The Presence and Manifestations of Racism

The narrative as a whole, and Queenie’s experiences within that narrative, are anchored primarily by the experience of what might be described as “living while black.” In the early part of the Twenty-first Century, conversations around race, particularly in America, contain phrases like “driving while black” or “working while black” or “dating while black,” all of which evoke experiences of black people being singled out for negative treatment, while going about their daily lives, simply because of their racial background and identity. Those experiences are, in general, defined by actions and assumptions held by whites (and others) that are, in turn, grounded in beliefs and values defined by racist perspectives. In that context, the phrase “living while black” becomes something of an umbrella term for the experience of black people in the West (which includes the United Kingdom, where this...