Equality For All

A central theme that appears in "An Indian's Looking Glass for the White Man," "The American Muse: Poetry at Midcentury," and "Indian Names" is a desire for equality among the races. We have studied many pieces that portray the American Indian as defeated, overlooked, and taken advantage of. We have realized through many works that they were walked all over and seen as “lesser than” the white man. We have a lot of accomplishments and advancements to thank the Indians for, and we needn’t forget that throughout history, and for years to come.

Throughout the story “An Indian’s Looking-Glass for the White Man,” William Apess seems to struggle to figure out why the Indians aren’t equivalent to the white man. He states “Having a desire to place a few things before my fellow creatures who are traveling with me to the grave, and to that God who is the maker and preserver both of the white man and the Indian, whose abilities are the same and who are to be judged by one God, who will show no favor to outward appearances but will judge righteousness” (Belasco 640). Apess makes a very good point. God made every man, which is why one colored man shouldn’t be any less significant than a man of another color. Because of this, one man should not act superior to another type of man or treat him with disrespect, just as the white man made Indians feel unimportant and weak.

Apess even refers to the bible, saying “But we find that Jesus Christ and his Apostles never looked at the outward appearances. Jesus in particular looked at the hearts, and his Apostles through him, being discerners of the spirit, looked at their fruit without any regard to the skin, color, or nation…” (Belasco 643). I think it definitely goes without saying that all of these pieces of writing convey a central theme of a desire and necessity for equality. It helps the reader see how truly unfair the Native Americans were treated, and helps us understand the wrong in discriminating against color, which is still a problem we face today with the struggle to have equality every where among all people.