Through sections 4-6, Coates makes his claim about how impossible it was for African Americans to assimilate into American culture by presenting a chronological timeline. He begins with writing about the beginnings of America and how the whites, who were once colonized, began to colonize Africans. Coates brought up more historical evidence by referencing specific laws that that dehumanized black people to “untouchables”. For example, “In 1705, the Virginia assembly passed a law allowing for the dismemberment of unruly slaves—but forbidding masters from whipping “a Christian white servant naked, without an order from a justice of the peace.” Slaves were not considered living individuals but were merely treated as property needed for economic gains. He later writes about the countless injustices faced by African Americans, even after slavery was abolished. Using more historical evidence: “Eric Foner recounts incidents of black people being attacked for not removing their hats; for refusing to hand over a whiskey flask; for disobeying church procedures; for “using insolent language”; for disputing labor contracts; for refusing to be “tied like a slave.” and “Black schools and churches were burned to the ground. Black voters and the political candidates who attempted to rally them were intimidated, and some were murdered.” The system was built to favor the white man over the black man: there was no room possible for blacks to grow. That can be seen through all of the evidence presented by Coates, and it is even present in today’s society. Black people were consistently denied privileges, even the most simple ones such as home ownership.
