Smurf is a kid at John Bowne Public High School in Queens who once pulled a gun on Kendi on the school bus and then attacked an Indian kid who unknowingly took his seat. In his chapter on bodily racism, Kendi argues that racists frequently use the existence of dangerous, violent people like Smurf to justify a generalized fear of and hostility towards Black people. This combination of fear and hostility prevents people from responding to or fighting racism.
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Smurf Character Timeline in How to Be an Antiracist
The timeline below shows where the character Smurf appears in How to Be an Antiracist. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 6: Body
...uniform. But it wasn’t all for the better: he also remembers when a kid nicknamed Smurf pulled out a gun on the school bus and stuck it in Kendi’s face.
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...they thought the neighbors were too dangerous. This taught Kendi to fear other Black people—including Smurf, who frightened him with the gun. Kendi was constantly scared at his new school: he...
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...Kendi realizes that his unreasonable fear of Black people stopped him from intervening, like when Smurf attacked an Indian kid for taking his seat.
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...terrified to intervene. Many Americans—including armed police officers—are similarly afraid when they see Black people. Smurf attacked the Indian kid and ran off, and Kendi used to think that all Black...
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...of accessible, dignified, well-paying jobs for young people. Antiracists do not deny that individuals like Smurf are dangerous, but they refuse to fear entire racial groups.
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