My Perspective on Let America Be America Again

Hello, reader! Today, I’d like to share my opinion and evaluate a poem and time we learned about in our English class. It’s called Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes. Previously in English, we have been looking at his poems and studied the rhyme scheme, figurative language, and finally evaluated it. When I was looking at it closely, I found some lines very interesting. The way he puts his point across fascinates me. Actually this whole conflict that took place in the US appeals to me! That is why I decided to write about it.

I think that one of the things I like the most is learning about is how the people of this time reacted to all the events that surrounded them. At first I had this idea that all the African Americans hated what the White people for what they had done to them all those years, becoming more aggressive and wary of them. But by reading the lines, “But opportunity is real, and life is free.” and “Must bring back our mighty dream.” He doesn’t seem aggressive or wary at all. In fact, you could look at it as if he’s being positive to working together and reaching their final destination of equality. I feel like this is a very bold and wise way of thinking.  Now, I do understand that some people did believe violence and hatred towards other races was right but Langston Hughes and others easy to idolize at the time were very courageous and smart because they knew that the way others treated them was not right to repeat. In many cases that I’ve seen recently like in the movie The Help, the character Abilene had a very respectful poise to negative comments and same goes to Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Langston Hughes. By realizing this, it makes me feel proud of these role models. That they could make positive decisions even though nasty events and words came their way. 

After I’d thought and thought about this piece of writing, I wondered how I would react if I was put in their position. Now that I think of it, I think I would just be as nasty as they were to me since they would put me in such misery and rage. It’s just remarkable what these people did.

Thanks for reading!