The Myth of Meritocracy

There is a legendary myth from the late 1800s about a Black man named John Henry, a folklore figure renowned for his extraordinary strength and endurance. John Henry worked as a steel driver on the construction of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. When the railroad company introduced a high-powered drill, claiming it was more efficient than any man, John Henry challenged the machine to prove his exceptional strength. Although he triumphed over the drill, he succumbed to exhaustion and died immediately.

However, historian Scott Nelson uncovered that John Henry was not merely a mythical figure; he was a real person, a 19-year-old Black man caught in the brutal convict leasing system and forced to work as a prison laborer.

This revelation intertwines with the concept of John Henryism, where individuals strive to overcome adversity through relentless hard work and determination, often at significant costs to their health, like elevated blood pressure and increased risk of heart disease. This phenomenon is especially detrimental to Black people, who face systemic disenfranchisement that hinders the fulfillment of their efforts based on merit.

John Henry’s story is emblematic of the struggle many Black people in America endure, striving to meet the fallacy of meritocracy and challenging societal misconceptions rooted in racist ideologies. The pervasive attempt to outwork oppressive systems in a bid to prove self-worth is a testament to the enduring legacy of John Henry. While John Henry serves as a cautionary tale against pushing beyond physical limits and working oneself to death, it also underscores a crucial lesson: hard work and determination alone cannot dismantle systemic racism. John Henry’s legacy should remind us that combating systemic inequities requires more than individual effort; it demands collective action and systemic change.