Mr Z. I would say yes society itself is racist, not just individuals.
I don’t want to hijack, old sport. So on to a new thread…
Backtracking a bit to the OP, there is an easy practical solution, which is that half the copies of any good book by a black author are shelved under the “Black” section and the other half in general stock*. The main point at the end of the day from the shop’s point of view is to help potential purchasers get to the books they’re likely to buy as quickly as possible, and if substantial numbers buy on the basis of “Black-ness”, as they do with Sci-fi, Crime, Gardening, etc, where is the problem? I think it is overdoing it to see racism in what is basically a straightforward commercial issue.
Clearly there will be a number of books in any category which fail to have interest outside the category (ie, not very well written, or too narrowly focussed. There would be no need to double-shelve these).
*obviously not just “black” writing but any other identifiable category - e.g., Gay or Imports - which attracts significant quantities of purchasers
In theory, this is a good idea. Maybe in the mega-stores this actually works. In my experience, there are two problems:
-
Except for the immediate release period, most books have one, or at the most two, copies in stock. They are tracked by computer for a 1:1 replacement. One sells, you get one to replace it. This reduces redundant inventory and overstocking problems. As I said, this may differ in the larger stores. If you only have one copy, guess where it goes?
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Booksellers tend to be lazy about shelving. Shelving is tedious and no one really volunteers to do it. Therefore, the easiest categories get shelved first. To a lazy bookseller, there is nothing easier than putting all the books that look like “black” books in one stack and putting them in the black section. Much easier than sorting out the distinct categories.
Or maybe this was decided on high by the corporate folks who wanted to marketed their services to the black community.
In much the same way McDonald’s has those all-black commercials air on BET.
[voice-over]
Here at McDonald’s we salute Martin Luther King and all that he fought for.
…So git on over and order a Double Big-Mac w/ Cheese!
Profiles of Black History.
George Washington Carver developed peanut butter.
…So git on over to your grocery story and have some Skippy, today!
I remember when the fuss was about establishing African American studies programs in universities. I guess we have come along these few years. This OP spurred some new thoughts in my mind - thoughts such as the need to think a la sunset laws [you need to re-evaluate periodically your conventional thinking to see if it fits today’s needs]. Your great idea that was relevant twenty years ago looks kinda silly today.
Thanks, Divemaster, for helping me to rethink about the necessity of African American book sections. Once in a while, Mr Zambezi comes up with something smart to say [although I disagree with the stepping stones and assumptions that he has]. Yes, it would be great to have all those women, gay/lesbian, Asian, Native American, African American, Hispanic sections within an overall American studies section, however the subcultures and the issues associated with them are still important and valuable to all Americans or folks interested in our society. Recognizing our diversity gives us strength and a broader base of experience from which we learn and we can apply. Going to one section is easier than wondering if my book would be under American history, American politics, Anthropology, Sociology yadayadayada. On the other hand, I would rather go to the drug store and see integrated supplies because moisturizer is moisterizer, that dark, deep purple lipstick might be just what I am looking for, coconut skin cream is great on any dry skin…
sailor writes:
> What’s ironic is this: In places like Washington DC and
> neighboring Prince georges county, blacks are a majority
> of the population, police, administration etc.
and further writes:
> When whites encounter black people who are obnoxious to
> them just because they are white (which is fairly often
> in DC)do you think they can shout “racism!” and sue?
I’ve lived in Prince George’s County since 1981 (except for three years away in 1987 through 1990) and I spend a lot of time in DC. In all that time I can’t think of any case where a black person was obnoxious to me just because I was white. I don’t think that this is because I’m too thick-skinned to notice insults. During those three years away, I lived in England, and I noticed cases where Brits were obnoxious to me just because I was American.
kiffa replies:
I’m honored by your compliment. It’s nice to know something I’ve brought up has caused another person to reflect seriously about a given topic.
There is certainly room for groupings based on a common theme. “Gay/Lesbian Studies” at least has a (somewhat) cohesive sociological or political current. That’s a different story than putting all the Gore Vidal and Truman Capote novels into the gay section.
Going back to the African-American issue; what if bookstores got rid of the catch-all segregation, and instead rotated specific issues on a monthly basis, say? For example, April might be “black sports heroes” and June might be “civil rights issues,” etc… All other books would be put in their respective subject sections. Relatively minor sub-sets (e.g., black erotica) would be side by side with the other books in the general erotica section.
Of course, stores do this to some extent (for all sorts of subjects) on the special monthly displays. Publishers pay big bucks for tie-in marketing and other topical attention-grabbing subject groupings. The differece with these is that when the promotion is over, the books go back into the correct subject section.
Maybe the monthly rotation within the regular African- American section could be a compromise that would dispense with the blanket section segregation without sacrificing the valid attempt to address a minority subculture.
This is impossible because shelf space is very limited. Also shelfspace is often rented for a specific book. I think stores and publishers have a black section because it increases total sales, although it probably decreases sales by black authors to white people. So I see no easy solution.
I think that one day this segregation of different groups will be considered quite silly.
Segregating authors based on skin color is a bad idea because it says “hey look at all the black authors who actually wrote books. They can’t usually do that so we have to give them a ‘special’ section.” It is like the special olympics.
Were I a black author, I would feel patronized. The way to combat racism is to stop “marking” non-whites and to let them stand on their merits. Toni morrison does not have to be a Black Author. She can simply be a Good Author writing about the black experience. What makes her any different from Baldwin?
Mr.Zambezi, I believe the “African-American section” would have books with subjects of interest to “African-Americans” regardlesss of who wrote them. I also believe a book by a black author but of a subject totally unrelated (like a technical manual) would not go into that section.
Then there are books which can be of specific interest to blacks and of general interest and it would seem that was the case in the OP.
I think this should be strictly a commercial decission. Whichever way they think they can get people to see the books that may interest them.
Amazon.com has the “people who bought this book also bought…” which works pretty well and I have located some interesting books that way.
Wendell Wagner, you have been luckier. I live in DC and have had a few unpleasant experiences.