Born a Crime
by Trevor Noah
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
More than two million copies sold! A “brilliant” (Lupita Nyong’o, Time), “poignant” (Entertainment Weekly), “soul-nourishing” (USA Today) memoir about coming of age during the twilight of apartheid.
Reading the book again after three years, I have more questions, more insignts on Apartheid than I had reading it for the first time. In the book club I was participating, I was asked what I would name it if I was given the chance to name it, it would be "Color Blind: Not confied by it"
Color Blind: Not confied by it
Nneka Jones: Stiching societal justice
Trevor Noah's book has opened my eyes to how apartheid was and continues to exist though its legacy across South Africa. I chose the title "Color Blind: Not confined by it" to express the resilience and motivation of Trevor to go beyond what was "set" by the world for him even before he came to earth. The title I chose also reflects Patricia's resilience on gender-based generational trauma, her not submitting to limited patriarchal norms. It contains their shared determination to go beyond the barriers set by a society before they were even born.
Quote Reflection
"Abel wanted a traditional marriage with a traditional wife… but he never fell in love with subservient women… 'He only wants a woman who is free because his dream is to put her in a cage.
There is a saying that goes, "Human desires often only become clear when encountered the opposite of what we are looking for." Unfortunately for Patricia, Abel's pursuit of "fire", a woman of ambition, goals and that goes beyond the norms masked his actual desire for "water", a traditional woman who follows gender roles, that is submissive to her husband. This narrative opens our eyes to a broader societal tension on gender inequalities and gender roles, a dynamic that still exists across cultures even in progressive societies where men supposedly identify as "woke", "civilized", or "feminist". Beneath these labels, a persistent need for male superiority is observed revealing the contradiction stated above. Societal expectations put a heavy blanket of burden on women, demanding them to exceed the men in work place just to earn "respect", and equal treatment, and as if this is not enough, woman simultaneously are expected to manage the household responsibilities of maintaining the household, raising children, catering to her husband's needs and expect her to still have time to care for herself. On the contrary, men often get praised for minimum effort such as putting the dishes away, which society frames as "helping his wife" rather than sharing responsibilities. This basically reflects the double standard we as a society share towards women.
Freud's concept of "penis envy", a metaphor suggests women envy men "societal freedom." This addresses the inequalities on gender roles and it requires getting rid of our norms and bringing a culture in which both share responsibilities and are accountable. Only through a continuous effort can societies across cultures move more towards an actual gender equity, challenging the imposed structure of women and men gender role gaps.