I send my young to college and then I let them go forth as graduates into hotels as waiters and bellhops, into railway stations as redcaps for I have no work they may do but teach or sell insurance.If I am lynched or shot or my women raped I will complain in low whispers to my black brothers and sisters . . . more I dare not do.I am afraid to protect myself against anything white."
***
Great veins stand out in the giant's throat. His hands claw the air before him. His body rocks and sways. His hair mats against his forehead from the sweat that pours from his body and mixes with the small ooze of warm, red blood.
"I grin, I dance, I sing. I am the minstrel man for white America!I am a hodge-podge of paradox, a crazy collection of inconsistencies.Seldom to myself and before no whites dare I confess these traits.Pity me, Lord, for there is none other like me . . .I am the American Negro!"
***
Suddenly the temple is brilliantly lighted. The giant—still chained, still erect—raises his arms above his head. His face changes constantly, chameleon-like, from milky white to inky black. Then the light fades and the giant stands still. As he speaks, the white listeners cease their smiles and, one by one, leave the windows. Only one or two remain.
