I am writing an essay about racism and slavery in African- American literature. I am in need of a play, poem,or novel that reflects those two theme.

You picked the right author to explore.  Dunbar's work
really explores what it means to endure the hardships of being of color, and in specific
terms, what it means to be African- American in American History.  Try Dunbar's poem,
"We Wear the Mask" as a work to reflect what it means to be the victim of discrimination
that is caused by racism and slavery.  Dunbar finds a balance between acknowledging the
victimization that results from racism and slavery.  Yet, there is a defiant mood to the
poem that refuses to become a victim.  In this dynamic that Dunbar articulates in the
poem, there is a statement about how the African- American predicament is seen in
literature.  There is a validation of suffering, pain, and injustice, but a refusal to
acquiesce to it.  This refusal to submit and condition of perseverance helps to make
such articulations such as Dunbar's voices of dissent and resistance in a cause that
endures, a fight that goes on, and a belief in hope that shall never die.  Examine lines
such as “We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries/ To thee from tortured souls arise" or
how the notion of the "mask" is what people of color were forced to wear in a society
that demonstrated intolerance.  The closing lines of how the mask has to be worn
reflects a condition of life caused by slavery and racism that demands to be heard, a
narrative that screams out that the way things are must be transformed into what should
be.  In this light, I think that you will be able to use the poem to reflect the themes
of racism and slavery that is such a part of both your essay and what it means to be
African- American as expressed through literature.