"Our white is so white you can paint a chunka coal and you'd have to crack it open with a sledge hammer to prove it wasn't white clear through!"(217).
Liberty Paints is a very important symbol in Invisible Man. Even the name is important. Liberty stands for freedom and equality, both physically and mentally, yet Liberty Paints is famous for one specific paint, Optic White. This paint dominates over all others produced and is the pride and joy of the company. The above quote said by Mr. Brockway is a metaphor to how the white race tries to cover up the rightfully earned equality and contributions of the black race. The paint is covering and disguising, removing the essence of the people who created it, much like how society took credit away from the people who deserved it.
The name of the paint also has a very direct meaning. The word 'optic' means clear and seeing, which is quite ironic considering how the paint is rumored to be able to conceal coal. But even more ironic is that the key component of the paint was a black chemical which was once again mixed in and forgotten, only to make the paint a brilliant white. This goes to show that the white race is taking credit for the contributions of the black race, making themselves look so much better than others around them.
Society tried so hard to erase all signs of the the black race. They tried to cover them up within the white culture, and 'brain wash' them into believing that they are insignificant in other people's eyes. Many of the characters in the novel, Supercargo for example, dressed in all white to try and cover up their true color and heritage. By doing so, they have essentially become the coal that Mr. Brockway was talking about.
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