msh+Langston+Hughes'+Higher+Purpose

Langston Hughes spend a lot of his life in Harlem as his primary home. He was African-American and the son of a teacher. This already helps explain why he wrote this poem. Living in Harlem, Langston Hughes knew a lot about, and experienced the racism between African-Americans and white Americans. Since his mother was a school teacher he also had some interest in that topic and decided to combine that in his poem. His main purpose is to show that black and whites really are not that different. He's telling his teacher: "You are white— yet a part of me, as I am a part of you". In this essay by a student, he expresses how hard it is for him to be the only black student in his class, but he wants other people to learn from his experience. Langston Hughes made a lot literature over racism, and he's trying to teach people that black and white people are not different: "I guess being colored doesn’t make me //not// like the same things other folks like who are other races."