Watch Sekou Sundiata's Blink Your Eyes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H18mBu9LI2Y
Listen: http://new.music.yahoo.com/sekou-sundiata/
What is the argument here? Summarize the story and then put the argument in standard form. What do you think of the argument's form? Is it effective?
Respond to a classmate's post.
He was on his way to see his woman, but he got pulled over because the law says he was on his way through a red light. It wasn’t about the light, it was about his ride, in other words, the light was green. His world could change without a warning for it only depends on the skin you live in. The routine when one is pulled over seemed to be of an occurring event to Sundiata for he says “we’ve been through this before.” The news always places them at a loss. Blacks are viewed as dangerous and undeniably unreliable beings. There are laws depending on the skin you live in and he specifically used New York.
ReplyDeletePremise 1: Blacks are viewed as dangerous and undeniably unreliable beings.
Premise 2: The skin you live in can change your world without a warning.
Argument: Dangerous and undeniably unreliable blacks, having the skin that they have, can change their world without a warning.
His argument’s form is in the effective form of poetry. His style is very engaging and entertaining. His presentation was witty and consciously provoking. His rhythm and pace adds to the effect that allures his audience.
Sundiata's argument here was plainly law enforcement profiling African American people.
ReplyDeleteHe didn't state which race were targeting them, but we all know which race Sundiata is referring to. Cops see black people as threats to society therefore they take much more of a precaution when approaching them. Sundiata also argues that whatever skin one is living in can change in a instant which I would have to agree with. After looking over Bernadette's post regarding Sundiata's argument she pretty much breaks down Sundiata's speech into little sections and puts in into a outline which to me seems like a really good way to go because it is more organized and easy to read.
A man was on his way to meet his woman, but was stopped by a police man. He was charged with going through a red light but it was actually a green light and it was beacuse of the car he's driving. As he's being handcuffed, he tells the police officer it's like dejavu, and this happened before. The police officer says it's standard procedure and if he hadn't pulled him over, someone else (there are a lot of others) who would've done so anyway. He then talks about the big role skin color plays in what you can and what you can't do in New York.
ReplyDeletePremise 1: He was pulled over for breaking a law that he wouldn't have broken if he was driving a different kind of car (had a different skin color).
Premise 2: The police claims that if he hadn't pulled him over, there are many other that would have.
Argument: A person's skin color greatly determines a person's world in New York (United States).
His argument's uniqueness is what caught my attention the most. He repeats certain words or phrases to add emphasis on it. For example, when the cop says that if he hadn't pulled him over, somebody else would have, the "somebody" was repeated many times before he moved on to emphasis that there are a lot of others that would've pulled him over. This is effective because though he didn't directly state many of his argument's premises, the listener is still able to detect it through his use of repitition, etc.
Black people are dangerous.
ReplyDeleteSekou Sudiata is a black man.
Therefore, Sekou Sundiata is dangerous.
Bernadette, where I disagree with you is when you write: "Dangerous and undeniably unreliable blacks, having the skin that they have, can change their world without a warning."
Sundiata's character doesn't "change" anything. He is a victim of circumstances based on stigma associated with his gender and race.
Look at the song: He says he was driving down the street thinking about his girlfriend when the police pull him over. It's a nice car and (his girlfriend is nice too). An assumption is that if he were paying more attention to the road and not his girl, the police's siren might not have surprised him--
He said the policeman told him to assume the position. Another assumption, one held by the policeman is that his suspect knew "the position." This "position" is the "position" Robert King speaks of when he is picked up in a random sweep several times.
Look at Robert King and Sekou Sundiata. Separated by decades, Sundiata is in New York, King in the south, Lousiana, yet their experiences parallel one another.
The man speaking is telling a story of when he was stoped by a police man While on his way to se his woman for running a red light. The policeman stopped him because of his car and his skin, the light was actually green. The police officer said routien, step out of the vehicle routien assume the possition to be searched. The speaker says that it is routien for police to search black men with nice cars. He is told by the policeman that he is unreliable and dangerous .The news projects black people as dangerous and so he is obvously dangerous.
ReplyDeletePremise1. The color of your skin changes the status of yourself within the world you live in.
Premise2. Black people are projected by the news as unreliable and dangerous people.
Therefor policemen routienly stop black people on the assumption they are up to no good.
the poetry he uses is a great way to present his argument because he repeats words that are important to get his point across. the timeing in his story as he repeats words he leaves time to create a great image of what is going on in the story.
I enjoyed watching Sundiata perform his poem. He used repetition which made the poem very striking. Not all poets do that.
ReplyDeleteHe mentioned that it's all about the skin you live in, creating options for people. That's a great thing. However, choosing what skin you live in can create confusion in some people. You have to accept who you are and the color of your skin to create clarity within yourself. Don't try to be someone you are not.
Sundiata had a valid and compelling argument of presenting the idea that because of who you are certain things are going to happened to you and have an affect on you but there are laws that people must follow. However' "depending on the skin you're living" in some laws will be broken.
I like what you had to say Vedder. Your response was succinct and summarized what Sundiata Sekou was saying in his poem. Police often abuse their authority and profile black men in particular.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that black people are dangerous
ReplyDeletesome of them are dagerous, but most people, who are well educated, are not dagerous. the problem is the educational system in the U.S. I've been here for 1years and a half. during that time. I realized how important education is for human. Black people are not a threat in the U.S. society. They just need more attention from the government. Yes I agree with Vedder's opinion. If polic were not prejudiced against black people, the black guy wouldn't get killed by the police at the bart station. In conclusion, prejudice, and educational system in the U.S. both are problem.
Professor Sabir, your post clarified many things for me. I feel that I may have made things complicated when writing my standard form. Your standard form of the argument, simple and straightforward as it is, illuminated the ideas and assumptions. I actually did not catch the former assumption you have mentioned while watching and listening to the video. Knowing it now makes it the more interesting. In regards to Robert King and Sekou Sundiata’s experiences and their separation of decades and locations, I wonder how long more it will take for such experiences to stop.
ReplyDelete