Oppression of the Black Community as Depicted in Langston Hughes Poem, Freedom Train :: Hughes Freedom Train Essays

Oppression of the Black Community as Depicted in Langston Hughes' Poem, Freedom Train The poem, "Freedom Train" not only demonstrates the state of oppression the black community faced in 1947 but uses historical events and movements of the era. Langston Hughes wrote this poem in response to the train called Freedom Train that carried historical documents across country on September 17, 1947. On board the train was the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and a draft of the Constitution. The reader gathers from the poem, the setting takes place in the South during the recent announcement of the Freedom Train's departure. The narrator is a black man who has just heard about the Freedom Train. Immediately a visual came to mind of a man standing in the streets on a hot September day rejoicing and questioning the arrival of the Freedom Train. A million ideas and thoughts run through the mind of the narrator in a short period of time. He expresses throughout the poem so many questions and concerns regarding the Freedom Train. The main concern of the narrator is th e true meaning of "freedom" behind the Freedom Train. He questions whether or not this freedom is meant for him or if it's the freedom of the white man. He says in stance thirty, "What shall I tell my children?...You tell me-Cause freedom ain't freedom when a man ain't free". Personally, I believe this to be most profound statement in the entire poem. From the narrator's perspective, a man isn't truly free if he doesn't have the same rights as a man with white skin. He continues to question who the Freedom Train is really coming for. Will the blacks be sincerely welcome on this train? He ask in stance twenty: "When it stops in Mississippi will it be made plain Everybody's got a right to board the Freedom Train? After reading the poem a few times, I concluded that the narrator really wants freedom for all, which will not happen unless there is racial equality. The statement made in stance fifty and sixty backs this idea up because he states: "For the Freedom Train will be yours and mine!", "Black men and white men will say, Ain't this fine?" This expresses his hope and concern for everyone, not just the black race. The narrator refers to the term Jim Crow throughout the poem.