The World We Make

Content Warning: This section references xenophobia and racism, including slurs and racist violence. There are also allusions to anti-gay/anti-queer sentiment.

Jemisin’s primary focus in the Great Cities series is race and racism, including how the latter manifests in individuals and plays out in a larger political theater. It is no coincidence that only one of New York City’s seven avatars is white; Jemisin’s depiction of New York City focuses on its diverse peoples and its legacy as a home to immigrants. These aspects of the city are under threat in The World We Make due to human xenophobia and the Ur who exploit it.

Panfilo’s campaign exemplifies how those in power can wield xenophobia for political purposes. He gains traction in the political world by playing on people’s fears of those who are unlike them, calling attention to unauthorized immigrants and trans individuals in his first speech. In doing so, Panfilo creates a false representation of New York, essentially telling people what they want to hear—that anyone who does not fit their narrow framework of what an American should be is an aberration and doesn’t really belong there. In an echo of Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign slogan, Panfilo promises to “make New York City great again,” but Jemisin suggests that the past he’s alluding to never existed. The city has always been diverse, which is precisely what makes it great.

Padmini’s run-in with a man who accuses her of spreading viruses and stealing jobs presents a more allegorical perspective on how xenophobia functions. His accusations are groundless—Padmini is a hard-working, conscientious individual who has come to America for a good education and to help her family—but they create an apparent opening for R’lyeh to attach a tendril to him. These tendrils allow her to control the person they attach to, emptying them of individual will and personality. The implication is that racism serves a similar political purpose; by cultivating it, politicians like Panfilo can subdue the individuality of their followers and even delude them into acting against their own interests (notably, the man who insults Padmini is Black).

The conclusion of the story reveals that the Ur are xenophobic in their own way, which has created their impulse to destroy the cities. Because they resist variety and difference, and because they have preconceived ideas about the inherent destructiveness of cities, they cannot see the truth of the situation: that they themselves are the ones causing the devastation. By calling attention to the Ur’s xenophobia, Jemisin shows the ways in which an ideology can cause great destruction and harm. With a total lack of self-awareness, the Ur have attempted to eradicate a group that is only harmful in their own imaginations.