Black and White: An illusion of sight

When we are told to think about opposites we seek to think about things that are in contrast with each other and the two colours sharing the highest contrast according to our eyesight are black and white. They are so unlike each other that even colorblind people who aren't able to differentiate between any other colours can at least differentiate between black and white. The terms black and white hold a special place in English language as a whole,they are used to signify opposites because of the obvious difference they are associated with opposite like good and bad justice and injustice right and wrong and so on, black is often associated with the darker elements like darkness Evil bad and villains and so on white is associated with light good righteousness and heroes and so on. The conception of this division was prevalent in the language itself, because the Mediterranean and European masses were fair in complexion, and darker skin tones represented foreign elements.

Consequently, people took the association so far as to associate people with the colours and made a division among themselves so massive that hardships and terror doomed on the few with the different skin colour than the other. After the whites achieved technological advancements earlier than the blacks they used the distinction as a cause to justify their ruling over the other and it was not until recently that these acts have faded. They still occupy some hold in some places in the modern society figures like Gandhi and Nelson Mandela are the advocates of the abolition of the cause laid down by the superpower European Nations. Movements like George Floyd and other such racial slurs passed on to the blacks, brown or hispanic people has always plagued the superpower nations.

Even little children aren't spared of this distinction and differentiation they are told that darkness is bad which occupies a prominent position in individual's psyche for a long time. Also, the color black is associated with dark, the time when nocturnal animals can see clearly and humans being non nocturnal animals cannot see in the dark causing them to be a bit cautious in the night. That is why children are instilled with this weird notion when they are too young to understand the difference.

But we should not forget that in the end they are just two colours. Like all other colors, they are just an illusion of sight.

-Hussain Barad

#Blackandwhite #racism