Name: Destiny Butler Life on the Color Line Take Home Test

1.

Life on the Color Line is a memoir based on the authors life. What things has he chosen to emphasize and what has he chosen to leave out?

In the memoir, Life on the Color Line, by Gregory Howard William, the author has chosen to thoroughly describe his relations his mother and father, other family members (such as his aunt), siblings, and what part he played in the neighborhood. He also focuses on his early life, the part that caused him so much pain. One thing I noticed is, he chose to exclude his personal relations with women. However, he chose to briefly speak about his brothers. 2. What does the book suggest makes a person black or white? What difference does being black make in Williams life? Does race still matter today in Louisiana? How do you handle racism when you witness it? The book clearly suggests that a persons race is affiliated with their skin complexion and genes. In the 1950s, privilege and opportunity was given to Whites, while lack of opportunity for Blacks. With Williams mom being a Caucasian woman and his dad of a mixed heritage, it was hard for William to identify exactly what he was. William was raised in a white community. Later discovering that he was a black male in a white society, made a huge difference in his life. His mother left William, his next-oldest brother, Mike, and their alcoholic father, and took two of his younger siblings. After that, he felt like a part of his identity was missing. He was incomplete. Racism sadly still exists in Louisiana. I dont think it will even completely go away. Slavery has been abolished, however, its not against the law to discriminate. Im not saying that it is right, but I do believe that hatred and ignorance can be passed down from generation to generation. When I witness racism, I, honestly, tune out the ignorance, be the bigger person and acknowledge that Im the more mature person. Sometimes, some things are better left unsaid. 3. What were the main obstacles that Williams faced as a child? Do some of these problems exist now in Louisiana? As a child, William was abandoned by his mother, dealt with racism, and was sent to live with this fathers family because of his fathers addiction to alcohol. Problems like this occur Not only in Louisiana, but all over the country. Luckily, William was taken in by someone who cared about his

Name: Destiny Butler Life on the Color Line Take Home Test success. On a daily basis, people deal with alcohol problems, drug addictions, etc.

4. What were some of the defining events in Williams life that made him successful? Who contributed to his success and how? I believe that alcohol problems thats Williams father had, Williams mother abandoning him, the racism that he experienced and Miss Dora contributed a lot to his success and made him successful. Williams father had a serious alcohol problem. This caused Williams mother to leave. He often paid attention to how his fathers addiction affected his mother. Maybe later in life, he wont ever use alcohol because of the things he saw his father do. Miss Dora became the mother that William and Mike had been missing. She treated them as her own and tried to lead them down the right road to success. 5. Williams and his brother ended up with very different lives as adults. What do you think contributed to this? William and his brother ended up living two very different Lives. William stated that he and his brother, Mike, always seemed to compete in some sort. Whatever he saw Mike become a little proficient at, he made sure to be better. Mike struggled to stay in school, while William received praise from his teachers. Mike decided to be good at something that he knew William would never participate in. He chose to be street smart. I interpreted that Mike participated in sexual activities, easy women, easy money, drug dealing, etc. He chose this life because he knew that was something he would always win in. 6. What effect did reading Life on the Color Line have on you? I would recommend this book for all ages. It was very hard to put down. The author gives reader a brief understanding about racial issues that occurred throughout his life in the 1950s. In addition to my previous knowledge about the 1950s, I got to enjoy a book written by a person who was in the middle of racism. William wasnt just disliked by blacks, but whites also disliked him just because of his skin. There are many topics that the book discusses that are very interesting: Racism, The streets, Motivation, Determination, Confusion, Alcohol abuse, Success etc. Even though racism

Name: Destiny Butler Life on the Color Line Take Home Test still exists, it has drastically improved over time. Moral of the story, Even though William went through so much as a child, he still succeeded It definitely is what everyone said it would be. AMAZING!