Carissa Stouwie
Ann Arbor, MI
Understanding Race Project- University of Michigan
My butt is very sun burnt, and not willingly. I am a ginger. I have white skin, some could even say translucent. I tan so that I can blend in, so that people don’t ask if I am albino, or if the carpet matches the drapes, or how I feel about having no soul. I tan so I’m not harassed. But tanning doesn’t do much for my hair.
Before my grandpa died, he told me never to change my hair. It was unique, beautiful, and everyone would be envious. So I don’t. I tan, but don’t dye my hair. I burn my skin knowing the possible consequence of cancer, but I won’t risk dyeing my hair for fear I’ll never get it back. I have been told in my sociology class that being white is prestigious among society, but I am very white and I am made fun of. All. The. Time. I feel that there is stratification among the white race. So I need to be less white. And to top it all off, I’m technically strawberry blond.
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