Initially I thought C.P. Ellis’s story was inspiring because he went from being a member of the KKK to working alongside African Americans for better schools and working conditions, but one thing about his story bothered me. Ellis said, “They say the older you get, the harder it is for you to change. That’s not necessarily true” (76). Even though Ellis thought he changed and came to respect people of all different races, when he described Ann Atwater he still used racist expressions. I know that Ellis evolved so much, but his usage of racist terms makes me question whether or not his character completely changed. I thought it was interesting that Ellis was able to identify why he hated African Americans and recognize that he was just looking for someone to blame his economic hardships on. He didn’t say it was his dad’s fault for raising him to be racist, even though his dad was a member of the Klan and told him to stay away from blacks, Jews, and Catholics. Ellis was able to admit that his discrimination was caused by personal problems and he became more tolerant when he got to know different people. This makes me wonder if other members of the KKK joined as a way to feel better about themselves and if their opinions on people of different races and religions changed later, but it’s impossible to know because not everyone got a chance to tell their story like Ellis did. Reading Ellis’s story makes it seem more understandable how so many white civil rights activists were willing to work alongside African Americans to improve southern communities.
Vine Deloria had a lot of interesting views about America and the first settlers. One idea of his that was particularly thought-provoking was about the American Dream when he said, “Maybe the American Dream is in the past, understanding who you are instead of looking to the future...Maybe this is a period of reflection” (37). It’s possible that America as a whole has achieved the American Dream because the country is technologically advanced, has democracy, and is a major world power, so now reflecting on how fortunate Americans are is what makes people realize they’ve already achieved the American Dream. Usually in textbooks the relations between settlers and Native Americans are described from an American point of view, so hearing a Native American’s perspective was interesting. Deloria said that in the Great Plains the Native Americans didn’t see Americans as a threat, and each group simply failed to understand the other. This makes me wonder what would have happened if Native Americans and Americans had reached out to each other more and really made an effort to understand the two cultures and find a way to live peacefully.
Both of these people’s stories showed a perspective that usually isn’t represented as much in textbooks, and reading about their opinions and views made me see the time periods differently.
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