Whitewash

Whitewash by Ntozake Shange

            Picture Book—Controversial

            Grades PreK-4

            Rating: 5 Stars

            Summary: This true story is about a young African-American girl named Helene-Angel who is attacked one day by a Caucasian gang when she is walking home with her older brother Mauricio. The gang spray-paints Helene-Angel’s face white, and she is traumatized by this encounter.

            Whitewash was an eye-opening book for me because it brings up a topic that most people shy away from—racial conflict. I realized as I was reading that I cannot relate to the experiences of Helene-Angel and her brother, Mauricio. They were innocently walking home from school, minding their own business, and were both brutally attacked by a gang of Caucasian guys. I have no experience whatsoever in what that must have felt like for them. Growing up in a white middle class family, I don’t know anything beyond what was the norm in the area where I grew up. As I walked down the street or in the halls of my high school, I simply blended in. However, Helene-Angel and Mauricio are racial minorities and face discrimination for no reason other than the color of their skin. This situation just made me cringe as I was reading because I don’t know what that feels like, but it is reality for so many people. In many ways, Helene-Angel’s experience makes me ashamed to be the same ethnicity as the guys that spray-painted her face. I was overjoyed at the end of the story to see that Helene-Angel had the support of her family and friends of diverse cultures and that she rose above what they did to become a stronger girl.

            A couple of years ago, I would probably have said that I wouldn’t have this book in my classroom because I had a fear of dealing with parents who were upset or angry about literature that challenges social norms. Now, I can’t imagine having a classroom library without books like Whitewash, which challenges what society feels about issues surrounding race. As Tunnell and Jacobs point out, “Avoiding the harsh and often unsavory realities of life does not make them go away” (p. 206). I feel like this statement speaks strongly about the mission and responsibility we have as teachers to inform our students and not to ignore the issues of this world that children will undoubtedly face some day. Literature can be used to teach students to stand up for what is right. We will be doing a disservice to our students if we try to mask these issues and “protect” them, and Whitewash is a great example of a story that models how to be better than the racial discrimination that is all around us.