4 ms·
Many years ago, I remember going to Borders Books (years prior to its bankruptcy) to buy a book by James Baldwin. I looked in the literature section and surpris
by boh 6y ago
Many years ago, I remember going to Borders Books (years prior to its bankruptcy) to buy a book by James Baldwin. I looked in the literature section and surprisingly none of his books were there. This was pretty odd since most bookstores carry at least one of his books. I asked for help from an employee and they told me I was looking in the wrong place, guiding me to the African American section instead. I found the irony of what the bookstore likely thought was a considerate distinction, pretty mind blowing. Here was James Baldwin, who had been a huge proponent for civil rights and a major critic of segregation, having his own books segregated away from what the bookstore categorized as “literature”, into a racially defined category instead.
I'm not much of a social critic so it's difficult to formulate the right words to explain my position, but racial profiling just doesn't seem right, regardless of its intent.
- renewiltord 6y agoAh, a category vs tag problem. Nice.
- hastradamus 6y agoI feel that. Doesn’t seem right
- alexyz12 6y agothis seems different though. That makes things less discoverable because you are in the wrong section. This just marks things you've already discovered in case the marking is important to you.
- thelock85 6y agoShooting from the hip here, but my guess is that the “African-American section” started further upstream than the physical bookshelf, in attempts to remedy discrimination. Agree with the tag vs category challenge in discovering books. For example, if OP wanted to understand prevailing social and political attitudes in 1960s Black America, instead of specifically Baldwin, then it’s easier to have an African-American section than search for needles in the haystack of anthropology sub-categories. On a separate note, wondering how the OP experience might be different on Amazon.com instead of inside a physical Borders Books. You search for Baldwin and get your own echo chamber of the “African-American section” algorithmically produced through a combination of related titles and your own personal preferences.
- jasonv 6y agoBookstores will work around this confusion by placing a card saying "[Author] can be found in Sci-Fi" appropriately.. but that takes more care and feeding and is more typical in an indie shop.
- undefined1 6y agoyou're right, and James Baldwin and Martin Luther King Jr. would be fighting this. it's deeply disturbing that we are seeing the reintroduction of segregation. even in schools: https://www.bwscampus.com/our-community/commitment-to-diversity/inclusive-excellence/dialogue-community-building-sessions https://www.bwscampus.com/our-community/commitment-to-divers...
- gruez 6y ago>Here was James Baldwin, who had been a huge proponent for civil rights and a major critic of segregation, having his own books segregated away from what the bookstore categorized as “literature”, into a racially defined category instead. horseshoe theory strikes again!