Tori Jackson

Professor Pears

ENGW 104

31 August 2023

The quote, "There are crimes that haunt the body—specific crimes that our specific

bodies are more vulnerable to." (Miller 62), summarizes the idea that certain people have

predetermined wounds that can create a lasting impact on their bodies. In the book, Kei Miller

brings up many topics on crimes that have been haunting certain people for years. One in

particular that I find intriguing is the crime against his body when discussing his relationship

with his previous boyfriend. The text explains the fits of rages that his ex-boyfriend, who

happened to be white, would say in the arguments. Miller always recalled the "crimes that would

haunt the body." He explains how his boyfriend would use his race against him and how he

could use his race against him. It is interesting to note that these situations tend to happen in a

society where a white person's voice would be believed and against a black person's voice. Miller

points out different examples of this happening, too. He points out how Emmet Till also had this

same crime afflicted on him and how Till was murdered because of how a white person's voice

overpowered his. Miller also examines the crimes that haunt women, crimes he did not even

know about until he realized the crimes that haunt him. Miller also provides examples of Ms. T

and the Jamaican man, who all were not believed because of their curse against their bodies. It is

vital to know about the crimes that haunt our bodies; regardless of age, race, sex, or religion, we

all have crimes that impact us daily. I think it is even more important to know how to break these
horrible curses that have been put on our bodies. Today, we have marches, protests, and

movements that help break our curses towards our bodies so that we will no longer be haunted.