http://theracecardproject.com/wp-admin/edit.phpJordi A. Snell, The Netherlands. My mother is Dutch and my father is Moluccan (Melanesian I assume). I don’t exactly know what my father’s race is because alot of Moluccans have mixed race ancestry. All I know is that my father’s skin color is ‘Black’, he has thick curly hair when it’s long, but his […]
Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, Denver, CO. Being light skinned and Mexican has been the hardest thing to navigate in life. A dark skinned mother and an Anglo father gave birth to a light skin mestiza.
Attalah Shabazz, Richmond, VA. Wipe the slate clean, don’t generalize, there is more to me than my skin color. I am more than what society teaches you about me. Give me a chance, give us all a chance. Throw away all of you presumptions.
Alex Cummings, Weston, CT.
Eric D., Houston, TX. While my son was in elementary school, I asked what race dose he tells his schoolmates he was. He quickly responded, “White”. When I asked why, he said that his skin color wasn’t brown or black. As he grew older he learned about both his Spanish and African American heritage. Now […]
Jarae Farrell, Poughkeepsie, NY. My father is West Indian and my mother is black. I grew up in a very diverse town in the northeast, so when I was younger I knew there were people who looked different than me, but race wasn’t really a thing for me until I was in high school. Even […]
Katie, USA. My family is proudly multicultural and many shades of brown, from my pinky-beige to my cousins’ deep cocoa tones. In the past year I have been accused of being racist more times than I can count. When I ask why they would say that the answer is always the same, “You’re white, all […]
Remy, Surprise, AZ. Being white isn’t a luxury. Being white can be a burden. What I mean is. People automatically assume I am raciest based off of my skin color. By law, companies have to hire a certain amount of minorities, so by that fact alone, white people get overlooked because companies already have enough […]
Wes Midgett, Philadelphia, PA.
Shari Washington, Clinton, MD. Angry that in 2014 I still fear for my beautiful brown children and their children simply because of the color of their skin. I am shocked and appalled by the brutality and number of incidents brought to light as of late involving the denigration of black people, esp., black men.
Jenna, USA. Every culture or race seems to have this deep inter connection with their skin color and culture and heritage. People seem to embrace their ‘uniqueness’ and take pride of where they are from and who they are. I am white. I am proud to be white. But why do those words sound so […]
Jeanne Hover, South Royalton, VT. Having parented two African American children, I learned more than I wanted to about the privileges of skin color.
Sean, CT. I’m not proud to be white, because there’s so many different kinds of white and I’m not proud of my skin color, I’m proud of my culture. Sunday dinners. Seafood. Irish bread. That’s what I identify with, not the color of my skin. And to call me racist for that is complete shi*.
Matthew Zimmerman Wausau, WI It’s awful that my skin color will grant me favoritism over another person. We are all human, and we should all be treated as such.
Meg Seigenthaler Memphis, TN Skin color is but a tiny portion of our DNA. Like blue eyes or red hair, it shouldn’t have such an impact.
Sahra Hassan Minneapolis, MN This was said to me by a hair stylist the minute I walked into a salon. Ironically, my hair was cover so she couldn’t tell what my hair type was but she assumed this based on my skin color. Unconscious actions like these can lead to structural racism in our society.
Daniel Canada I am Canadian, my mother is mostly of English ancestry and my father is of mostly French ancestry. I prefer to just identify myself as Canadian though and I think that the land I was born in matters more than some place my ancestors migrated from a couple centuries ago. With that said, […]
Kristen Stephens Adelphi, MD My skin is special, not because I am light but because it is mine. Love the skin you are in!
Rayna Rochester, MN People of other skin colors can be from America too. Even though it’s probably not meant to be offensive, it is a little irritating when strangers repeatedly ask this question when I meet them, just because of my appearance.
Mari Filer Tuscaloosa, AL
Gunnevi Sweden We are all the same inside our bodies, no matter what your skin color you may have. Why does the mind of people not go the same way? Or do you think it has changed?
Leah Perlongo NH Shopping, walking or jogging on the street, sitting in a park; I always feel people eyeing me suspiciously. People will always remember me, because I stand out by having a different skin color. Why suspect every single movement I make more than those of your paler neighbor with a criminal history five […]
Amanda Hemet, CA I know how it feels to be judged only on the color of your skin. In 8th grade during the LA riots I went to school just like any other day. When I got there I was confronted by a large group of students who began yelling at me. This quickly escalated […]
Danielle C. Brighton, MA
Kelli Kamel Seattle, WA
Lei-Anna Bertelsen Bozeman, MT I’ve grappled with this question all my life. My dad told me a story when I was a second grader after a boy called me names based on my skin color. My dad explained that when God made people, it took three tries to bake us to just the right color. […]
Mara Davis Bermuda Dunes, CA I have one mixed grand-daughter and i love all of my grand-children. Love is not shaped by skin color but by the quality of the interaction between 2 people. This is my family now and I strongly resent anyone mocking us because one child appears different. One day, a new […]
Dr. J. Irving, TX It’s true, everyone tries to find similarities between babies and their parents. But the search ends when people see my son’s curly golden hair, blue eyes, and light complexion. Someone once asked me, “are you sure you want to name him Diego?” (when he was 9 months old). I’ll admit it, […]
Peter Lorenger Fort Wayne, IN I lived in some rough places, so this might not sound surprising. I have been bullied, pushed around, shaken down, chased and threatened, usually because of my color. I have lived in large, medium and small cities, some near rural areas. I feel like I have been victimized. What color […]
John Philadelphia, PA Being racist towards white people, setting double standards or heavily restricting white people where POC are given the ability to say and do anything, even if it is offensive will only perpetuate racism. It doesn’t matter if you think it is justified or not. Human nature is the same, regardless of skin […]
Sanjay Raval Los Angeles, CA
Maggie C Portsmouth, VA My friends and family notice his skin color first, instead of his amazing personality or how much he loves me.
John Calvin Miller Fairfield, IA “Flesh” color crayon: institutionalized racism revealed These both relate to an incident at U-Tapao Thailand where I served as Race Relations OIC during the Viet Nam war. I helped design an embroidered Brotherhood patch for sale to airmen. When it was first being made, I went to the tailor shop […]
Anonymous Chabourne Residential College
Anonymous Chadbourne Residential College
Gregory M. Foster Sr. Hamden, CT I served in the military with many different races. they were my friends my brothers in arms and my companions in times of despair I never felt they were anything less then another human being!
John Johnson Fairfax, CA
Pamela Marshall Milwaukee, WI Life long experiences in dealing with racial ignorance is taking its toll. Being light enough that whites assume you are one of them has allowed me to hear racist comments that would have not been spoken, had they known they were in the presence of a black woman. Then my struggle […]
Joi USA Vs character-quote MLK.
Billy Cosby Salt Lake City, UT Everybody has one. No one is better than another. None is superior or inferior to another, yet it is one of the devices we use to judge and classify each other. Racism doesn’t belong to white people. It belongs to all races of people because all races to some […]
Mike Elliott Alexandria, VA My mother was brown. Her skin a shade so perfect until the day she died she was “Puddin” to her family and friends. My father a lighter shade of brown was “high yellow” and proud to be colored. He had a fraternal twin who was dark like an egg plant, blue-black. […]
Jeff Lewis Vienna, VA A few years ago my oldest daughter, now eight years old, described the skin color of my wife, me, herself and her younger sister in terms of ice cream flavors.
Erin Fischer Boulder, CO This is actually the end of a quote from Abraham Verghese’s novel, Cutting for Stone. The whole quote says “Accent be damned in Africa, as long as it’s foreign and you have the right skin color.” It is referencing how a person who was low class and not well educated in […]
Pat Greenfield Harwood, MD Until we end all groups based on someone’s skin color, we will never be equal.
McKenna Jaymes Northglenn, CO I am white and was sitting with a few black friends, other black girls came and sat with us. Finally, someone I didn’t know looked at me from the other end of the table and asked why I was sitting with them. I was dumb-founded. I sat there everyday with my […]
Aliza Hirani Ann Arbor, MI Understanding Race Project- University of Michigan I am a Pakistani-American, born and raised in Texas. When people ask me where I am from, I proudly tell them Dallas, Texas. Then, without a fail, I get the response, “No, where are you actually from?” I have realized when some people ask […]
Phoebe Ruona Minneapolis, MN I went to a little 2-room country school in MN. There were 3 black kids in our school. Mavis was in 5th grade with me. My parents threw a surprise party for me and invited all the 5th grade girls except Mavis. I remember being angry and sad that she was left out, […]
Anonymous Children and blind are not prejudiced. Race is not skin color. It’s ignorance.
Dana Reynolds Lees Summit, MO I think growing up white in mostly white towns and schools fosters misunderstanding and naïveté regarding what it’s like to walk around in darker skin.
Deborah Williams Clearwater, FL Fear affects all of us. Bad people are out there but it’s not based on skin color. When you walk by, take a moment to look that fear in the eye. Smile and say HI! You will see that 99.9% of the time your fear was unfounded.
Paul Sotello Submitted via: NPR’s Talk of the Nation
