Summary
Mary Church Terrell
“There is a “Conspiracy of silence” on the part of the American press, so far as presenting the Colored-American’s side of the story is concerned. Anybody who makes him ridiculous or criminal can get a hearing in the press, but his trials and struggles and heartaches are. There is hardly any use, therefore for a Colored woman who wants to make an appeal for justice and equality of opportunity thru the medium of the short story or the movies to make effort. The advice, therefore to writers, therefore, should be “writainly of characters who arouse the spectators sympathy, provided those characters are white. “
- This quote exemplifies a larger problem in the publishing sector, where some story types may be preferred over others based on their alleged business feasibility or reader demand. It is regrettable that stories emphasizing the good qualities of black communities may encounter difficulties getting published or receiving noticed.
I would have to agree with you that there is in fact a conspiracy meant to silence the voices of Black communities, particularly Black women. Last semester, I took a class on publishing and we read an article that details just how many books in one fiscal year were published by Black women. It was a very small percentage, and I’m disheartened to see that this statistic stretches back even further than we can imagine.
This is such a sad reality. The underrepresentation is outrageous! I can only imagine the thousands of Black writers whose work did not get published, and we will probably never know about them. This is why courses like Black Women Writers are so important and special.
This reminds me to current silencing of black voices in the spaces of shows and movies. Often times whenever a black woman or man is casted for either a show or movie, it is with the expectation of them portraying a stereotype. There isn’t that much liberty or freedom if you’re an upcoming actor in the industry.
The problem in the publishing sector needs to be dismantled and repaired, it is taking the voice away from many black women. It is extremely disheartening.
I don’t think your post put it in any other way. Great post, in describing how the voices of black people are silenced not just in real life incidents but also in movies, books, and also in many other places. As time goes on, this is slowly becoming a norm which is very bad indeed because that’s inequality displayed again. The voices and appearances of colored people need to be respected and appreciated, not made a mockery of.
That there is a conspiracy is very much true, it’s in the denial of suffering that you or those like you might be responsible for and you and others like you did not step in or help or end the suffering. People don’t really like being told how badly they screwed up.