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Chapter 6: The Fire This Time

All of Us or None

Many organizations across the United States such as All of Us or None which is based in Oakland help restore civil rights back to people newly released from prison. The name All of Us or None challenges politics in which only some people are accepted in while many others are excluded. Diversity-driven affirmative action today sends a message that only "some of us" will be included it is a policy that does not see people who are beyond its grasp such as colored people. According to Alexander the "us" discussed in this subsection is every one who has protested for civil right some examples described in the book are women, gays, Latinos, immigrants, the "us" is everyone except white people. Though the book describes how society has been unfair to colored people Alexander also describes how the white man has suffered as well though not as much as colored people have. As schools were planned to become segregated the poor working class whites had to burden the change. Alexander mentions that a 1950 census among Southerners who were in their late twenties showed that many were illiterate having less than five years of education. There was only a small percentage of white people that who were well educated. The poor white working class was persuaded many times to chose their racial status than over coming their common economic interests with blacks this lead to a caste system which greatly favored white people. People argue that whites should make the first move to ending the caste system by giving up their racial privileges. According to Alexander if we want to end to the racial caste system in America everybody needs to come together as one and accept each other. Though that is not going to happen if people don't challenge society because people are tempted by the opportunities that colored people are offered in the community. Alexander hopes that the next generation will be led by people who have experienced the effects of this caste system in hopes that have a greater determination to end the caste system. Alexander ends the chapter with a letter by James Baldwin that he addresses to his nephew. Lames Baldwin writes to his nephew about the type of world he was born in the type were people have destroyed many lives without realizing and they don't want to realize it and in this world he is not expected to thrive but to make peace with the way the world is.