Summary

The poem “Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes begins with the speaker declaring that America should be America again. The speaker says that America should be the land of dreams, fairness, liberty, and equality. The speaker mentions that America has never been the land of freedom and equality for him. 

The poem continues with a nameless voice asking the speaker about his identity. The speaker says that he represents the poor white man, the black slave, the Native American, and the immigrant, who all see America as a land of fierce competition and cruelty. The speaker also says that he speaks as a hopeful young man who finds America suffocated by greed. The speaker then claims that he represents the farmer, the worker, the slave, and a...