Dystopia to me means “A world where people are afraid to speak up because they are treated horribly and are afraid of the consequences they might suffer from if they do use their voice”. In other words, racial injustice and inequality because of the color of their skin. The definition I provided thrived from my understanding of how Dr. King perceived the world. In his “I Have a Dream” speech, Dr. King talks about how fundamental human rights were denied to Black people. Exposing the oppressive nature of a society where racial inequality prevails.
We were oppressed based on our racial status and other characteristics. He goes on to discuss how the principles of equality and justice are systematically undermined. This prevented Black people from speaking out against the injustice they endured. From knowing and understanding this concept, I had to understand why was it even possible to allow the oppressive ideologies to continuously happen. Blacks were afraid to speak up because of the fear that was instilled in them by the whites. They grew up seeing their kind being attacked and that silenced them. The fear created in them became a tool for control.
Not only did my definition thrive from Dr. King’s speech but also from my knowledge of slavery. Slavery was characterized by extreme fear and oppression. Slaves lived under constant threat of physical punishment, separation from families, no food, etc. The fear of these consequences for expressing dissent or voicing better treatment/freedom mirrors dystopian societies. Slaves were treated as property and not human beings. They had no say-so in anything they had to do, they had to simply obey what was asked of them to do. In conclusion, the concept of dystopian to slavery is justified by the shared characteristics of fear, oppression, dehumanization, inequality, and systematic injustice.