Black no more: race and identity in early twentieth century America

¶ … Black No More

There is a book I used to read when I was younger by Dr. Seuss called The Sneetches. The main plot is about two groups of Sneetches: "The Star-Bell Sneetches," who "had bellies with stars," and "the Plain-Belly Sneetches" who "had none (stars) upon thars."

Naturally, those with the stars believed that they were much better than those without. They would walk around bragging and looking down on everyone else, "We're the best kind of Sneetch on the beaches.' With their snoots in the air, they would sniff and they'd snort, 'We'll have nothing to do with the Plain-Belly sort!'" Such a situation is prime for Sylvester McMonkey McBean, who is always looking for a way to make some quick money. He sets up a machine that adds stars to the individuals without them. Of course, the ones with stars then want theirs removed. McBean is pleased to do so. So it goes with McBean getting paid lots of cash to add and remove stars. Finally, no one remembers whether or not they had stars to begin with. They realize that Sneetches are no better with or without "stars upon thars."

As with any Dr. Seuss book, this one can be read just as a fun picture story. Or, it can be seen as a story that reflects on everyday life. Throughout the world, there are always people who believe they are better off because they have stars, or no stars, of a certain color or religion or race. What people do about their differences varies. Some people are proud that they are different; some are ashamed and want to change and even try to make themselves look or act different to fit in. This is what Black No More written by George Schuyler in 1931 is about -- the negative attitudes about American blacks and the ways that the blacks handle such bigotry and stereotyping.

Using satire, role playing, playful scenes and lots of dry humor, Schuyler offers a solution to the race problem. Unlike Dr. Seuss' book, however, Schuyler clearly shows that racism cannot be eliminated, and any try by an individual to change what are considered inferior traits will eventually fail. Individuals will always find something to fault in someone else, often through race, in order to feel better about themselves. Schuyler also shows ways in which efforts to suppress feelings that are at odds with oneself can at times even increase the influence of such feelings.

In the book, Max Disher, a confident insurance agent becomes the first African-American to undergo Dr. Junius Crookmore's "black-no-more" treatment. Crookman recognizes that "if there were no Negroes, there could be no Negro problem. Without a Negro problem, Americans could concentrate their attention on something constructive." Disher is transformed into a Nordic-looking individual with pale hair, light eyes, fine features, and a skin that is whiter than most whites. Before long, African-Americans all over the United States undergo the treatment, causing immense confusion as "one couldn't tell who was who."

Disher leads a white supremacist group Knights of Nordica, similar to the KKK, to national importance, simply because he sees it as the easiest way to make a buck. He becomes the perfect white supremacist because he has experienced racial intolerance firsthand. As he tells his friend Bunny,

I've learned something on this job, and that is that hatred and prejudice always go over big. These people have been raised on the Negro problem, they're used to it, they're trained to react to it. Why should I rack my brain to hunt up something else when I can use a dodge that's always delivered the goods?" Immediately following this comment, Max indicates that, despite his present position and white skin, he has not forgotten that he is playing a role, telling Bunny," |I know I'm a darky and I'm always on the alert' "

Membership in the Knights of Nordica soars, but no one knows the exact color and background of the members.

But Disher is not any way the only one doing the scamming in the book. Dr. Shakespeare Agamemnon Beard, who heads the National Social Equality League, is "never so happy and excited as when a Negro was barred from a theater or fried to a crisp. Then they would leap for telephones, grab telegraph pads and yell for stenographers; smiling through their simulated indignation at the spectacle of another reason for their continued existence and appeal for funds."