Coalhouse Walker's Personal Endeavor: Was he sending a message?
Coalhouse Walker's raids on multiple fire stations definitely brought people together against the atrocious acts committed against colored people. However, was Coalhouse intentionally raising his voice against oppression? Did he purposefully bring together freedom fighters or was he after his own personal justice? In the eyes of his supporters was Coalhouse Walker standing for his people's rights or was he merely a convenient cause to stand behind? Both sides carry substantial evidence, but I think that my belief outshines any refutals.
The first argument is that in essence Coalhouse Walker's actions brought up the conversation of civil rights. After hearing the story and seeing the vandalism committed to his car, people would begin to rally behind him. "But now the authorities were embarrassed. The Ford stood as tangible proof of the black man's grievance"(Doctorow 237). The fact that Coalhouse is justified with his complaints gives people who relate to him a cause to unite with. Countless colored people have been mistreated in this way, so seeing the vandalized car as proof lights a flame in the hearts of revolutionaries. The current norm is that black people can be mistreated by whites with no consequence. Police officers turn a blind eye and even colored law firms have no way to help. By exposing this unfairness to likeminded people all around the nation, it makes them want to revolt. "The newspaper editors and police officials believed it was in the interest of the public welfare not to print the letter. An isolated crazed killer was one problem. An insurrection was another"(Doctorow 212). Countless voices being raised would cause problems for the dominant whites, and they know it. If such voices all rebelled at once, they would threaten to destroy the system that is pitted against those of color. In this way, Coalhouse Walkers actions and demands can be seen as sending a message to people to fight against oppression and a message to authorities that their system is being threatened.
The second argument is that Coalhouse simply wanted his car returned and justice for himself and his late fiance. The whole matter was deeply personal to him as he was mistreated, his car was vandalized, and his pride was broken. Coalhouse Walker is known to be a proud and stubborn man. The Fire Chief and his men disgraced him, and he relentlessly sought out justice through many different means. "I want my automobile returned to me in its original condition"(Doctorow 212). He never claims that injustice against colored people as a whole must be dealt with. He merely restates the same demands over and over again. If he truly wished to send a message to the world then he wouldn't have left it to the press and the authorities' discretion whether his message is sent or not. He would've went out into the public and let his protests against the corrupt system be heard, Emma Goldman style. This argument claims that because he didn't focus on allowing the "message" to reach as many as possible, he never had these protests against the grand white elite to begin with. Sure, he can hold some resentments towards the way the world works, but he doesn't want to be a public figure standing against it. All he ever wanted was his car and his justice.
These two claims both have evidence to back them up, and supporters of either side could passionately debate on it all day. I believe that Coalhouse's intentions were mostly to earn justice for himself, but partly to rouse the public as well. I also think that it's very possible that he simply gave up on life after he lost his prized possession and his beloved fiance, so his only purpose in life was to mindlessly pursue this personal endeavor. "They recognized [Coalhouse's] decision as suicide"(Doctorow 295). Once his car was returned to him he lost all purpose once more. If his purpose was to truly to bring about an uprising, he wouldn't have accepted death so easily. Be that as it may, I do believe no matter his intentions, he would bring about conversation of insurgency against the system that leaves colored people at the bottom, no matter how successful or wealthy. He brought about change, and if his true purpose was to fight for the cause then he would've become a symbol for civil rights.
Doctorow, E. L. Ragtime. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2007.
Hiii Belal, I agree with both points you mentioned about Coalhouse; how he mostly intended to pursue personal justice rather than start a revolution against white supremacy. I think one thing you could think about is how he is bringing so many innocent people's lives to such a personal matter. So I feel like, to some level, he is escalating the matter to societal level, as he tries to target a bigger scale for his voice to be heard. Just an interesting thought :D Great post!!
ReplyDeleteHey Ruijing, thanks for your comment! I hadn't thought about how bringing innocents into the matter changes the way the situation can be viewed. It definitely gets more people talking and got the media more involved.
DeleteBelal, this blog gave me butterflies the way that it so EXQUISITELY discusses the two separate arguments of Coalhouse Walker's goals when he was blowing up places around the city. I, St. Elliot, personally believe that if Coalhouse Walkers goals were for civil rights then that would make him quite ahead of his time given the Civil Rights movement going into full effect during the 1960s and this taking place around the 1910s. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteHey St. Elliot, thanks for your comment! I agree that he would be renowned as an icon for the Civil Rights movement had that been his agenda, but perhaps he is considered that later on in the world of Ragtime? Maybe the reason personal affairs being the only thing that kickstarted this movement is because colored people were so afraid of standing for what's right for so long?
DeleteOne way to look at it is that the rebellion begins as a direct response to the injustice of having his car destroyed--so it is primarily about pride and even "stubbornness," in that he refuses to yield to these crude racist thugs, and that makes him "stubborn" (even if it's perfectly understandable and even admirable). But as the situation escalates, and as his fiance is murdered by the secret service, the story rises to another level: as you note, his efforts to secure justice become the problem. In the end, he is protesting the fact that he is blown off by the police and every other form of government authority as much as he is trying to get his car restored. The car becomes symbolic of these *structural* elements of racism. Once he declares himself "President" of the "Provisional American Government," the scope broadens considerably. This is no longer simply about a racist fire chief and a car.
ReplyDeleteBelal, I really like how you showed both sides of what people think a coalhouse with a lot of evidence too. I think that you could make claims with both sides one with justice for all black Americans or justice for one's self. I like how you point out coalhouse hardheaded nature into your arguments and compare it to Emma Goldman a bit too. Overall this was a very great blog post and had me conflicted on which side is right :>
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