Tokens and Mascots – Lessons From Malcolm X Part 2

I first learned about the Civil Rights Movement when I was in the fourth grade. It was Black History Month, and my teacher included a lesson on Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks. I remember going home, and asking my mother—a college professor—to teach me more about these leaders. Her excitement was palpable; many of these folks influenced her work as a student activist in the 1970s, and she was impressed with my interest.

I took her teachings to heart, and began referring to Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson as my “heroes” and “role models.” I actually still have an art project from that year which puts this watershed moment in perspective: We were asked to list one person we “look up to.” Most of my classmates listed one of their parents. I listed W.E.B. Dubois.

Yet, the idea of civil rights and racial equality was still just that: an idea. My hometown of Binghamton, New York includes seven public elementary schools. While the district-wide student population is currently about 25% black, my elementary school contained only a handful of minorities. Needless to say, I had pretty limited interaction with folks of a different race. That is, until fifth grade when Daanyaal transferred to Thomas Jefferson Elementary.

I don’t really remember Daanyaal’s background, and I’m not sure what ended up happening to him. What I do remember, however, was my excitement at the dinner table later that night. “Mom, I think I have a new friend—a black friend!” Boy, was I proud! A bona fide black friend!

There’s an entire chapter in The Autobiography of Malcolm X that addresses this kind of token “friendship.” Entitled “Mascot,” the chapter detailed Malcolm’s early childhood in Michigan and his experiences with his white foster family. He writes:

“What I am trying to say is that it just never dawned upon them [Malcolm’s foster parents] that I could understand, that I wasn’t a pet, but a human being. They didn’t give me credit for having the same sensitivity, intellect, and understanding that they would have been ready and willing to recognize in a white boy in my position. But it has historically been the case with white people, in their regard for black people, that even though we might be with them, we weren’t considered of them. Even thought they appeared to have opened the door, it was still closed. Thus they never did really see me.” [emphasis in original, p. 28]

We see discussions of tokenism in political discourse, from analyses of Colin Powell to Clarence Thomas to Barack Obama. We also see discussions of tokenism in academic discourse, as scholars have analyzed the effect of token hires in corporate America on racial inequality.

Yet the best, most poignant commentaries on tokenism are found in pop culture. The one black character on Comedy Central’s South Park is aptly named “Token.” Countless films under the “coming of age” motif generally have a minor black character, if only for superficial racial diversity. Columbia Pictures’ Not Another Teen Movie contains arguably the best tongue-in-cheek depiction of token black characters in film. In the movie, a black character named Malik enters a high school party filled with white youths. He heads to the kitchen to get a drink, and sees another black character by the keg. Malik motions to the other black guy, asking, “What are you doing here?” The other black teen responds quizzically, “What do you mean?” Malik answers, “I’m supposed to be the only black guy at this party.” The black guy apologizes, the two embrace, and he leaves the party.

As I read Malcolm’s thoughts on being a racial mascot, I thought about Daanyaal. Reflecting on Daanyaal makes me feel uncomfortable, and there’s a reason for this: I never saw Daanyaal as Daanyaal; rather, he was just “the cool black kid.” I treated him with the same paternalism and condescension that Malcolm faced as a child. It should go without saying that I have matured since fifth grade, especially in my critical understanding of race and inequality. But that doesn’t change the past, nor should it. Tokenism is highly problematic, especially in progressive circles. For that very reason, we need to be aware of it—and prepared to deal with it.

Recognizing and rejecting this tokenism is yet another important lesson we can learn from Malcolm X.