James Baldwin’s Take on Education: It’s Time for a Change
Deception, racism, and looming oppression—all things plaguing African Americans in the 1960’s. A life of firsthand experience, and a beacon of hope for change, James Baldwin, an African American author pleas for change in the education of Black children in his speech, “A Talk to Teachers.” Baldwin’s goal is to ultimately save America through changing the education of Black American children. Educating Black Americans honestly about their past will occur through the audience of New York schoolteachers Baldwin talks to. Appealing to ethos, pathos, and logos, Baldwin sets himself up as a respectful and experienced American who wants to add to the teachers’ repertoires of skills to educate African American children during an era when doing so is dangerous, but incredibly necessary.
Baldwin begins his speech by recognizing the teachers’ authority on the subject of teaching. He proceeds to tell them of his experiences and why America needs teachers to listen to him for its survival. He appeals to his expertise by describing the “revolutionary situation” that “we” are in (197). Baldwin’s usage of “we” signifies to the audience that they are in this fight together, that he is part of the change that needs to happen. The revolutionary situation he speaks of is the height of the civil rights era when Black Americans are trying to achieve recognition as human beings. His including himself sets him up to admit that he is “talking to schoolteachers” and he himself “[is] not a teacher” (197). But he is part of the movement. He uses this fact to disregard any potential belief that he is disrespecting the teacher’s experience. He is acknowledging their expertise and introducing his purpose for speaking—a better education for Black Americans. He wants to break the race barricades that threaten to destroy America. Showing his respect and knowing his place then sets the stage for Baldwin’s addition of his own personal experience. Baldwin includes that “[he] was a street boy, so [he] know[s]” (199). Baldwin knows the type of life many Black Americans have because of their skin color and the quality of their education because he once was one of the Black New York children he speaks of. Stating his past makes the audience believe him and listen to him because he knows firsthand how detrimental it is, and will continue to be, if Black American children continue to receive poor education. His personal history again drives home his desire to be part of the “revolution” and his hope to bring the students and teachers along too.
Baldwin then continues his speech to disclose the realities of the education Black American children receive and the effects of that education. He appeals to the sad and desperate emotions of the audience. Baldwin paints the image that Black American children who receive American education “[run] the risk of becoming schizophrenic.” Schizophrenics have a stigma of being unhinged and helpless. Baldwin includes schizophrenia, because the current education is corrupt and faulty for black children, designed so they won’t succeed in life. It teaches them they have equal opportunity as the White American man, but later they realize they have been deceived. Baldwin cites this major mental disorder because it puts more emphasis on the corruption of the current education for Black Americans and strikes a sensitive chord with the audience. The teachers are emotionally triggered by the word “schizophrenia” because the idea that Black students might become mentally disturbed by education, they are likely to feel shame. If they feel emotionally attached to the problem, they are more likely to act for change. If Black people fail in life because of bad education, then the educators have failed. Baldwin continues, however, to suggest that they are not to blame. The lack of progression is due to the years of “brainwash[ing].” Brainwashing carries a negative connotation giving listeners an image that the figures of power in America wanted to instill in the minds of the citizens, forcefully, possibly painfully, that Black Americans are not equal to White Americans. Baldwin continues on telling how Black Americans came and still are at the “bottom” (200) when talking about the financial situation. The word bottom, when used with a hierarchy, is never a good place to be. This location communicates hardship and suffering which Baldwin includes to display how Black Americans have not progressed – which he builds upon later – and to drive teachers to work for change, in hopes they emotionally respond to the mass poverty facing African Americans. The teachers feel compassion towards the African Americans who are being cheated of their right to good education. This emotion will not fix the problem though, which Baldwin understands. The emotion needs to and does evolve into action to stand up to the corruption; to change the education for African Americans. Baldwin shares these controversial and emotion provoking statements with the audience in order to push his idea that the education that non-white schoolchildren receive is faulty and desperately needs change. The use of the hard but honest words are likely to be a catalyst for change. Baldwin hopes the emotional effect of his statements will cause teachers to “go for broke” (197) – to run the risk of bettering African Americans’ education – and act out of passion and emotion, in favor of that change.
Baldwin finalizes his claims in his speech by providing examples of how Black Americans being mistreated has historical roots, and poor education enables the continuation of their mistreatment. He appeals to logic and reason through factual evidence when he says “now, in 1963, because we have never faced this fact, we are in trouble” (200), when speaking of the reason Blacks were brought to America. “This fact” that Baldwin speaks of is that Black Americans were slaves to White Americans in the era of slavery in America. In that time, Black Americans were seen as property and a source of profit by Caucasian Americans. Since then, African Americans have gained freedom, but Baldwin questions if they really have gained freedom. He says “we are in trouble” as America because we have tried to repress that dark time and just move forward like it never happened. This is Baldwin’s issue. There are still effects of slavery now – the treatment of Blacks and the type of education they receive – because slavery is not something that has ever been addressed. Baldwin also says he “was not a[n N-word]” (200), despite being called one. Baldwin cites a specific example of his personal experiences of being a Black American man, which reflects those experiences of many other Black Americans. Being called this derogatory term categorized him, in the eyes of many White Americans, as their idea of a stereotypical Black person. The term dehumanizes him and other Black Americans. This stereotype also links back with the fact that slavery hasn’t been addressed. Being called a “nigger” is directly related to the White people’s image that Black Americans aren’t their equals, an image created in the slavery era. Caucasians’ perception of African Americans, stemming from their ancestors’ first interactions with them – slavery – makes it easy for them to continue their mistreatment of Black Americans. Piled atop of the history, African American children are not receiving strong education, so they are trapped with an inability to thrive in life. The lack of good education almost assures their financial and social stagnation, again making them susceptible to racism. Baldwin lastly states that Caucasians “didn’t know you had feelings” (201), linking back to when he warns of a “conspiracy to make Negroes believe they are less than human” (200). These two quotes again apply to the racism Blacks endure, resulting from Slavery. Ignorance to Black Americans having emotions is again resultant from decades of an unwritten idea that Black Americans are not on the same level as White Americans. The broken education of Black American children perpetuates this ignorance because they – Black Americans – are forced to grow up to be the people that are easy, for White American, to view as less advanced. The “conspiracy” Baldwin addresses speaks of an idea that the educational system for African Americans could be specifically established, by White Americans, to keep the Black Americans from progressing. If this is the case, it is because these select Whites understand the gravity of the “revolutionary situation” and do not want, in a sense, to lose their power over Blacks. If the educational system for Black Americans can break the chains of oppression and allow Black Americans to get strong education, the conspiracy will die. Black Americans will no longer be locked into a life of hardship and ridicule at the hands of Caucasians. If the educational system evolves, Baldwin argues, America will evolve into a land of equal opportunity for all. If the educational system continues on the path it is on, America, the ideas for which it was founded, and the American dream, all will die. Baldwin’s offering of real life scenarios and examples from the lives of so many African Americans, unveils to the teachers the difficult reality of the issues he talks about, leading them to also believe change is vital for the survival of America.
In Baldwin’s “A Talk to Teachers,” he appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos, in order to get his message, that black children need better education which will preserve America, to his audience, the New York school teachers. Baldwin appeals to ethos through his personal experience which builds upon his respect for the teachers. By establishing both parties’ positions, Baldwin hopes to sell them his idea, that educating Black American children better is necessary for the longevity of America as a nation. Baldwin then appeals to pathos via sharing emotion provoking ideologies that many Americans have towards African Americans at this time, to the teachers. Baldwin hopes to capitalize on their emotions his statements extract by reinstating the degree to which change is needed. Baldwin finishes his speech by appealing to logos through the use of factual evidence and examples to back up the truth in his claims. Baldwin’s speech of his dream of change in Black American education, which will in turn save America from impending doom if it is not addressed, is vital because, in front of school teachers who educate the black children, his speech is most effective in changing education for Black Americans.
