No, I’m not faking my accent!

Rachel James,
Syracuse, NY.

Growing up in a Latina household I learned the English that my mother spoke as a Panamanian immigrant. Therefore, I learned to say certain words while rolling my r’s or with an accent and I don’t notice it because that’s how I learned to pronounce them. But because I look more African than Latina people always think I’m “faking it”, “trying to be something I’m not”, or “trying to show off”. Seriously!? No, I’m not faking my accent!