Anon Ymous Charlotte, NC “Replaced slavery chains with entitlement chains” As a white with guilt, all I can say is: I’m so sorry, twice…
I unpack my white privilege daily.
Sarah Walton Nashville, TN I descend directly from southern slave-owners and, more recently, racists. My family’s wealth is built on the backs of over a thousand slaves. It is my karmic duty to be a social-justice & race-relations activist; to call for reparations; to march; to force as many friends & family to look through […]
Slavery by All, Ended by Whites
Michael, San Rafael, CA. While all races practiced slavery, Whites were the ones to end it. All Christian White countries ended slavery approximately 150 years ago but sadly it is still practiced by Blacks, Asians, Asian-Indians and Muslim Whites today.
I know rap, not black people
Toby Johnston USA. I grew up in Los Angeles the 80’s, rabid fan of all things rap. I am white and for many of my friends (Mexican, black, white, lower/middle/upper class, whatever) rap was the music of rebellion. I got called ‘wigger’ by my white(r) friends and heard a lot of hate spewed. And yet […]
American overseas & black in America.
Kevin Simpson, Chicago, IL. Powerful activity
Human beings are not simply monochromatic
Sarah Martin, Wichita, KS. Perhaps this is my artistic side coming out, but when you paint a human being, they are not painted simply using white or black. No, they are painted with a wide variety of colors that blend together to make a beautiful picture. Too often people separate persons into categories that divide […]
4 –BLACK CHILD SHARES TOY WOW
ROBERT EDWARD NOEL Fairfield, CA AGE 4 DARK BALTIMORE EVENING AS MY MOTHER AND I WERE STARTING TO GET INTO OUR CARE A BLACK CHILD MY AGE WALKING BY WITH HIS FATHER APPROACHED ME, AND REACHED OUT HIS TOY FOR A FEW MINUTES SHARING IT WITH ME AND THEN WE PARTED. 68 YEARS LATER THAT […]
I’m Irish and Black. Micks-ed.
Edward O’Neill, Queens, NY.
You realize I’m Black…right!?
Robert Dokes Beverly, MA Maybe it’s the way I present myself, but sometimes people forget that I’m Black. It’s not they are colorblind it’s just they’ve got so comfortable with me being around that people feel they can say anything around me and believe it’s okay
Race DOES NOT mean black or white
True Native, Vacaville, CA. It is sad to say that racial discourse in America has degraded into a petty fight for blacks first, all others, well who cares about all others. The level of fatigue with black-centric race politics is extremely high. No other race is given such accord in the theater, the movies, sports. […]
I don’t see color
Patty Hall, Alexandria, VA. I have a precious bi-racial blessing; My Grandson. He doesn’t see color either, but sadly he knows other people do. There’s a song that many of us sang in Church growing up. “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and Yellow, Black and White they are […]
55 mph means you black man.
Gregory McGriff, Rutherfordton, NC. I am an Ivy-league graduate and a board-certified medical doctor. The subject of race comes up all the time but the conversation that should follow is usually very short. When I see the speed sign on the road announcing 55 mph (or whatever the legal limit is). I know that posting […]
We all have the same opportunities!
Amanda Caraballo, Cleveland, OH. I’m so sick of “African American’s” always using the excuse “The white folk are privileged, and we can’t have this or do the because IM BLACK”…. WRONG! Slavery has been over for at least 149 year’s. I do not own a slave nor do I know one who has. A matter […]
I am black and a target
Chris Porter, Seattle, WA. It is hard for me to think about living in a country where my life seems to have little value. It is hard to think about living in a country that is the envy of so many around the world and yet I am not part of that envy. It is […]
Love Classical music and I’m black
Yolanda, Lithonia, GA. It’s very tiring an disappointing to hear many in my community say to me “You like white people stuff”. I would like to know exactly what’s classified as “White people stuff”. Since when did enjoying a good Opera or visiting the local symphony considered something only expected or FOR one race of […]
My dad was born in Kenya (and he is not black)
Jess, Valencia, CA. My dad was born in Kenya. People then assume he is black, and I do not blame them. However, before I can get a word out and correct them, that he is white, they assume I am part black and look for those black features. I have had people say, “oh I […]
This big chip hurts my back.
BURTON DAVIS PRICE Greenwood, MS Becoming a black professional gives one a large chip on their shoulder. This chip can be so heavy at times that it makes your life miserable. You always question other peoples actions towards you, which can make you paranoid.
Evening I’m mixed I’m still black
Tanisha, Saint Louis, MO.
You’re Not Black, You’re Too White
KayKay Mara, Lancaster, CA. I have spent my whole life being judged by my skin color. It was never a big deal to me since I was always warned that life was going to be this way no matter how hard I tried to fix it. People don’t see that sometimes the little things they […]
Growing up “black” in “white” America
Aaliyah Ballard, Charlotte, NC.
I’m white. So you hate me.
Annie, Glen Burnie, MD. I keep seeing people saying fuck white people. I am anything but privileged. I had a black manager who hated me. She did everything she could to try to keep me from succeeding two years ago. She threatened me on my birthday. Then, next birthday, she had everybody get together and […]
I am Black, red, white, brown
Michele Moreno-Cheverez, Santa Barbara, CA. Everyone deserves equality, equity, respect, compassion, empathy and a chance in life. One world~one people.
I’m black and I love math
Jasmine VanExel, Northampton, MA. Smith College
My Black is Best on Me
Shani Ketema, Newark, NJ. Mini Buns. Boxer Braids. Tans. Injections. Street style. TRANSLATION Bantu Knots, Cornrows, Black skin, thickness and what I’ve been wearing for years cause designer is expensive. I’m beyond tired of hearing that my black looks better on the bodies of white America. It’s not fair that someone can buy my skintone […]
Educated Black and Still Not Equal
Kenneth D Crowley, SR. Denver, CO. Love this idea
“Darker than White, Lighter than Black.”
I grew up afraid of race. I was scared to even say “My mom is Black, My dad is white.” (It took a lot of motivation). And once I did, I knew what race was and how harmful it can be. A couple years later at a family reunion, me and one of my cousins […]
“White” is not a skin tone
R.E.A.L. Talk, High Tech Middle Media Arts, 7th Grade Trailblazer It has always confused me when people call others “white”, or “black”, because no one’s skin is “black”, or “white”. Besides, no one names their kids the color of their skin, so why do we call them that? In the past I have made myself […]
Black Is Just An Insecure Label
R.E.A.L. Talk, High Tech Middle Media Arts, 7th Grade Trailblazer To me race is just a made up way to put people in groups, based on the way they look. When did that start to matter? Stereotypes, Racism, Segregation, Slaves, and Wars. Stereotypes are a big part of race and racism. The following are the […]
The product of the melting pot
Ary R., Riverside, CA. I love being half black and a quarter Spanish and one quarter French. I get the best of all worlds and I learned to love people the way Jesus loves us. CBU HIS311
Multiracial. Black & White. Still HUMAN.
Elon Race Card Project, Isabella Cannon Room, Center for the Arts
White: Walk Free– Black: We’ll See
Laurence Barry North Attleboro, MA The above is a reference to our double-standard justice system.
But she’s black….And your white?”
Sarah Taylor, Casselberry, FL.
It just isn’t done. Why Not?
Catherine, Beach City, OH. I have always been told by my father that ” I better not catch you with some black kid!” or by my grandmother “that just was never done in our church” or “I don’t know why. we just didn’t have that”. I could never grasp why my family was so discriminating […]
You didn’t tell me he’s black.
Laura Brengel Clifton Park, NY This is something a “friend” said to me as we dropped the kids off at her house so we could go out to dinner.
Black, white, Puerto Rican mix; not me!
Arleny, Riverside, CA. I am of no race other than myself. My parents are both Mexican, but being judge wrongly for something I’m is not fair.
I am black, I am proud.
Anthony Taylor, Norfolk, VA.
I am black. I am Haitian.
Esterline Ducarmel, Orlando, FL.
I Am Black. I Am American
Jessica Thompson, Houston, TX. We are all Americans, and we should all be viewed as such. Americans fighting each other hinders National Progress.
Too ambiguous to fit in anywhere.
Tasha L., Largo, MD. I am adopted, raised by a half French/half Black mother and full-blooded Sicilian father. I am half Black, quarter Indian (India) and quarter white in my biological heritage. I am told I look Latina or white, “definitely not Black,” and have always noticed I seem to confuse people when they try […]
Half Black, Half Hispanic, All Me.
Juan Oquendo, Lakeland, FL.
When will I stop liking chicken?
Nicholas Durham Clarkson, MI I just want to know when America will realize that not only black people like chicken.
You sound like a black person
Leslie Morris Roanoke, VA I am in management at one of the top insurance companies in the United States and this was the ignorant comment I heard when an individual on my team transferred a man to me to resolve his issue. He said “You sound like a black person.” I asked if that was […]
“Does he know,” Nana asks, worriedly?
Liz Pryor, Northampton, MA. Smith College. My mother was white. So was her whole family. After my husband, who is white, proposed, my grandmother cornered my cousin and asked “Does he know about Elizabeth?” My cousin asked back, “Does he know what?” and my grandmother answered, “That she’s Black.”
Gay is Not the New Black
Bethany O’Neal , Submitted via Twitter: @bethanyoneal.
I’m Pavla Pletkova. And I’m black.
Pavla Pletkova, VA. Looking at my picture you could never tell. Listening to me speak you could never tell. What I’ve been told is I look like a “regular light skinned black girl”. But little do they know I’m far from regular. As far as I know, I have never met another Czech-Ghanaian person, well, […]
Black, Caribbean-American, human, American, Southern
Britt Stone, Philadelphia, PA. No one ever asked “what” I am. They just assume. They approach me with all sorts of ideas about what food I like, what music I listen to, the books I read, and my favorite movies and tv. They have an opinion of what I should sound like when I speak, […]
Cut off–that is black America.
Ian Peterkin, Bridgeport, CT. When you think about it, what do you know of the achievements of black Americans other than what you get in February? Virtually everything I’ve learned about black art, literature, culture, and religion, I learned on my own. Cut off from one’s cultural identity, point of origin, and the stories that […]
Seen as black only by Americans!
Joel Anthony Murray, Sr. Westminster, MD. Iranians in DC thought I was Iranian. A Tunisian on a train with me to NY thought I was Tunisian. A Pakistani in Baltimore thought I was Pakistani. A Vietnamese coworker thought I was Middle-Eastern. A Nepalese coworker thought I was Indian or Pakistani. I work with people from […]
Little white kids have it hardest
K Russell, Chattanooga, TN. As a little white kid growing up, I was constantly harassed by black boys for no other reason than I was white- and small enough not to be a threat (I only weighed 89 lbs by eighth grade.) Luckily I had a great friend that was also black that saved me […]
This Is Why Blacks Aren’t Respected
Julian D., Las Cruces, NM. Thug and Welfare culture is NOT what your ancestors and forefathers fought and died for! The Rev. M.L. King, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, etc. are all turning over in their graves over how much Black America has degenerated. Time to get it together, men and women. Don’t let their efforts […]
Not black, brown, neither white, beige
Ida Nielsen, Danmark I think it’s wrong to use the words BLACK and WHITE. I mean: I got a lighter skin tone, than the people you would call black, but that doesn’t mean that I’m white. No, I’m not white, and they are NOT black. If I was white, then you shouldn’t be able to […]
I am not black, I’m indigenous!
Imani, Philadelphia, PA.
Black is a race or stereotype?
Collin Shaw, Philadelphia, PA.
I am black and I’m proud
Jeremiah Conley, Philadelphia, PA.
Black is the most beautiful skin
Jean-Luc LaCosse, Corvallis, OR.
I’m Black, Will they hire me?
Donita, Los Angeles, CA.
“Lashawnda”… she must be BLACK & GHETTO.
Lashawnda Sanders, Opelika, AL.
I am Tyrell…not half black
Tyrell Joe Grisel, Fort Collins, CO.
Mugged…Most assume black mugger…wrong
Lynne Moffitt, Virginia Beach, VA. When I was living in Louisville, I came home from work and was mugged when I got out of my car. I had looked around before I got out and this nice young man was walking down the sidewalk. He looked like a typical University of Louisville student which was […]
Wanted to be a black teenager
Elizabeth Hess, New Haven, CT. That photo is the end paper of my yearbook, Weaver High School, Hartford, Connecticut, 1975. I was one of about 15 white kids in a huge city school. I loved the laughter in the hallways, the treasured friendships, the “take me as I am-ness” of the classmates I most wanted […]
Oh she’s black? Must be ghetto.
Crystal Parks, NC.
All pink, chocolates where these whites?
Okeny Benny, Italy. Black is clear to me, but white? Where are they?
I’m Fat, You’re Black, So What!
Kylie Schell, Carthage, NY. We all are the same inside, fat, skinny, black, brown, white or purple. Lets start seeing people for their inside, not their outside. Ugly is ugly, regardless of facade!
Black business is GREAT business too!
Anika Dixon, Little Rock, AR. The color of my skin should not determine the type of house I can sell you or the type of properties I can manage for you! You allow me to manage your ‘hood properties’ but you allow your own to manage your ‘no problem’ properties. REALLY??
Sitting with Marva on the bus
Lu Ann Joplin The Villages, FL I was in junior high, she was in high school. I’m white, she’s black. She asked if she could sit with me. I said sure. It didn’t occur to me it could be a problem. I really got the treatment everyday when she got off the bus. The bus […]
Canadian African German Black and White
Scott Kraenzlein, The New York City, NY. Born to a (white) Canadian mother and a (black) African father in Canada I was adopted at birth by a white couple who divorced when I was 2. My mother married my stepfather, a German national, when I was 7 and we moved to Germany. I spent my […]
I’m biracial & multi-ethnic: I’m Human.
Nichole Pettit, Lake Como, NJ. Monmouth University I’m biracial. I’m not just African American, I’m also American, German, English and Irish! Many say “You’re black,” sure but I’m not just that. Do not reduce my race and ethnic background to a single word. I do not belong to a single group, I belong to many. […]
You like fishing? But you’re black
Justin Shazier, Aldie, VA. Just because you are a certain race doesn’t mean you cant like certain things.
Yes really, my daughter is black.
Sheila Cullen, Boulder, CO.
Brown skin doesn’t mean I’m black
Rosemary Feliz, Hackensack, NJ. Monmouth University
Racism’s destroying my belief in God
Edgar Montgomery, Brick, NJ. Monmouth University To know the story of my six words, one just needs to turn on any news channel, daily. Or, check the bureau of labor statistics since its inception. Or, check statistics on levels of incarceration for African Americans. Or, view all forms of media open to human consumption. Or, […]
Este hombre es un negro blanco!
Isaias Ortiz Davenport, FL Este hombre es un negro blanco! This man is a white black. The first time I heard that phrase was circa 1980, a family member said while referring to one of his friends, while they were singing and playing their guitars together. I was 20 years old by then, growing up […]
Educated man people see only black
Jason Adams Wichita, KS I have fought to educated myself so I could raise my family into the middle class but at every job I applied for I did not get the job. My name helps me get into the door but as soon as I walk in the door their eyes get big and […]
Teach in Japan, but you’re black
Dee Moore, Shreveport, LA. Hajimemashite! That is the stigma I am always facing in my community. I am a 25 year old African American educator who has plans to teach overseas in Japan. I am also studying Japanese so that I can develop some kind of fluency. Since I was young, I was always interested […]
I Am Black I Am Worthy
Anonymous, Omaha, NE. Self-hatred most often begins in childhood.
Four months in black hospital
Bob, NJ
I Am Not White Or Black
Matthew, TX. Black, White, Asian, or Pink with Purple polka dots – your skin color is not who you are. Do not obsess over the shade God painted you when you were born. Do not let history define you. Do not allow others to control your actions. Love, respect, kindness. Not hate and vengeance for […]
Black~Soulful~Queen~Loving~My~Skin
Ebonee Small, Ontario, CA. I am a young black woman proud of the skin I’m in. I love my race of people when those who don’t. I’m always proud because it seems as if every obstacle placed before my race we always concur leaving others dumbfounded. Others outside my race seem to always try and […]
My black daughter needs extra protection.
Brenda Bielke, Submitted via Twitter: @brendabie. @michele_norris, #theracecardproject
To know Black, ride a bicycle.
Peter S. Fair Oaks, CA It is extremely difficult for those in the Majority to understand the grinding reality of our structural Racism. Few people have the imagination to place themselves in the lives of others, and even fewer seem to have the willingness to do so. The great bulk of the Majority just doesn’t […]
Check one below: Black or White
Jocelyn Nikohl Fox, Houston, TX. Mulatto.
“No offense, but you’re so pretty!”
K.E. Broadnax, Cleveland, OH. This was said to me while attending college. I am black, and went to a predominantly white, upper-class university (as many are, to be fair). His statement was prefaced by the question, “What nationality are you?” If I was me now, back then, I would’ve replied “American.” But I knew what […]
Racism is an ego-based human dysfuntion
James E Washington, Rochester, NY. The ego thrives on identification and separation. We seems to be a nation that thrives on dualism, having an “other” a “they or them” as a means to distinguish ourselves from. White, Black; Rich, Poor: Republican, Democrat; Christian, Jewish; Fat, Skinny; on and on. The problem appears to be “ego […]
Black, he fixed it and me.
Winslow Parker Portland, OR Back story: She was from upstate New York, I from San Diego; both of us from snow-white neighborhoods. It was 1971. Grey-brown smoke on the the northern horizon still lingered in my mind; Watts burning. We moved into the thin white line on the eastern edge of the Grand Concourse young, […]
Wow, I can’t believe you’re black!
Kelsi Evans, Williamsburg, VA. Growing up in society I have always been questioned about my race. I come from two very, very light-skinned African-American parents, so therefore I am very light, have soft curly “white people” hair, and don’t necessarily “talk black”. Being this kind of person draws attention to myself because people always make […]
They hate me because I’m Black?
Alexander, Sandy Springs, GA. I grew up in a majority neighborhood during the eighties and nineties. There were only a few other minority families in the area at the time. It wasn’t until college after high school graduation I learn I was black and highly disliked based on the color of my skin and not […]
Black with dreads and white husband
Tiffany Yizar, Norwalk, CT. My blackness and black cultural authenticity is never questioned, until people discover I have a white husband. As if his race diminishes mine and the life experience I’ve had in the years prior to meeting him. In fact, I’d argue being a black woman married to a white man, a union […]
I’m light skinned but still black
Tarnaei Carter, Chicago, IL. I am light skinned and people may think I’m not only black because I’m light skinned so I identify as black.
I’m black, but not “African American”
Danya Granado Aurora, CO If you must place me in a racial category, then call me black. And no, I’m not offended when you say it. My family is from Trinidad and Tobago. I was born in England. I have a Hispanic last name. I get a lot of questions. Culturally, I feel as though […]
Son, indignant: I have the right to be!
Joann MO Submitted via NPR’s Talk of the Nation My six words are actually two, six word conversations between a black father and son about avoiding certain areas of town: Son, indignant: I have the right to be! Father: Yes, just not “be” over there. Naively thought we had settled this.
We are such stuff as dreams
Winnie Wamboi, Kenya. I don’t get the big deal with being either black or white. I am African and I love it after all there is nothing I can do about it.
Free Black since at least 1820
Sherryl N Weston, Denver, CO. I was an adult before we learned the full scope of my mother’s complete ancestry story. Timbuctoo, NJ was co-founded by my 5-generations ago grandfather. Looks like he was a part of the 1860 Battle of Pine Swamp, where the residents beat the tar out of slave catchers who had […]
I wish that Race meant EQUALITY.
Becky White Feather Riney, Quincy, IL. I am Native American and Caucasian. I hate knowing that there are people out there that simply because of the color of a person’s skin means (to them) they think someone Black (African American) or any race OTHER THAN WHITE is less than or undeserving of their acceptance, love […]
“Your black, Do you do drugs?”
Aries Johnson, Minneapolis, MN. My 4th grade teacher asked me if I did drugs, I was so hurt. It was 2 years ago but still haunts me today.
White, Black, Brown! Just an American
James Edward White, Indianapolis, IN. You look at me and you see a white man with blue eye. But on my mom’s side my great granddad was born a slave in Tennessee (mom house slave, dad was the master) left at 14 and ended up in north Dakota, Married a Blackfoot Indiana woman. I am […]
We all come from Black ancestry.
Lezlie Graebel, Mount Shasta, CA. Science has showed us that our origins are from Africa. With the exception of those in Europe who have the distinction to carry some Neanderthal genes. The gene for light skin has also been traced to a relatively recent mutation. What divides us,; what unifies us; what protects us is […]
Always Am Black. Always on Guard.
S. Michael Evans, Washington, DC. Looking for signs that help us to become more porous human beings.
The color black: say with care.
Anonymous, USA. The world we have created now makes it a challenge to say the word black.
Mom Is Afraid, Because I’m Black
Roshaan Rogers, Roseville, CA.
Still Black, still here, still educating
Rose, San Jose, CA. Class project @ San Francisco State U.
Blacks can own nice things too!
Dede C., San Francisco, CA. My six words is relevant to a personal story of mine and other minorities. The stereotype is that Blacks are poor and lack education so commit illegal crimes to obtain the luxuries we want. Because of this stereotype, people are oblivious to the fact that we are capable of working […]
Whites have same problems as blacks
Dave, Wichita, KS.
Blackanese is not Black or Japanese.
Brian Murray, Seattle, WA. Growing up it was always hard to find my own identity because I came from a bi-racial background. I am half Black and half Japanese and always had problems being accepted by either racial group because of my uniqueness. Although coming from a low-income housing development called the Rainier Vista Projects […]
I am black; I am white
Nauticah, Barberton, OH.
White, Black, Latino, Asian, or Human?
Michael S., Elk Grove, CA. My mom divorced and remarried 3 times with 3 different men with totally different race and had a child from each marriage. Her first marriage was gentlemen from Jamaica, second was a man from Ecuador, and last was from Thai. My mom been immersed and learned every one of her […]
I love that I am black.
Kristy Lawson, Mayfield, KY. We are all Gods people.
I’m sick of “what are you?”
Jeff Clune, Maple Grove, MN. I’m mixed race (Black,White, and Native) I’m always being asked “What are you?” it frustrates me because why should it matter to them.
First I am Black, not Female
Alma Scott-Buczak, Cliffside Park, NJ. I was in the first class of women to attend Lafayette College in Easton PA. It was also the first class to have a concentration of more than 20 students of color. Over the past 40 years I have often been asked to reflect on my experiences as one of […]
I have pride in my black!
Candayshia Loyd, Flint, MI. Growing up I was taught to be a quiet and polite black woman. I had to take persecution from men and I had to do what they said. I’m not someones servant, im not a maid. I’m going to be your Black Women President one day.
My adopted Black sons are priceless.
Tom DiMartino, Boston, MA. I had the immense pleasure of listening to Michele speak today in Boston, and the topic of adoption touched me personally. I am a white man with two adopted black sons who mean more to me than anything in this world. The topic is touchy and Michele’s comments on it were […]
White voice, black skin, awkward interviews.
Sara Bee Boston, MA I have been passing as “white” most of my life–on the phone. People of all stripes seem to have misconceptions about what black people sound like, if their reactions to me in person are any indication. This happens especially at job interviews or when I go to see an apartment. One […]
Father of two girls…I’m Black
Keith Williams, Hawthorne, CA. I know plenty of black fathers…notice I didn’t say sperm donors, we are perceived to be an endanger species. Every father’s day on facebook, you can read the hurt from mothers, and children. Real black fathers exist, I’m proud to be counted as one of them. Society has deemed that the […]
White Love Black, Black Love White :)
Ewa Konopka, Romeoville, IL. Look at this stunning couple. They see no color. THEY NEVER WILL. They see love, respect, honor, kindness, and goodness of each person. I wish the world would see through these kids eyes. The human race would be so much better of.
What shade of black am I?
B. Smith-Payne Carlsbad, NM As a black American, I feel that I must often act as a chameleon, in order to move in and through diverse social, economic, and political situations. Consequently, my “blackness” takes on various personas and can change in the blink of an eye. Thus, my question.
Black, white stripes? White, black stripes?
Marlee Sherrod, Canton, MI.
Black don’t mean you sell drugs
Edward, St. Paul, MN.
Black Does Not Explain My Life
Sam Johnson, St. Paul, MN.
Raised by whitefolks judged by blackfolks
Lashanda Burns Carter, Scranton, PA. I was raised by a white family from the age 4 until 13. There were some great things and some really horrible things. But I am who I am because of the environment. Open-minded nonjudgmental, well spoken, humorous, and very shy African American. Who loves Motley Crue and hates cornbread. […]
Intelligent and black, hated for that.
Consuelo, Stone Mountain, GA. This is because the two of the men in my life have dismissed me because I do not fit the ideals of what an ideal women should look like. Their spouses dismiss, disrespect my existence. My father and younger brother believe that white people are the epitome of all that is […]
Not black, white, or Jewish. Mixed.
Chantal Thomas San Jose, CA
Are you sure you’re not black?
Dave Mowers Brooklyn, NY I live inbetween black and white neighbors, my boss is a Phillipino woman, I shop and eat in black and white owned stores and restaurants in my neighborhood. Orthodox Jews sign my paycheck. I teach students from around the world. My boyfriend grew up in a small town in Texas in […]
I’m Black, not African American
Trish, Houston, TX. I’m Black. I’m American. Black is my race. American is my nationality. One has nothing to do with the other. How can all Black people be African American? It’s impossible for a Black person who was born in the UK, to be an African American. Black Americans are not “special” kind of […]
My Black Is Rich And Beautiful
N’Quiisha Edwin, Miami, FL.
White: Walk Free, Black: We’ll See
Braylen Thomas, Newark, OH.
Black good samaritans, or would-be robbers?
Samuel C. Johnson, Keezletown, VA. I am a white man now 67 years of age. In May, 1968 (a month after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) I had just completed basic training in the Army in North Carolina, and was on my way to my home area near Philadelphia. I got off […]
Sometimes I forget that I’m black.
Caulefe Burks, Ewa Beach, HI.
Where is the black James Bond?
Chase Choate, Boise, ID.
All have same needs, desires, fears.
Chris Todd, Big Pine Key, FL. As a nurse, working with black nurses, I realized there was a bigger gulf with regards to socioeconomic class than with race. My coworkers, regardless of race, wanted their kids to go to college, not get pregnant out of wedlock, not get in trouble with the law. But my […]
College: We Accept Blacks over Whites
Alexis Bishop, USA. Quotas? Oh no, of course colleges don’t have those… or so they say. How else, then, can one explain why an African-American would be accepted in a heartbeat over a White American of equal credentials? Sometimes, this is even the case when the White student has higher credentials. Is this equality? Absolutely […]
I didn’t know Mary was black.
Carolyn Kay Conover, Harrodsburg, KY. It was 1964 and Mary and I had been friends since starting 1st grade together. We’d buy milkshakes at lunch. I’d buy chocolate and she’d buy vanilla. I really liked Mary. This year, Mary and I were going to go to 4-H camp together. We were so excited. We signed […]
Blacks and Whites TOGETHER will overcome.
Denise DeVaney, Warren, ME. Charleston made me finally feel it: racism is not a black issue, it’s an American issue. We have to accept that an attack on someone of color because of their race is an attack on America. We have to come together to fight it.
Sometimes White. Sometimes Black. Sometimes Latino.
Massiel Ramos, Bronx, NY. Sometimes your race depends on the people and culture you associate yourself with. If that’s the case, I’ll never fit into one solid category.
“Black-Looking” Female, White Father, Glaring Eyes.
Kayla Doering, Statesboro, GA. My father is of Irish descent and my Mother is Native American. Something I’ve always dealt with while being out in public with my father is people staring at us like we were a rare species. Growing up, while running daily errands with my father, I remember older women asking if […]
I was born black. Were You?
Carl Poole, Norfolk, VA.
Been a victim of Black violence
Hilary Sloane, Joshua Tree, CA. It happened several times. The last time a stranger shot me five times through my car window and hit me three times. I have had the opportunity to heal those traumas through encounters with beautiful, loving strangers of color. My responses are relaxing and I no longer jump when I […]
I don’t know what I am.
Jordi 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 […]
White, Black, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple
Dakota Dubois, Spokane, WA.
I’m not black, I’m dark brown.
Kelly M., Indonesia. My six words were spoken by my daughter when she was seven years old. I am From Texas, my family tree consists of Irish and English immigrants and Cherokee Native Americans. We generally look Caucasian, but all five siblings have slightly different skintones. I now live in Indonesia, I’m a single Mom […]
Yes I’m Black no not biracial
David, Detroit, MI. To the cops, I am “white”. To many others I am “not” black. I don’t try to pass and I don’t try to compensate for it by “acting” black. I am very direct about these issues though. I am a black guy. How much more direct can I be? I’m not adopted. […]
If he’s white, they’re all black??!
Alethia Grace Cyrus, Tulalip, WA. My most striking experience of my own internal “like me is normal” sense came midway through reading The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm by Nancy Farmer. The front cover shows the protagonists, two of whom are Black. The story is set in futuristic Zimbabwe, and I’m pretty sure I […]
Where you goin’, where you been?
Caitlin Grames Sterling Heights, MI Race, gender, heritage, and all other innate traits we are born with are only secondary to our life experiences. Our stories make us who we are as individuals. And you can’t capture a whole history with just “black”, or just “white”.
I’m black. He’s black. Perfect match?
Joelle Kanyana. TN Going to school in a town where I’m in the minority as a black girl (Burundian heritage, Ghana-born, American citizen) has its interesting experiences. One that always seems to repeat itself is the matchmaking by my classmates with the black guys there. I’ve had this conversation many times before: “Joelle, you’d look […]
No one believes I am black
Sozit Mohamed, Sunnyvale, CA. Being Ethiopian with Arab heritage in my family, most do not believe I’m black/African. Also, being black and muslim, seems to be the worst thing you can be in America right now.
Red is NOT ‘the new black’
Joni Graves, Spring Green, WI. I made this mash-up design for a t-shirt after an unfortunate coincidence in my email inbox. Prior to today’s announcement by the DA in the shooting of Tony Robinson, and two minutes after the UW-Madison Chancellor’s email “Campus resources for the Tony Robinson decision”, I received a “Badger Voice” newsletter […]
Can’t take you home to momma.
Tammy Medell Gardner San Jose, CA I am white. The man with whom I fell in love in 1982 was black. We met in Fort Worth, Texas working at the same company. He grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, while I was from northern Michigan. Our romance, so new and full of hope, soon faltered […]
No, Not MIxed…Just Albino, Black
Brandi Green, Chicago, IL. I constantly am asked “what I am” or “are you mixed” Nope. I’m black and albino. 🙂 It’s a fascinating existence.
Police wrong. Black violence wrong. Stop.
Carn Paggot, Cincinnatti, OH.
Everyone is racist even the blacks
Gage, MT.
Black guy kept US Moving Forward
Tamara Henderson, Lewisville, NC. We all bleed the same way!
Stereotypes are earned, not just given.
Mark, USA. This means that judging people doesn’t come out of nowhere. Assuming people are something because of what they look like is not okay. But, there is a reason that more black people are in prisons than white people. That’s because more black people commit crimes than white people do.
My Black Is Beautiful, Is Yours?
Brea Miles, High Point, NC.
Black bodies swinging on poplar trees
Kyetheus Monteiro, California, PA. To be young, gifted and Black!
He’s black. My dream come true.
Emma S. Sunderland, Bountiful, UT.
Choose one: White, Asian, Other
Mia Manning, Atlanta, GA.
I’m biracial. I can’t choose one.
Cortney Pouncey, Sacramento, CA. Being biracial, my hands have always been forced to choose what ethnicity I should identify as. In reality, I am just as black as I am white. How could I pick one and deny the other? I believe biracial people are the key to end racism.
Got me a black friend, baller
Nathalie Nevins Aspen, CO
Self-image shattered living in South.
Carol Salami-Goswick Eugene, OR I’m a white woman who was born, raised, and lived in CA until I was 54. I was in college during the 60’s and was sympathetic to the black folks struggling for equality in the South. In my 30’s I had a serious relationship with a black man. I worked in […]
I don’t speak for my race!
Celesti Colds Fechter, Tarrytown, NY. I feel as though when I am the only African-American in a setting that I feel obligated to “speak” for other African-Americans. I will not do it and don’t ask me to do it. I had a job where I was the first African-American hired in a professional setting. I […]
Stop seeing black boys as predators.
Sandra C. Seaton East Lansing, MI Listen to Sandra’s story from NPR’s Talk of the Nation
No Dancing No Basketball Still Black!
Anonymous USA
Trying to learn for my daughter.
Wendy Wetzel Submitted via Twitter I’m white; she’s black. How do I help her through so much new to me?
Don’t marry a black, they said.
Katie Blunt, Freson, CA. “We don’t care if you marry a black man, but we just want you to know that your life will be harder if you do,” my parents said to me when I was sixteen. I married a man whose family is from the Philippines. I always wonder if that’s white enough […]
You didn’t tell me he’s black
Katherine F., Minneapolis, MN. I met a woman through professional circles when I was recruiting for a volunteer project. As it happens, she lived near me. We formed committees for this initiative and began talking more socially on the phone. I went over to her house a few times for coffee. One weekend she invited […]
I am proud to be black
Ntwali Gaju, Riverside, CA. It amazes me how difficult is for us people to accept and appreciate how God made us and other around the world. For example, I am black, and I come from Africa. In my country, you are considered more beautiful if you are light skin than dark skin. So, I always […]
Obama was black 148 years ago.
Kendra Jones, Selma, AL. As a white woman who voted for Obama twice, I found myself wanting to claim him as my own. “He’s half white, I’d insist to myself.” But then I began to think about our past anti-miscegenation laws in the 19th century. An individual with as little as 1/32nd percent African ancestry […]
We’re bigger than black and white
John Brocato, Submitted via Twitter: @johnwardbrocato
My Black is not your black.
LaVonda Staples, St. Louis, MI. I deserve the right and reserve the right to not follow a script designed to keep me in a role which does not and has never fit.
Not Black. Not White. Proud Brown.
Samantha C., Jacksonville, FL.
Not black or white. I’m gray.
Nikki Hyde, Los Angelos, CA. I’m a proud member of the multiracial community but still looking for a simple, clear word to describe what I am, not what I am not or what percentage of something else I am.
Tall, Dark, Handsome, Just not Black
John P. Moultrie, Ormond Beach, FL. It’s taken sometime to get to this point, but we are finally together. Sixteen years ago, we met and at that moment, I knew she was the one for me. But that was not the case for her. Years later, through heartache and divorce for both of us, we […]
I am African-American. You’re Black.
Jake, USA. My mother is from Ghana and my father is from New York. I am African-American and it drives me crazy when people who have a distant relative from Africa consider themselves African-American when they have no cultural ties to Africa. Black Culture is different from African Culture.
Black, yes my red hair is natural
Taylor, OH. I come from two very light parents & my dad is the one who has red hair, its natural but I constantly find myself having to explain and even defend who I am to elder white women & even black people.
You can’t date him he’s black
McKaela Evertsen, Murray, UT.
My family is black and white.
Brian, Gaithersburg, MD.
I’m Black, Liberal, GUN Range Owner
Frank Manuel, Montgomery, AL. Liberals own Guns too.
Is it because I am black?
Renee Yates, Evanston, IL.
I’m a human before I’m black.
Zarriya Johnson, Kansas City, MO. We are humans first. Our race is just something we as humans created to determine how a person should be and act in society. It’s a trend that needs to stop.
Not black. Not white. Not “other.”
Chi Sherman, Indianapolis, IN
Dreamer for Young Black Teens Everywhere
Messiah Williams, Camp Hill, AL. I’m a young black man from Alabama trying to inspire other blacks to be more productive in society.
Judge the inside, not the outside
Monte Stroman, Syracuse, NY. Student ’15 I am black but if you look past my skin you would never know
I’m 50-50, they only see black.
Autumn Battani, Los Angeles, CA. People only identify me as black. And that doesn’t make sense to me. Even when I was little, and we would fill out forms for tests, I would ask my teacher what I was supposed to do. The papers always said you can only choose one, but I’m two. And […]
Try so hard – still see color
Sherri, Juneau, AK. As hard as I try to see people as people, not black or white or Asian etc., I can’t seem to deprogram my brain. I remember the day I was helping at a school giving enrichment lessons to a group of advanced students. When they came into the room there was one […]
Why can’t (my) children embrace both (of their) heritages?
Melanie, USA. When I first had my children someone told my husband that our children will be considered black in this country. When I fill out forms for them there is a check box for black and white but not both. I mark both. I will not have them pick one over the other. Relatives […]
See My Face Guess My Race
Ed Houlemarde, Duarte, CA. I am what is considered a Creole – depending on wher I am I can be lumped into that areas primary race. In school I did not belong to a “race” Because my skin is olive I had mostly minority friends or friends of color. Teaches and later co-workers thought I […]
“Black” is not always “African-American”.
Kate Reid, Worthington, OH. My daughters and I in the attached picture. Three races. Three skin-tones. None of which identify with “African-American” yet that is often the assumption and the only “box” to check.
I try but stereotypes still linger
Anastasia Rogers, Detroit, MI. I am a firm believer that everyone, no matter if you’re a man, woman, or something in between, black, white, Asian, or a different race, should be treated equally and with respect. That being said, I often find myself making snap, harsh judgments about people that I’ve never even had a […]
My Full-time Job: Being Black
Jessica, Taunton, MA. Being Black in America means that you constantly have to change and work on yourself in order to please the dominant group in society (Whites). Its about making them feel comfortable and at ease even if that means rejecting your culture, traditions, ancestry, and basically everything that makes you who you are […]
You have how many black cousins
Lauren Hazelrigg, Kansas City, MO.
Stop using RACE as an excuse.
Renee Chapman, Colbert, WA. I have seen race used as an excuse for bad behavior or saying something is happening to someone because they are Mexican, Asian, and Black etc. I had a personal experience with it when neighbors aggressive Rottweiler killed my 6 mo. old puppy, police were called and neighbor was really angry. […]
My baby is black AND white.
Karin Coyne, Pittsburgh, PA. My sweet man is black and I am white. Our baby girl is both. but the world is a complicated place… and she is light-skinned and people ask her daddy, “Is that your child?” This deeply offends him… because it makes him feel as though folks are suggesting that he has […]
My BLACK is BEAUTIFULL
K. Will, USA.
I fear for my family’s wellbeing.
Shannon M., Killeen, TX. My fiance is black. My son is mixed. At THREE years old my son has already encountered racism. Every time my fiance walks out of the house, I worry. When he gets angry at someone or something in public, I get scared and try my hardest to calm him down – […]
Do you love them the same?
Paige VandenBrink, Holland, MI. The worst question I have ever been asked is, “Do you love them the same?”. This was a question I was asked when I got a new adopted black cousin. I almost cried because I was too young to understand why anyone couldn’t love someone the same just because of a […]
Until they saw I was black.
Joyce Moody, Windsor Mill, MD.
I couldn’t rub the black out
Ima Oduok, Houston, TX. As a bi-racial child who grew up with her white family, I always wanted to look more like them. When I watch the movie “Belle” and saw Dido try to rub and beat out the darkness of her skin, I cried. I spent my childhood doing the same thing, hoping to […]
You were hired because your black
Ashley Kirkwood, Chicago, IL.
African American or just plain black?
Chet Wallinsworth, Hanover, NH. The black population hates when you assume they are African American
Just black? No you’re too beautiful.
Anastasia Peterson, Pittsburgh, PA.
I’m Black, I’m Beautiful, I’m Proud!
Unique Martin, Murrieta, CA. I say I’m black because that is how I identify myself. It’s just that simple. I say I’m beautiful because for many years in my childhood, I thought I was ugly. No one ever said I was, but how I was treated, discriminated against because of my skin color, the diversity […]
Mixed but only seen as black
Khalil B., American Canyon, CA.
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