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BayleyYoung
September14,2015
“The Meeting”Reflection
“The Meeting” Reflection
1. Whydo you thinkyou were requiredto attend thisevent?
I thinkour classwas requiredtoattendthiseventbecause itisextremelyrelevanttoour society
today.It seemsasthoughthere are differentstoriesalmosteverydayaboutanotherunarmed
blackpersonbeingmanhandledandkilledwithoutprovokingthe cops,andthe “Black Lives
Matter” movementisveryprominent.EventhoughMalcolmXwasassassinatedalmost51 years
ago, andMartin Luther KingJr.was assassinated almost48yearsago, the fighttheywere
fightingandthe rightstheywere tryingtoprotectare still prevalent.Itmightbe a differentfight
todaythan whatMalcolm X andMartin Luther KingJr.were fighting,butthe basicsof the
strugglesremainthe same.We asstudentscan relate towhatMalcolm X andMartin Luther King
Jr. stoodfor because we are seeingasimilarstruggle todayinourlifetime,justastheywere in
theirs.
2. After experiencing“The Meeting”:
a. What beliefsguide yourlife- beliefsforwhichyou would be willingto sacrifice your
life?
I thinkthat anybelief thatapersoniswillingtodie forhasto be serious.Asfaras beliefs
I’mwillingtodie for,there aren’tmanyIcan thinkof.I’mnot religious,butIam
respectful of peoplethatare (unlessthatpersonisabigotand disrespectful of other
people andtheirbeliefs). Iwon’tdie formy religion,because Idon’treallyhave one.It’s

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more like Ijustdon’treallyknow whatthere isinthe afterlifeafterwe die,butif there’s
somethingorsome Supreme Beingoutthere,thengreat.There aren’treallybeliefsI
would sacrifice mylife for,butthere are thingsthatI believeinwholeheartedly,andwill
supportfor the restof mylife. Iwoulddie formyfamilyand(some) friends,butI
wouldn’tconsiderthose people tobe beliefs.
b. How are your notionsof differences (e.g.,race,generations,gender,socio-economic
status, etc.) challenged?
It seemsasthoughthere are infinite viewpointsoneachof these subjects,andno
matterwho youtalkto, no one personhasthe same view asanother.That’swhyit isso
goodthat our campus andour country isso diverse, sothatwe see all walksof life in
frontof our veryeyeseveryday. Havingthe chance tosee and interactwithall different
kindsof people give usthe opportunitytointeractwithandacceptall differentkinds of
viewpoints. There aren’tmanypeople andcultureswe don’thave inourcountrytoday.
Whetherwe agree witheveryoneornot,we have to be respectful.There are many
movementsprominentinoursocietytodaythatadvocate to furtherour rightsas
citizensandhumans.Race and genderare the two bigsubjectsbeingtalkedaboutright
now.The “Black LivesMatter” movementandfeminismare twobigmovementsgoing
on currently.As anadvocate for both,I see the waythese movementsare takingholdin
the youngergenerations,andhow theyare differentthanwhathappened25-50 years
ago. Eventhoughwe still live inthe same countrythatoldergenerationslivedin,what
theythoughtof in termsof “race” and“gender”and “socio-economicstatus”are
differentthanwhatwe thinkof,and evenwhatwe thinkamongstourselvescouldbe
differentthanthe nextperson. Ourviewsof whateachof these thingsare are changing
fromwhat our parentsandgrandparentsthink.

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c. Withwhich character in the performance did you identifymost closely?Why?
I believeIidentifymostcloselywithMalcolmX,ratherthanMartin LutherKingJr. I
respectMartin LutherKingJr.’sideasandattitudeson peace and how to gaintheircivil
rightsthat theywere fightingfor,andI am not a violentpersonbyanymeans,butI very
much am a “by any meansnecessary”person, like MalcolmXwasduringhislifetime.
MalcolmX wantedblackpeople touse anymeansnecessarytogaintheirrightsas
Americans,andIstand withthat.One incidentIcan thinkof in our lifetime isthe
Baltimore riotsthathappenedearlierthisyear.Idon’tunderstandtheirstruggle,
because itisn’tmystruggle to understand,beingawhite femalecollege student. Ican’t
force myself intothe conversation,butIcan stand withthem. Blackpeople have been
strugglingforyearsuponyearsto gainrights,and eventhoughtheyare legallycitizens,
theyare still treatedwithdisrespectandare victimsof institutionalizedracisminthis
countrytoday.Peace won’tgetanyone’sattention,butfightingbackwill.Youhave to
speakup foryour voice tobe heard,andwhenit’signored,youhave touse “any means
necessary”togain whatyoudeserve.That’swhyIthinkI identifymore withMalcolmX
than Martin LutherKingJr. I’mnot a violentperson,andIcouldneverresorttoviolence
myself,butremainingpassivewon’tgetyoutowhere youneedtobe.
3. What part(s) ofthe post-playdiscussionwere most interestingto you? Why?
There wasn’tmuchto the post-playdiscussion.Itwasinterestingtosee the three menthat
portrayedeachcharacter on stage together.Theylookedlike eachcharactertheywere
portraying,atleastthe guys that playedMartinLutherKingJr. andMalcolm X.I wasn’tsure how
to feel aboutthisplaywhenIdidn’tknow whatitwas about,butafter hearingthatit wasa
meetingbetweenMalcolmXandMartin LutherKingJr.,I was excitedtogoand see it.I always
heardabout Martin LutherKingJr. growingupduringelementaryschool andmiddleschool,and

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we wouldalwaysrecognize hisbirthdaywhenitcame around,butnotmuch was mentioned
aboutMalcolm X duringmygrade school years.He was alwaysafigure inhistorythat was
around,but I nevergotthe chance to know more aboutwhat he stoodfor.I can understand
why,buthe wasalwaysone figure fromhistorythatI wantedto know more about,so thisplay
was a great chance to see more on hisviews.
4. What questionsdoesthisperformance raise for you as an American college student?
As an Americancollegestudent,thisraisesmanyquestions.Muchof what eachman stoodfor is
still beingsoughtaftertoday.Blackpeople are stillbeingtreatedunfairly.AsanAmerican
college student,thisisreallyourproblemtodeal with.We are the generationof change,andwe
have to fix whathas beenwronged.Itseemslikethere isnochangingthe oldpeople andhow
theythink,butwe have to be the onestotake onthat responsibilityandelectthose leadersthat
will fightforthe rightthings. The responsibilityisourstouphold.We can’tsit back anylonger
and waitfor someone elsetodoit. It mighttake yearsand yearsbefore real progressismade,
but ithas to start nowbefore anymore time has passed. Asan Americancollege student,living
intoday’stimes,one questionIhave toaskis “whyis thisstill anissue?”Shouldn’tithave
alreadybeensolved?Fromthe Civil warbackinthe 1860s tothe Civil Rightsmovementinthe
1960s, shouldn’tithave beenresolved,oratleastsome progressmade?Thatis whythe people
of mygenerationhave totake a stand.There is nomore time towait.We can’tletthe effortsof
each leadergoto waste.Nowhasto be the time for change.