Throughout W.E.B Dubois’s legacy of writing (as the author of The Crisis) and being a black man in America trying to redefine what it means to be black and challenge stigmas. With the conception of The Crisis magazine, he sought to do just that by creating a piece of media that challenges the stereotypes, stigmas, and overall negative perceptions about black people in the country. Something that was very prominent was how much everyone was different but all were black people. He took people from all different walks of life regardless of age, or sex. Perhaps, those differences are the driving force behind the creation of the magazine. Now seeing better representation in media for black people, they quickly latched on. Another reason observation was how many women and children were being represented especially at a time in which women and children who were not of color did not have a more encompassing representation in media.
This cover speaks volumes to many issues and perceptions. I immediately think of when people say “Go Back to your country”. So many thoughts arise like “How do you think we got here?”, “Where are we to go when we were also born here?”, “What gives you the authority to tell me where I can live?”, “Is this not America, the ‘land of the free’ and where people come to start a new life?”.
This photo gives a feeling of “We are also children, friends, employees, and families, Not just what you perceive us to be negative.” Dubois wanted to take it a step further with The Horizon by encouraging people to buy and own books and not only borrow them from libraries. I think it was a precursor of the idea that we should own things for ourselves and grow as a community. Even at one point letting people know that The Crisis may be in financial trouble so buying books would help the community.
Dubois had a dilemma of identity when it came to the magazine. Dubois wanted to shift focus from NAACP as he was pushed to resign from his position with the association. NAACP wanted to implement change in the form of social activism and action. Dubois wanted a forum in which black intellectuals could come together and have discussions on education and how to reform the black image. Both had the same goal in mind but, different approaches. At one point readers during the time of circulation of the magazine rejected some of the covers, though one, in particular, stood out and many people were on the fence about how black people (the new negro) should be represented in media as slavery ended not too long ago. Some readers felt that she was “too Black” One woman from St. Lucia was photographed for the cover. Today we would revere such bravery for displaying not just what society wants black people to look like but also for who they really are, raw and unfiltered. Though back then black people wanted to be “represented” in the best way possible. Does that not make them an accomplice to their own repression? Does not showing the world all different kinds of black people give them a better understanding of who we are?
