The biggest topic our classes had in common in my opinion was racial prejudice. Whether or not racism was a main topic of discussion, it tended to play a part in what we were learning about in the class, such as in our Honors Seminar class. We went for a walk around an area that was previously known as Buttermilk Bottoms, and even though the changes in landscape and architecture was the main topic, it was impossible for America’s history of segregation to not show in the (past) streets of Atlanta. The entirety of the Buttermilk Bottoms neighborhood was bulldozed to create multiple megastructures and larger buildings as a replacement. Since the majority of the residents in the area were black, the act of bulldozing the land can definitely be seen as a way of relocating people the government did not want there. Even though segregation became illegal, whites continued to want the physical separation of races. This aided the causes of such events as the destruction of Buttermilk Bottoms.

In other classes, we directly discussed the topic of race, such as literature and perspectives. In literature, we read a few short stories in which the plot directly revolved around race (“How to Date a Brown Girl, Black Girl, White Girl, or Halfie” and  “Southern University, 1962”). In perspectives, we discussed how race is the first thing an American sees in another person. In government, we learned about the history of states that were motivated by racial supremacy.

I believe the topic of racism in American is an incredibly important one, and will most likely be discussed throughout the semester in all of our classes.