The general point made by Langston Hughes in his works Dinner Guest: Me; Harlem; Cross; I, Too and Ghandi Fasting is that just because someone is different doesn’t mean that they are worth any less than you are, everyone is equal. More specifically, Hughes argues that blacks were used as workhorses at one point, and then were hidden away when company came over because they were viewed as an “embarrassment” by those that they worked for. He writes, “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.” (page 594). In this passage, Hughes is suggesting that while people who are different and oppressed are kept away from everyone else they grow strong in their belief of their equality, and when the time comes they will revolt and turn on their oppressors and everyone will be too afraid to make them stop. In conclusion, it is Hughes belief that everyone should be treated equally no matter who they are, what they look like, or what they believe in.
In my view, Hughes is right because we need to be willing to accept those who are different from us, when we oppress them they prepare to turn against us and we will be ashamed of our actions. For example, in American history as the African Americans were oppressed and forced into slavery and servitude they began to grow tired of the oppression and eventually helped in the effort to create an escape route for slaves and eventually to end slavery. Even after slavery ended the oppression continued with segregation, and those of other races began to once again grow tired of the hatred they were being subjected to and revolted and helped forward the movement of Civil Rights, which eventually abolished segregation and gave everyone equal rights. Therefore, I conclude that if we continue to look down upon people because they different than us, even for reasons other than race, we will eventually be forced to realize our mistake and will be completely ashamed for the actions that we have taken against those who are not exactly like ourselves.
Cody Golder 