Connections

              The Color of Water relates to the song Changes by Tupac.  The songs Changes talks about how black people have faced discrimination and it’s harder for them to go through life because of all the hatred. This relates to The Color of Water because James McBride also faced discrimination because he was black and because of his religious beliefs. Also, the song relates to the Holocaust because it talks about having peace for everything and letting everyone be free and loved.

One line in the song:

“We gotta make a change. It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes.

Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live
and let's change the way we treat each other.
You see the old way wasn't working so it's on us to do
what we gotta do, to survive.”

               

                 That excerpt talks about people needing to make changes so other people can live the free like them so they can do what they need to do to survive. James McBride faced discrimination and he also wanted himself to change because he thought it would make a difference. Those lyrics relate to The Color of Water because all the prejudice against the blacks caused them to lay low and not make any standards for their selves to get through life. Also, everyone should be treated the same way.

Another line in the song:

“You gotta learn to hold ya own.”

              

               That excerpt means that you have to live your own life and simply focus on yourself. Bu the end of the book James McBride realized that he didn’t have to worry about what other people would think of him and his race because none of that mattered. All that mattered was that he kept his head held high and focused on making the best of himself in his own life. When James McBride finally accepted his color he was able to condone all of his thoughts about his mother when he was younger because now he is very happy to be a black man with a Jewish soul. Also, Ruth McBride also “held her own” because she didn’t care about living in Brooklyn being a white Jewish woman. She focused on her life and kids because she wanted the best things on life for them. She wanted them to be able to go through life without being discriminated, although she couldn’t do that for them, her children will do it for their own.