Epiphanie Malloy
Inkster, MI
This stereotypical notion that women of color,especially us in the African American community, are incapable of orating with yell, screaming, being “angry and black” has become accedingly old hat. The shock an awe I receive when I properly articulate my feelings, ideas and general statements/responses is far more annoying and frequent than it should be. It doesn’t just come from other ethnicities who are quick to assume my first language is slang in the key of loud. It comes from my own as well, which is far worse. We expect so less from us, that when we get more, it’s a total mind melt. I must be bourgeois because I sound like a “white girl”. Or I only sound talk properly to impress people. Or I only use large words to make people feel dumb. It’s disheartening to know that the educating I so strived to become great in as a child, especially the English language, is meet with such ignorance. I love the human language, the dialects of the world an I’ve always prided myself on master as much as I possibly can in communication. However, shinning bright in this area of life continues to get me looks of disbelief or placement into a special categorical realm we’re I’m not quite black, I must be an exotic crossbreed who’s so privileged to speak proper, that I can’t possible be anything but a regular woman who happens to have a passion for proper articulation. Miss me with that.
