Black Boy

In the book Black Boy by Richard Wright, Wright was often told to be careful about what he said or did around white people. Wright would try to watch what he said and did around the white folk, but he often had trouble acting like the “Uncle Tom” stereotype the whites expected him to be. His friend Griggs tried to explain that his very life was in jeopardy if he did not act that way “‘……

…the same type of failure when he showed his disapproval of the watchman’s actions. He also refused to act like an Uncle Tom when he refused to let the whites tell him whom to fight. All three times his pride had dictated his actions, and made his attempts to act like an Uncle Tom fail. It’s a shame no one else had enough pride or courage to stand up to the whites sooner.