As I was re-reading “Citizen” by Claudia Rankine so many different ideas, thoughts, and questions were running through my head. The first of which was all of the imagery that is evoked in each poem. These images helped create a photo album of sorts in my mind’s eye. I keep coming back to the section on the Williams sisters over and over again. These images are so powerful, not because I can see them in there bright colored tennis outfits running back and forth across class and grass courts all over the world, that’s there too. However, what struck me most about the prose poems (if I must attempt to classify them), is how much I never considered them as game changers or outsiders. This is not because of that cliché response to racial injustice “I just don’t see color or sex,” it has more to do with perspective. I sadly came to the realization that part of me never once even considered how tough it must be for them, to go into certain arenas or certain countries and do something they have loved to do their entire lives. Having arrived at this realization I was more than a little upset at myself, because, I couldn’t believe that after all of these years I finally saw something that was looking us all right in the face. The other half of my new consciousness was very happy to have arrived at this point, even though it took longer than I would have liked.

Rankine gives many other examples of injustice from many different perspectives. I was excited and more than a little intimidated by all of these different perspectives. I felt at different points in the collection that I was in complete agreement and understanding with her. Than all of a sudden I thrown into something else completely. I would have to again find my bearings and would be okay again.

I started to wonder why she would consciously make the effort to put all of these images and sections into one collection. After thinking about this question sporadically for a few days, I believe I came up with one of many answers to my own question. I believe she is attempting to show that we are all citizens on this planet and we are all going through something that we must overcome. Rankine is also brings show many different injustices to the table, which will hopefully bring a voice to the voiceless and cause people to want to do something about them.