I, Too
BY LANGSTON HUGHES
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.
Besides,
They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed—
I, too, am America.
Hughes, L. (n.d.). I, Too by Langston Hughes. Retrieved October 8, 2019, from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47558/i-too.
So recently, I read this poem in my African American literature class as part of an assignment and was instantly “woke,” and felt as if I had to get a few things off of my chest. Before you continue to read on, be sure to read the poem above first. If you may not know who Langston Hughes is, he played a major role during the Harlem Renaissance and fought for equality and social justice through his literature.
Now let’s be real, Hughes is stating a clear message and even giving us a little motivation as well. At first, I thought it was more of a cry for help, but as I kept reading, I got the message of “I belong here too, and I can show you better than I can tell you.” I felt as if the poem related to what’s happening in America today. From the administration we have in charge of our country, to the immigration issues, then on to our social justice system within the courts, racial and police brutality, and even on to homophobic issues going on, this poem still has relevance to this day.
From my knowledge, this poem was written from a perspective of a slave, someone living in the civil rights era, or someone black serving as a servant. Hughes says, “I too, sing America, I am the darker brother, they send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes, But I laugh, and eat well, and grow strong.” Even though he is a different race and the whites try to keep him away, all he’s saying is that the whites don’t phase him, and that he too belongs in America. “Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table, when company comes, nobody’ll dare say to me, eat in the kitchen,” Hughes says. Those lines right there speak for itself in my opinion. There’s hope in the lines as he’s expressing that the way he’s being treated because of the color of his skin will not last much longer because soon he will have a seat at the table, and guess who will be looking crazy? “Besides, they’ll see how beautiful I am and be ashamed, I, too am America,” is how Hughes finishes off the poem. The ending is beauty within itself. He’s saying, “Look at me, I’m me and that’s that, and I belong here.”
After reading this poem and breaking it down, I felt valued and felt as if I am enough as a black female in America. I felt as if Langston wanted everyone that read this poem at this time, specifically blacks, to feel as if they were enough and valued in this nation. Regardless of the discrimination against blacks at this time, I feel like any black that read this during this era received some sense of hope.
Now, to relate it to what’s happening now in the world today goes beyond the color of our skin. People are getting murdered because of the gender that they are attracted to. We have a President leading our country causing so much confusion with everyone, but, “this is the land of the free?” There are immigrants coming here to be free and live a better life, but are getting discriminated because they are an undocumented U.S citizen. White police officers are feeling comfortable enough to shoot black males and females at traffic stops or even beyond that because of their different views. Racial-intended mass and school shootings are the norm today. Why are these issues even an issue if “I, too sing America?” The relevancy of the poem today can touch so many people, American or not. The sense of feeling unstoppable and proving to others who are trying to stop you from being who you are or attempting to make you feel bad for who you want to be, is seen in the poem and in our society today.
Beyond being black, as citizen of this country, it’s upsetting that the poem is still relevant. Although it has light and pain all within the poem, the statements shouldn’t be relevant in the year of 2019. It’s sad and heartbreaking, and I’m convinced that Langston can see the future at this point. There was a need for “I, Too” when it was written, and there still is a need for it. Everyone in America who may not feel as if they belong in this nation should know that they too can sing America and will have a seat at the table. If we have the hope for the future just like Langston envisioned, then we will be alright because, “I, Too, sing America.”