Black Like Me: November 8, 1959 Summary & Analysis

Once again, Griffin emphasizes the unity and camaraderie that he experiences with black people, ultimately suggesting that this kind of easygoing conversation with strangers helps people cope with the hatred and bigotry that otherwise constantly encroaches upon their lives.

In this scene, Griffin realizes that it’s important for him to align with the black people surrounding him, now that he looks like an African American himself. As such, he senses that he shouldn’t do anything to give white people an advantage, which would be like going “against the race” by perpetuating segregationist policies. What’s more, it’s worth noting the somewhat uncomfortable fact that Griffin uses—and will continue throughout the book to use—the pronoun “us” when referring to African Americans. Indeed, Griffin acts like he is actually a black man, when in reality he has only darkened his skin. In doing so, he fails to recognize his own privilege, which allows him to retreat to the safe life of a white person whenever he wants. At the same time, though, his entire experiment is based on the idea that he must “become” a black man in order to understand what it’s like to live as an African American in the South. As a result, he completely immerses himself in the experience, and though it is certainly uncomfortable by today’s standards to see a white man appropriating an African American identity, it’s worth remembering that his primary goal is to encourage racists to reconsider their prejudices. 

When Griffin feels ashamed for “attracting such unfavorable attention,” readers come to understand that his experiment could potentially harm black people instead of helping them. Indeed, since Griffin isn’t used to living the life of a black man in the South, he’s likely to make all sorts of social mistakes that risk exacerbating the relationship between white people and black people. In this moment, then, he feels remorseful for eliciting such a hateful remark from this white woman, though the bigger problem is obviously that she is a racist.

After hearing the woman on the bus use hateful, vitriolic language, Griffin realizes that racists ultimately “reveal” the ugliest parts of themselves when they use racial epithets. In this way, he suggests that racism actually harms those who practice it, making them look emotionally small, petty, and bitter. 

Again, Griffin senses how vital it will be to make connections in the black community. After all, if he simply goes around disguised as a black man but doesn’t actually interact with anyone, he will never discover what African Americans truly think about the country’s racial dynamics. For this reason, he reveals the details of his project to Sterling, clearly hoping that he will help him transition into black culture.

Yet again, Griffin discovers that racism doesn’t always come in the form of outright hatred. Similar to how the dermatologist’s bigotry is deeply entrenched in his overall worldview—so that it’s rather undetectable at first—the white men who visit the shoeshine stand and ask Griffin to “find girls” for them unknowingly reveal their unexamined assumptions about African Americans. Although they are polite and “democratic,” they still treat black men differently than they treat white men, completely unashamed to ask them questions they’d never think to ask a white man. In turn, they demonstrate their implicit biases against black people.

When Sterling offers Griffin his water because he knows he won’t be able to find a place to drink between the shoeshine stand and the YMCA, Griffin once again benefits from the unity that exists between black people. Because society at large denies African Americans the right to simply stop into a white shop for a drink, people like Sterling make an effort to help their fellow black people, ultimately forging a sense of camaraderie as a way of counteracting injustice and discrimination.

Although Griffin has already noted a sense of camaraderie amongst black people in New Orleans, he still believes that there is a “lack of unity” that makes it harder for African Americans to stand up to racism. Given that he himself has benefitted from unified acts of kindness—like when Sterling gave him water—it seems he must believe that this “lack of unity” exists on a larger scale. Indeed, while people like Sterling show camaraderie with others in an everyday manner, Griffin and the café owner agree that the entire “race” has to “learn to rise together.”

Once again, the notion of colorism comes to the forefront of Black Like Me, as the café owner laments the fact that many African Americans discriminate against dark-skinned black people, thereby making it harder for the entire race to unite and “rise together” against injustice. This kind of division is something that has worked its way from the white community into the black community, since racists purposefully promote the notion of colorism as a way of sowing discord amongst African Americans, thereby making it even more difficult for black people to come to together to resist the broader forms of racism at play throughout the country.

This is the first time that Griffin finds himself in immediate danger as a result of the color of his skin. Worst of all, he discovers that many people are completely unsympathetic to the perils African Americans face, as made evident by the elderly couple’s apathy when he tells them he’s being chased. Needless to say, he wouldn’t need to deal with this threat of violence if he still looked like a white man.

Although Griffin is terrified by this white boy, he knows that the only way to protect himself is by pretending to be tough. As such, he speaks hostilely to the boy, threatening to use brass knuckles on him and thus presenting himself as a violent man. In this way, readers see how racism can actually goad a person into acting aggressively when he or she would otherwise avoid violence at all costs. Unfortunately, white society uses this kind of violent behavior as an excuse to continue oppressing African Americans, failing to see that this aggression is nothing but the result of discrimination.

In the aftermath of his frightening encounter with the menacing white boy, Griffin feels utterly alone, as if he has plunged into “oblivion.” And this is all because he has simply changed the color of his skin, a fact that shows just how much a person’s experience in the South depends upon the ways in which people perceive his or her racial identity.