Furthermore, following his encounter with a white woman on the subway, he imagines from her calling him a "black boy." (Thomas 141). This incident provides an interesting look into Piri's way of thinking on a number of levels. First, it reveals his obvious distress at living in a world where he cannot act on sexual impulses entirely because he is non-white. Second, it shows that he recognizes his "blackness" in the eyes of others. And third, by the very act of his reminiscing from the perspective of the woman, it demonstrates his prevailing concern with his own image as looked upon from the outside. Piri's longing to reach general approval stifles his competing want to know who he is.
Overall, Piri's tale is one of deviance; however, this is mainly because he identifies it as such. Since he is so utterly concerned with the opinions of others he sees himself as a "spick," a "nigger," and a criminal. It is particularly enlightening that Thomas includes his homosexual experience within the pages of Down These Mean Streets. At first glance it appears that this portion is included to fit-in with the confidential nature of the novel; Thomas wishes to reveal all of his most embarrassing and shameful moments. However, a closer inspection reveals two significant aspects of the story that are not completely explicit.
First, it is important to keep in mind Piri's motives for going to the homosexuals' home. He writes, "All the guys felt like I did. Not one of them looked happy. So why were we making it up to the maricones' pad? Cause we wanted to belong, and belonging meant doing whatever had to be done." (Thomas 55). Although Piri and none of his friends wished to go along with the unfolding situation, they all did because their want of a definite social position outweighed any objections they might have.
Second, the fact that Thomas includes this event sheds light on some of his motivations for publishing the text. Thomas details this event because it was deviant, and he is deviant in numerous ways....
By writing Down These Mean Streets he paints a picture of himself for the reader that is at once a "spick," a "nigger," and also a "faggot." (Thomas 55). This represents the strides he has taken towards understanding his own "self" -- the fact that an outsider could possibly label him as gay no longer concerns him. The book is brutally honest, and as such, demonstrates Thomas' current belief that individuality is not governed by labels, the mainstream or foreign opinions: only the individual mind.
Additionally, Thomas discloses his battle with heroine; a battle which, at the time of its occurrence, he sought to conceal from everyone. His fear of being labeled a "junkie" leads to self-delusion and denial of the true problems that face him. When he is just a young boy he witnesses heroine addicts shooting-up, and realizes that such a future is a possibility for him. This prophesy comes to fruition as he begins to formally reject mainstream white culture. As his anger brews, and his disappointment at never fully reaching the acceptance he so deeply wanted comes to a head, Piri turns to drugs and crime. Although he still sees himself from a mainstream perspective, his drug use reflects his admittance of ultimate failure in everyone's eyes.
Finally, Thomas' Down These Mean Streets demonstrates that many social systems exist outside of the common white society. The ghettos, the drug culture, homosexuals, and prison are all aspects of the modern world that most Americans would rather forget about. Thomas' writing is both an acknowledgement that he will never be uniformly embraced by America, and also a reminder to everyone who has not lived his life that it is very real. Rather than failing to remember those who have very little, Piri Thomas has chosen to immortalize them in literature, and in so doing, establish himself as an individual unhindered by the labels of a racist and classist world.
Works Cited
Thomas, Piri. Down These Mean Streets. New York: Random House, 1967.
