In the 2016 book Born a Crime, Trevor Noah recounts his youth in South Africa under the politically sanctioned racial segregation government known as Apartheid , and the first two long periods of decent level by the dark majority of the country. The story is based on a mischievous young man, who struggles to end up in reality as we know it, where he never expected to exist. It is also the narrative of Noah's bond with his bold, rebellious, and intensely religious mother, his partner, a woman determined to spare her son from the cycle of poverty, brutality, and abuse that would ultimately undermine his own life. Born in 1984 to a black Xhosa mother and white Swiss father, Noah is not only an anomaly in South Africa's politically sanctioned racial segregation, but his reality is indeed illegal in light of the fact that the system prohibited connections between individuals of various races . In my essay I will explain how comedian Trevor Noah approached issues of language, race and ethnicity in South Africa growing up under apartheid and the different sociological concepts that can be related. As well as explaining how Noah managed to live in a society where being biracial was not accepted. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In the first part of Born a Crime, Noah explained apartheid in South Africa as an arrangement of social isolation of race, language, and ethnicity. “The genius of apartheid was to get the vast majority of people to turn on each other.” “Aside from the hate, that's what it is. You separate people into groups and make them hate each other so you can manage them all.” This allowed for the separation of South Africans into different tribes by different languages such as Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, Sotho, Tsonga, etc. Different tribes had different levels of rights and privileges, pitting tribes against each other. This separation allowed whites to have the majority of power and control over the people of South Africa. With Noah learning different languages he definitely had his good and bad moments at the age of nine, Noah, his mother and his newborn little brother were traveling on a minibus in South Africa when the driver starts driving like crazy. The driver picked up on the fact that Noah's mother was from an alternative tribe because she spoke Xhosa and starts making comments about the dangers. Noah's mother realizes that if she didn't act, her children's lives would be in danger. Suddenly, as Noah is falling asleep, his mother throws him out of the minibus, at which point she jumps out with the baby wrapped in her arms: 'What was that?! Why are we running?!' 'What do you mean? “Why are we running?” “Those men were trying to kill us.” “You never told me!” You just threw me out of the car! “I told you.” "Why didn't you jump?" 'Jump?! I was sleeping!' “So I was supposed to leave you there for them to kill you?” “At least they would have woken me up before killing me.” Since Noah was only nine years old at the time, he did not understand the circumstances and dangers he would be in if his mother had not thrown him out of the minibus. As Noah continues to grow, he is able to explore his early awareness of his differences and his struggles to characterize himself in relation to South Africa's diverse local ethnic groups. By learning several different languages, Noah recognized, he could interface with almost anyone and adapt to circumstances where it is dangerous to be an outcast. Noah saw it as a way to navigate, cross boundaries, and manage situations. There was an incident where Noah was walking down the street in South Africa whena group of Zulu boys walked behind him, approaching him. The Zulu boys who spoke in Zulu said, “Let's get this white boy. Go left and come from behind.” Out of fear, Noah turned around and replied in Zulu: “Guys, why don't we rob someone together? I'm ready. Let's do it." The Zulu boys were shocked that Noah was one of them and started apologizing because all they wanted to do was rob white people. Noah did not let his social identity such as race or ethnicity define who he was. Noah faced a daily reality in which he recognized himself as black but was seen by others as mixed race. Noah went against the norms of being identified as a black South African and used his different language to his advantage. Noah had a vocabulary so diverse, it allowed him to be accepted into different social groups in South Africa, which would usually be frowned upon because they went against social norms When Noah was born in 1984 during the apartheid era, he was born into a racialized society .His mother was a black woman and father was a white man and since miscegenation laws condemned sexual relations between races, the introduction of a biracial child violated the law and Noah was known as "born a crime". To gaslight any interracial couple who had a child, they would threaten to execute them. Specifically, blacks and whites. As Noah grew up, he faced the difficulties and dangers of being a biracial child, but he didn't let it change who he was. As a child, Noah's mother had to constantly hide him because of his complexion. He was considered colored, known as having a mixed race independent and separate from both blacks and whites. During Apartheid some families had their fathers flee to different countries or urban areas to escape fate, to protect themselves and their families. Noah's father was one of them, Noah and his mother had to sneak around to see his father. The only time Noah could see his father was in the house and if they went out, his father would cross the street because it would raise a lot of questions. As a child, Noah couldn't leave the playground like other children because his family was too scared that he would be caught and taken away by the police. Noah felt strangely segregated from his cousins and neighbors, but he still didn't understand why he was considered so unique. If children were in the wrong color area, they could be picked up by the police, taken from their parents' custody and sent to an orphanage. When Noah was three years old, he was tired of being kept inside the pen while everyone else got to go and play. So he dug a hole under the fence and managed to get out. His family panicked and a search team went to find him. Not knowing they had put their family in danger, they could have been deported, Grandma could have been arrested, Mom could have been sent to prison, and Noah could have been sent away. For many years Noah had to consciously navigate and learn the ways of society to protect himself and his family. Growing up as a biracial child I can relate to Noah in terms of similar aspects. People frowned or looked at my mother strangely because she had mixed children. My grandparents didn't accept the fact that my mother was initially with a black man. Just as my friends and family would make fun of me for being mixed race. They would make comments like “Oh, so I see you acting white today” or “Oh, so I see you black today” or “So, how are you acting today?”. Growing up mixed helped shape who I am today, I didn't let others identify who I was. The comments.
tags