the manipulation and psychological damage

 One of the author’s key points was how the black race was manipulated. The white race would brainwash educated negros that they were better than other negros. This lead educated negros to think lower of their own race, not only this but many educated negros cared so much for white validation that sometimes educated negros would work themselves so they can wear expensive clothes and have their families looking lavashes, living a lifestyle they would forcefully follow. When other negros asked educated negros  for help they would decline to help, this influence again was put by the white race, encouraging them to gatekeep their knowledge, this way the amount of educated negros could be controlled by the white race. Not only did they use manipulation to turn on each other but they would actually use propaganda. The whites would address African Americans’ failures. “In bright bold letters a cover of the newspaper would announce such failure, ‘black-owned business fails’ discouraging the ability to make business while being black.”(Woodson. pg.124) Sometimes this news would be completely false, purposely discouraging the black race. They also would purposely make tests that they were born to fail for this way it continued to be known that being black means you are a failure. “ Give test knowing they’ll fail. Make them believe they can’t”(Woodson pg.74)  To add on to make them fail they would also encourage suicide not only was it the whites but also African Americans would tell other educated negro that he was a failure to the black race, they didn’t want anything to do with someone who lived among the whites, churches would also discourage the population of the educated . “the educated negro gets less and less pleasure out of the negro church, not on the account of its primitiveness and 

increase.”(Woodson, pg. xiii)