued during the Civil War (1861-1865), which had to be won first to make the Declaration valid. Even then, as it will be detailed in the following sections, Black people soon returned to a condition similar to slavery since new systems of control were put in place and the beliefs that provided the theoretical backbone of slavery did not disappear altogether but were rather preserved and adapted.

(Other) definitions

In this discourse, as you may have gathered, a key concept is that of race. Among its many meanings, race is also used to define "one of the groups that people are divided into, having the same colour skin or hair and other things that are the same". As genetics studies and scientific inquiries have demonstrated since the 20th century, there no biological basis for a differentation among "races" as all humans share 99.9% of their genetic material. It is, instead, more proper to talk about ethnic differences motivated by physical characteristics or cultural differences and not by a biological hierarchy. In short: there are no "races" and the consequent differentiation between "superior" or "inferior" races is a fabrication. However, this wasn't always the case.

Indeed, the concept of race first emerged in the 17th century precisely as a means to justify the enslavement of African-American people, as Conklin underscores, and eventually science fell in line by providing pseudoscientific theories that contributed to support the system. Prominent figures such as Arthur de Gobineau (who wrote the Essay on the Inequality of Human Races) affirmed the superiority of the "Aryan race" over the others and the science of "intelligence testing" supported that same argument, claiming that whites (especially northern Europeans) were more intelligent than Africans.

Deeply radicated in society and backed by scientific claims, the idea of race flourished as well as the idea of a racial hierarchy that placed Blacks (along with other minority groups) at the bottom and whites at the top. It is here that the key concept of white supremacy becomes central. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines white supremacy as "the belief that the white race is inherently superior to other races and that white people should have control over people of other races" and "the social, economic, and political systems that collectively enable white people to maintain power over people of other races". 

Despite the legal banishment of slavery, white supremacy solidified as a concept, becoming "a religion of sorts" (Alexander, 2010, 26), thus adquiring autonomy from the institution itself. Due to its high adaptability, ideas revolving around race and the superiority of white people endured and nourished the birth of other systems of control. 

What does it mean?

It means that, although slavery was formally abolished in 1863, new forms of segregation cyclically emerged in history:

• 1863-1877: in the so-called Reconstruction, economic issues and amalgamation fears (especially in the Southern States) led to the development of a new racial order through the Black codes. Although Alexander (2010) recognizes the importance of some progressive measures—such as the Civil Rights Act (1866) and the introduction of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments—she also argues that they were mainly symbolic since racial segregation emerged again through custom both in the North and in the South.

• 1877-1945: during this long period, progressive action was counteracted and reversed especially by Southerners conservatives and Ku Klux Klan terrorist campaigns. Consequently, discrimination operated through a legal loophole: despite the fact that slavery had been abolished, the 13th Amendment allowed it as a punishment for convicts who became "slaves of the State". A new racial order predicated on segregation and Black subjugation emerged and bore the name of Jim Crow, a term originally used in racist minstrel shows.

• By 1945, the Jim Crow system was questioned due to multiple combining factors: the rise of Black political power, the influence of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the fight against Nazism in the Second World War. In this scenario, the Supreme Court actions and the civil rights movements proved crucial and resulted in the Civil Rights Act (1964) and Voting Rights Act (1965).

What has been explained so far is only a fraction of the immense microworld that revolves around the myth of equality and white supremacy in the United States (and beyond). There are multiple books and essays that delve into it and you can find some of them in the "Bibliography" page of this website. However, I acknowledge that they may not be all easily readable and accessible for English learners as most of them are written by specialists of the field (and I also know that the chance of high schoolers actually reading them in their free time is slight).

For this reason, this space is reserved for more interactive, audiovisual materials I personally watched or stumbled upon during my research that I think may be more approachable for teenagers and potentially used in class.

White Right—Meeting the Enemy (2024)

Between the World and Me (2020)

When They See Us (2019) and 13th (2016)     

Get Out (2017)

The Help (2011)