Racial Oppression

Blow’s examinations of racial oppression are central to the mission of this book, as Blow’s proposal is a direct reaction to the racism that has been consistently trenchant in American culture. Blow seeks to demonstrate the fact that racial oppression and inequality are ubiquitous in the United States, and thus his proposal of Black regionalism is a necessary countermeasure. For example, Blow uses the historical example of the Great Migration, in which Black migrants were motivated in part by a desire to escape racial persecution. However, it has become evident that racism is present in all areas of the country: “[Black migrants traded] the devil they knew for the devil they didn’t, only to come to the painful realization that the devil is the devil” (27). Because Black Americans cannot flee from racism, they must consolidate Black communities in order to build their own protection...