Based on a report from “Repeating Islands”, on Dec. 12, 2011, I wrote a blog entitled “Black British Barbadian Born YA
Author”. This referred to Malorie Blackman who has written a number of YA books
in the UK, one of which is Naughts and Crosses. Although I was celebrating her as one of us Caribbean people, because we do ‘own
those’ born in the Caribbean, but live elsewhere, at that time there was also
another post somewhere else suggesting that she was born in the UK of Barbadian
parents. However, we often claim those as well. And why not? Some of the
children of Jamaican parents who were born elsewhere, just tried out for our Olympic team. So she was ours.
Now
in July 2012, on researching Malorie Blackman again for this post, I see no
mention of either type of Caribbean connection. She is
simply identified as a Black British writer. Is she still one of us? If she was
not born in Barbados, and not of Barbadian parents, can we claim her just
because she is Black? Not really, because I know we might think that all Black people in Britain are of West
Indian descent, but of course, this is not so.
My ordered copy of her book, Naughts and
Crosses, finally came. (Remember the game we played at school, especially after
exams in the lower school while we were waiting for marks – noughts and
crosses.) This edition of the book is not called Naughts and
Crosses but, Black and White, which I presume is its American name. The
premise of the story is that the group in power are Black and they are called
Crosses; the other group, White, and they are called Naughts, and they were
once slaves. It’s an interesting twist, and no less distressing and frightening
that if it were the other way around, the way it is in real life. Prejudice and
the ramifications of it are awful no matter who is involved. The story is well
written, the characters totally believable,
the situations gripping, the friendship and romantic relationship fraught with danger (we know that from past experiences in books, films and real life), the tragedy, as it unfolds, sad. You feel sad
for the characters and you feel sad for the world, because even though some YA
stories have perhaps moved on to an exciting future world with different
prejudices and different tragedies, this one, as depicted in Naughts and
Crosses, we know has not yet really been
solved.
I looked at Malorie Blackman’s blog and the comments from
teenagers reading this book (and other books written by her) show that she has
reached these children. I could see from one comment, that at least one child
was Black and felt that this book helped to explain things not previously
understood. I don’t think that I saw any comments (and it was not an exhaustive
search) that could be identified as coming from
White children, and what, if any effect, the story had on them. Does it
matter? Well, it might be interesting since the story does deal with an aspect of major group-conflict in our western world, but no, it does not. However, I
think this is the sort of story that should be read by everyone, because
prejudice amongst other ethnic groups, which we may think homogeneous, and religious
groups, exists, and already is the basis
for tragic or violent acts.
So, can we claim Malorie Blackman? Can we claim her story?
Of course, you know I’d like to do both. However, I think that just as we might
read an American story which deals with African American teenagers, so should
we find interesting a similar story out of the UK. Our young people need to
understand what happens in the world when
different ethnicities come in conflict. We so often talk about our children
being our future. This book gives them something to think about, because in this
case the future is already upon them;
they will decide that there is no room for prejudice in a world facing so many
other threats; or not. So whether we can claim Malorie Blackman or not, it’s an
emotional story which makes us consider
things to which we may not have otherwise given a thought. Most of all, it’s a great read.
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