Black Like Me

1. Transformation into the Other

In the flood of light against white tile, the face and shoulders of a stranger - a fierce, bald, very dark Negro - glared at me from the glass.

Total and shocking. John Howard Griffin underwent a physical transformation using medication, UV light, and stain to appear as a Black man. This change was not merely a disguise but felt like becoming an entirely different person, an "utter stranger" with whom he initially felt no kinship. The visual shock in the mirror was profound, erasing his former identity and plunging him into a new, unfamiliar existence.

Loss of self. The transformation led to a sense of losing his known self, feeling "imprisoned in the flesh of an utter stranger." This experience highlighted how deeply identity is tied to appearance and how a change in skin color could instantly render him invisible to those who knew him, even his own family. It was a sudden, midnight birth into a life defined by blackness.

No turning back. The process was irreversible in the short term, forcing him to confront the reality of living as a Black man in the segregated South. This commitment meant navigating a world hostile to his new appearance, facing challenges he had only speculated about before. The physical change was the catalyst for a complete shift in his lived experience and perception.

2. Daily Life of Indignity and Fear

You’ve got to plan ahead now... You can’t just walk in anyplace and ask for a drink or use the rest room.

Constant planning required. Basic necessities like finding food, water, or a restroom became complex challenges. Unlike whites who could access facilities anywhere, Black individuals had limited options, often requiring long walks or strategic planning. This daily struggle underscored the pervasive nature of segregation and its impact on simple human needs.

Petty cruelties abound. Encounters with white individuals often involved subtle or overt acts of discrimination. From being refused service in stores where he was a known customer to a bus driver deliberately skipping his stop, these small indignities were constant reminders of his inferior status. Each instance, though seemingly minor, accumulated to create a heavy burden of humiliation and frustration.

Fear of harassment. Simple acts like sitting on a park bench or walking down the street could attract unwanted attention from police or hostile whites. The constant threat of questioning, insults, or violence meant always being on guard and avoiding situations that might draw notice. This pervasive fear dictated movement and limited freedom in public spaces.

3. The White Man's Gaze and Sexual Objectification

With a Negro, they assumed they need give no semblance of self-respect or respectability.

Morbid curiosity displayed. White men, particularly when giving rides at night, often revealed a disturbing fascination with the perceived sexual lives of Black men. They assumed a lack of self-respect was inherent in Blackness, leading to conversations filled with depravity and stereotypes about sexual prowess and experience. This objectification reduced Black men to mere sexual beings in their eyes.

Stereotypes fuel assumptions. The white men's questions and comments were based on deeply ingrained stereotypes of Black individuals as "inexhaustible sex-machines." They believed Black people engaged in "special" sexual acts and lacked the "inhibitions" of whites. This revealed more about the white men's own fantasies and prejudices than about the reality of Black lives.

Hypocrisy exposed. The stark contrast between the white men's lecherous inquiries and their public condemnation of Black "immorality" highlighted a profound hypocrisy. The widespread, admitted practice of white men coercing or exploiting Black women for sex was ignored, while any perceived interest by a Black man in a white woman was met with extreme hostility and the threat of violence.

4. Unexpected Kindness and Solidarity Among the Oppressed

His glance met mine and communicated the sorrow, the understanding.

Mutual support in adversity. Despite the external pressures and internal divisions, Griffin experienced profound kindness and solidarity from other Black individuals. Strangers offered help, shared food, provided shelter, and offered warnings and advice on navigating the dangers of the South. This mutual support created pockets of warmth and safety in a hostile world.

Shared understanding without words. Often, a simple glance or gesture from another Black person conveyed a deep understanding of the shared experience of oppression. This silent communication acknowledged the difficulties faced and offered a sense of not being alone. It was a powerful bond forged in shared suffering and resilience.

Generosity despite poverty. Even those with very little were willing to share what they had. The family in the Alabama swamps, living in extreme poverty, welcomed Griffin, shared their meager meal, and offered him a place to sleep. This generosity, born of empathy and shared condition, was a stark contrast to the calculated meanness often encountered from whites.

5. Regional Differences in Racial Dynamics

The distance between them and me was far more than the miles that physically separated us. It was an area of unknowing.

Varying degrees of tension. Griffin observed distinct differences in the racial atmosphere between cities like New Orleans, Hattiesburg (Mississippi), and Montgomery (Alabama), and Atlanta (Georgia).

• New Orleans: More cosmopolitan, some superficial courtesies, but underlying segregation and economic barriers.
• Mississippi: Intense fear, overt hostility, lack of basic rights (restrooms, bus stops), symbolized by the Mack Parker lynching aftermath.
• Montgomery: Determined passive resistance influenced by MLK, palpable tension, police presence, but a sense of collective stand.
• Atlanta: More progress due to Black leadership, economic power, and enlightened city administration/newspaper, offering a glimpse of hope.

Unknowing perpetuates division. The "area of unknowing" between races was vast, preventing genuine communication and understanding. Whites often held onto outdated stereotypes, while Black individuals learned to mask their true feelings to survive. This lack of authentic interaction reinforced prejudices on both sides.

Hope in unity and leadership. Atlanta demonstrated that Black unity, strong leadership, economic self-sufficiency, and political action could lead to significant progress, even within a segregated system. This contrasted sharply with the despair felt in areas where Black communities were more fragmented or lacked effective organization.

6. Finding Unexpected Allies Across the Divide

Would you cash a twenty-dollar traveler’s check for me? "Of course," she said without hesitation...

Decency transcends prejudice. Despite widespread hostility, Griffin encountered white individuals who showed unexpected kindness and decency. The Catholic bookstore proprietress in New Orleans cashed his check without question, contrasting with the rude refusals elsewhere. The young construction worker in Alabama offered a ride and food, seemingly colorblind in his humanity.

Moral courage demonstrated. Individuals like P.D. East, the white newspaper editor in Mississippi, risked their livelihoods and safety by speaking out against injustice. His willingness to defy local prejudice and offer Griffin refuge highlighted the bravery required for whites to act on their conscience in a racist environment.

Shared humanity revealed. These encounters, though rare, demonstrated that individual decency and empathy could exist even within a system of ingrained prejudice. They offered glimpses of a shared humanity that transcended racial barriers, suggesting that not all whites subscribed to the dominant racist ideology, even if many were afraid to show it.

7. The Stark Contrast of Returning to White Identity

A sense of exultant liberation flooded through me.

Instantaneous privilege regained. The moment Griffin shed his Black identity and passed back into white society, doors that had been closed for weeks suddenly opened. He could enter restaurants, use restrooms, and walk freely without fear or scrutiny. This immediate return to "first-class citizenship" was a powerful, albeit unsettling, experience of regained privilege.

Miracle turned sour. While the physical freedom was exhilarating, the realization of why he had been denied these basic rights as a Black man made the experience bittersweet. The smiles and courtesies from whites, which had been absent before, now felt hollow, tainted by the memory of the contempt and hatred he had just experienced from the same group.

Communication barrier re-established. The ease of interaction with whites returned, but the deep, shared understanding he had found with Black individuals vanished. He was back on the "other side of the wall," where authentic communication about the realities of racial injustice was difficult, if not impossible, with most whites.

8. The Shocking Aftermath and Local Hostility

You were hanged in effigy from the center red-light wire downtown on Main Street this morning.

Retaliation for truth-telling. The publication of Griffin's story in Sepia magazine triggered immediate and severe backlash in his hometown of Mansfield, Texas. The symbolic act of hanging his effigy, half black and half white, publicly demonstrated the community's outrage and hostility towards his work exposing racism.

Silence as complicity. The lack of public condemnation from many townspeople, including former friends, was deeply disappointing. Their silence in the face of threats and the effigy hanging felt like a tacit condoning of the actions by the more extreme elements. This highlighted the social pressure to conform and avoid controversy.

Threats and fear for family. The hostility extended beyond Griffin to his family, who received threatening phone calls and felt terrorized. This forced them to leave their home temporarily, underscoring the personal cost of challenging the status quo and speaking uncomfortable truths about race.

9. The Pervasive Power of Stereotypes

They could not see me or any other black man as a human individual because they buried us under the garbage of their stereotyped view of us.

Stereotypes blind perception. White individuals consistently viewed Griffin through the lens of racial stereotypes, assuming he possessed a fixed set of characteristics based solely on his skin color. These preconceived notions prevented them from seeing him as a unique human being with his own thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

Stereotypes justify prejudice. The negative stereotypes (irresponsible, intellectually limited, hypersexual, lazy) served to justify discriminatory practices and the denial of basic rights. By defining Black people as inherently "other" and inferior, whites could rationalize their own unethical behavior and maintain the existing power structure.

Stereotypes impact self-perception. The constant bombardment of negative stereotypes and the pressure to conform to the "good Negro" image could be deeply damaging to Black individuals' sense of self-worth and identity. It created an internal conflict and a feeling of being constantly misunderstood or misrepresented.

10. The Deep Communication Gap Between Races

Neither really knew what went on with those of the other race.

Lack of authentic dialogue. Despite living side-by-side, genuine communication between whites and Blacks in the South had largely ceased. Black individuals learned to tell whites what they wanted to hear to avoid repercussions, creating a facade that prevented honest exchange.

Different realities experienced. Griffin's experiment revealed that whites and Blacks lived in fundamentally different realities, shaped by their racial experiences. What seemed normal or acceptable to one group was an indignity or source of fear to the other. This divergence in lived experience made mutual understanding incredibly difficult.

Well-intentioned ignorance. Even whites who considered themselves fair or sympathetic often lacked a true understanding of the daily challenges and emotional toll of racism. Their attempts at communication could be clumsy or even offensive, demonstrating how deeply ingrained the "area of unknowing" was.

11. The Struggle Between Despair and Hope

So the predominant feeling was one of hopelessness and despair.

Oppression breeds despair. The constant indignities, lack of opportunity, and threat of violence created a pervasive sense of hopelessness among many Black individuals. This despair could manifest as apathy, a lack of motivation, or a turn towards fleeting pleasures as an escape from the harsh realities of life.

Resistance fuels hope. Despite the despair, acts of resistance, solidarity, and the emergence of strong leadership (like MLK in Montgomery) offered glimmers of hope. The willingness to stand up for rights, even nonviolently, demonstrated a refusal to be completely broken and a belief in the possibility of a better future.

Progress is hard-won. The journey highlighted that progress towards racial justice was not inevitable or easy. It required immense courage, sacrifice, and sustained effort from both Black and white allies. The gains made, particularly in places like Atlanta, showed that change was possible, but the deep-seated nature of prejudice meant the struggle was far from over.

12. Recognizing the Universal Humanity Beyond Color

The Other is not other at all.

Shared human experience. Griffin's time as a Black man revealed that beneath the superficial difference of skin color, all people share the same fundamental human experiences: love, suffering, aspirations for oneself and one's children, and the inevitability of death. These commonalities unite humanity despite perceived differences.

Prejudice is a learned blindness. The antipathy Griffin initially felt towards his Black reflection was a manifestation of his own unconscious, culturally ingrained prejudice. Overcoming this required experiencing life from the perspective of the "Other," which dissolved the emotional barriers and revealed the shared humanity.

Justice requires seeing the self in the other. True understanding and justice can only be achieved when individuals recognize that the "Other" is not fundamentally different but is, in essence, another version of oneself. This realization is the key to dismantling stereotypes and building a society based on equal dignity and respect for all.

Last updated: May 19, 2025