Simone Bouyer,
Riverview, FL
I don’t want to be followed around the store while shopping. I don’t want to be pulled out of line at the airport. I don’t want to pay more for my house or any other purchase. I don’t want to be eyed with suspicion. I am a professional. I work hard. I’m educated. I am a good, kind person. I want the same things in life that all of us want and deserve. I feel that because of the color of my skin, none of that matters. If I leave the house I have to wear a super hero’s cape. I have to be prepared for the inevitable microaggressions and negative attitudes afforded to black people. Some days I just can’t, or won’t, expend the energy that it takes to be seen as a human being worthy of respect who happens to be black.
