The right direction: Coleman Hughes and the case for black optimism

How do we measure progress? Coleman Hughes, a 23-year-old Columbia University student, looks at this question in his essay, “The Case for Black Optimism,” published in September 2019 in Quillette, an international online journal. Hughes makes the claim that black Americans are better off today than they have ever been, and he argues that this progress should be emphasized more in conversations about the state of black America. As you read, pay attention to how Hughes uses data and statistics to back up his claims.span>

Coleman Hughes– “The Case for Black Optimism” – Quillette, 28 September 2019

 

1. Hughes creates his argument as a response to a “standard view” of the state of black Americans today. Where in his essay does Hughes introduce this standard view as a “they say”? What is that standard view, according to Hughes, and what are the different arguments that contribute to it? Read (or re-read) Chapter 1 for ways writers introduce “standard views” in their arguments.
   
2. This essay contains a lot of numbers – rates, percentages, and other metrics. What do these numbers tell us about different areas of life for black Americans? Why do you think Hughes chooses these particular areas to focus on in his argument? What do you find surprising in these data? What other kinds of data would you want to know, and why?
3. Hughes cites the exact same data as his naysayers: Hughes says the data shows that black Americans are making progress, while others use that same data to show that black Americans are trailing behind white Americans in important ways. Hughes explains the difference is the frame that they use: either the “gap lens” or the “past lens.” How does Hughes define these lenses? What do these lenses look for, and how are they different? Which lens does Hughes advocate for? Why? What do you think? What’s the best way to measure progress for black Americans?
4. Hughes argues that pointing to differences between racial groups does not always result in a “more useful picture of the state of black America.” Michelle Alexander, in her essay “The New Jim Crow,” argues against this by saying that these differences, such as the difference in incarceration rates among black and white Americans, tell us a lot. Go back and read Alexander’s essay, located in the reading section of They Say/I Say. What is Alexander’s central argument? Find two claims in Hughes’ essay that you think Alexander could respond to. What do you think her response might be? Use the templates in Chapter 4 to frame that response.

Comments

[Ari SIlverton]

1. Hughes puts the "They Say" in his essay right off the bat, beginning with the third sentence of the essay. "The standard portrayal" serves as his They Say. He then articulates the political differences between how the Left and Right feels about the cause of this negativity for black people, which, in my opinion, was unnecessary as the rest of the article pretty much disregards the political position of the views about whether optimism regarding the fate of black people is well placed.

2. Most, if not all of the numbers mentioned in this essay demonstrate either that black people are prospering and on the rise, or that certain numbers are easily framed so as to give the appearance of nasty racism retaining its cold grip on black people. Hughes probably chose blunt statistics because of how difficult it is to argue with them. If, in fact, there was a "72 percent drop in the incarceration rate for black men aged 18–19," then things are looking up, however you slice it. I didn't find any one particular piece of data surprising, as they were all plausible, but I did find the whole picture painted by them to be shockingly optimistic, given what I thought I knew about black incarceration and poverty rates. I would like to know if there are differences between races that don't typically seem to have anything to do with each other, so that we can verify whether people might perform differently if there was no oppression or injustice between them. Something like a control study, some way to prove that two equally un-oppressed races can, in fact, perform differently, proving that oppression isn't the only reason a race can underperform compared to other races. If we knew this to be true (or even false), it would shed some much needed light on the politics of race.

3. The "gap lens" looks at an issue through comparisons. If black people, on average, do worse than white people (be it physically, mentally, economically, whatever), then there must be some form of oppression, residual or otherwise. On the other hand lies the past lens. "Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not to who someone else is today." -Jordan Peterson. This quote accurately sums up the past lens, which, instead of making apples to oranges comparisons between different races, compares apples to slightly older apples. Hughes advocates for the past lens, because it can make accurate comparisons about the state of races, by comparing apples to apples at a different time, rather than oranges to apples now. I agree, but for different reasons, such as the fact that the past lens favors a more optimistic view, which fosters efforts from optimists to make it true, so that holding an optimistic view actually increases the likelihood that it will be correct.

4. Hughes claims that a total overhaul of our governmental systems isn't necessary and would actually stymie the progress occurring right now. I suspect Alexander would disagree, arguing that any progress that may seem to appear thanks to Hughes' optimistic statistics is actually a facade, and that mass incarceration still exists in full today. She would most likely cite her personal experiences as a counter to statistics regarding reductions in black incarceration rates. Thus, facing a complete lack of progress, a total system overhaul would actually be applicable. I'm having trouble wrapping my head around almost any of Alexander's arguments, and so cannot generate a second claim to "counter" Hughes without spending a disproportionate amount of time on it. So I won't lol.