Jack Walper, Acworth, GA
Being Sicilian explains who I am.
Annaleisle Gingher Peachtree City, GA Understanding my ethnicity has explained so much and helped me understand who I am. I may be classified in a box as “white” but I am a second generation Sicilian with dark skin and dark hair. I’ve always identified with other races. Only to understand we are all the same […]
My color doesn’t speak for me
Mattie, Marietta, GA
Always wondered why we moved so much.
Marcia Lee, Savannah, GA When we were growing up we moved a lot, never really met very many relatives on dad’s side. Our widowed granny, dads Mom lived with us and we had finally settled down in a town in south Mississippi. We were teenagers then and it was in the sixties, not a good […]
LuElla’s quilt has kept me warm
Carol Stritikus Aitken, Duluth, GA. LuElla’s Quilt LuElla’s quilt has kept me warm through winter night and summer storm when I would hide beneath its tent and read until my light was spent. It soaked up many a childish tear and now recalls a time so dear; I still can see those dark brown eyes […]
I’m white and southern as cotton.
Chasity Massey, Trion, GA Where I’m from it’s unusual to see a lot of blacks or mixed races. We rarely see a lot of Hispanics, Asians but there aren’t barley anything else. I’m from a small town from a very religious family and “mixing races” as they called it is wrong to them. They frowned […]
We are living on stolen land.
McKayla Milam, Powder Springs, GA The six words that I chose was to remind people, including myself, that everyday we live our lives on land that never initially belonged to us. Therefore, we are all immigrants except for those that are Native Americans. I try to keep them in mind more often and not just […]
America – where my skin trumps heritage.
Ava Neely, Jefferson, GA
I’m Not Here For Your Comfort.
Nila Dulcio, Sugar Hill, GA My purpose is not to make people feel comfortable when I’m around; but I also don’t strive to make people feel uncomfortable. I just want the same opportunities and experiences as everybody else. Why can’t I achieve my goals without somebody staring or treating me like I don’t belong?
Not all innocent. Not all guilty.
Caroline Kish, Dunwoody, GA. I will not deny that race continues to reek extreme havoc on modern day social order. I see it every day at my high school, in the news, and even on the billboards lining the highway. We can all say that we ‘don’t see color’, but in reality, there are not […]
Sicilian urged to embrace black roots
Charles Aloisio, Atlanta, GA. An African-American friend at the Y has encouraged me to get in touch with my African roots since I’m Sicilian Italian as well as Neopolitan. I have often thought of my roots since Sicily was occupied by the Moors for several centuries.
You’re not like the other blacks
Jasmine Patterson, Decatur, GA
Your location influences your perceptions
Dylan, GA I grew up on the west coast, and my community was culturally diverse (whites, Asians, Hispanics). However, my community had a low population of blacks. I moved to the Deep South. This is the least culturally diverse place I have lived. It is quite literally black and white. The city I live in […]
Five race family equals great dinners!!!!
Martin Clarke, Atlanta, GA Sushi, fried-chicken and arroz con pollo. I’m African-American, Asian and Native American. My wife is Salvadoran, Mexican and Italian. When you look at the statistical “browning” of America, no one has really analyzed the great culinary benefits of all this mixing: great dinners. At my house, we have taken advantage of […]
Were you raised in a barn?
Jordyn Brown, GA I am the horse girl that never grew out of her “horse girl” stage. I started taking horseback riding lessons at the age of 13 and loved it. When my riding skills improved a started showing in hunters and equitation. The horse world is predominantly white, especially in English disciplines of riding, […]
Four words: I’m tired of blacks.
Duncan, Macon, GA p>Being tired and hating are two different things. My girlfriend is a beautiful black woman who is also tired of blacks. She’s tired of being called an uncle Tom for dating a white guy. I’m tired of being labeled as a racist simply for my skin color. I’m tired of the black […]
Put Your Keys in Your Fists
Taylor Grace Thomas, Young Harris, GA I’m at 19 year old white girl and anytime I’m by myself I have these words ringing loud in my ears because a young girl alone at anytime of day is bad experience waiting to happen in this day and age.
I’m still discovering who I am.
Barry Kyrklund, Flowery Branch, GA Adopted, discovered, and still discovering more biological connections.
My three boys will check “other”.
Elaine Oyzon-Mast Avondale Estates, GA Filipino, German, English, Irish, supposedly with a touch of Cherokee and Iroquois. The melting pot serving up three beautiful boys.
Bruh, not all Mexicans are illegal.
Arely Cruz, Summerville, GA. A common “come-back” to be used always is “Why don’t you go back and jump the border.” Well, why don’t you get your facts straight, because I was born in America.
I wish the voice would stop.
Al, Atlanta, GA. I was born 51 years ago. I grew up with a father who would definitely be considered racist today, but was probably just typical blue collar in those days – kind of an Archie Bunker figure. I heard the N word at least a dozen times a week. Fast forward to my […]
There’s more than just my surface
Ashley Cook, Suwanee, GA Im black but there is more to me than that. I’m also a sister, daughter, a granddaughter, a cousin. I’m a quiet and I like heavy metal. I’m queer and I identify as gender fluid. I’m addicted to pizza! I have bipolar disorder and anxiety disorder. I’m unique for sure and […]
Race, forget it. Identity, embrace it.
Will Martin, Athens, GA.
Is it because I’m a ginger?
Seven, Summerville, GA. I am a redhead from Visalia CA. I moved to Georgia with my family and after the move I realized things weren’t going to be the same anymore. People often poke fun at me saying that I have no soul or that I would take theirs. Just because I am a redhead […]
White Middle-Age Male No Reservations Required
Mark Whitesel, Statesboro, GA. I’m becoming more and more aware of my privilege as I grow older and how much I have taken for granted.
You black? Passe blanc. No, Creole.
August A. Goins Jr., Atlanta, GA. Growing up as a light skin black man of creole decent, people assume I want to be white. Not because of something I said or did, but based solely on my skin color. As if I had a choice of my skin color. I’m proud of who I am, […]
Mixed heritage. Feeling strange growing up
Katie Moore New Echota, GA I used to hate the way I looked growing up. My mom & brother had fair skin & freckles & I had darker skin & hair. I like the way I look now. I’m proud of my heritage. I am of cherokee, creek, German,& African decent. I stand taller than […]
Regaining and loving my lost culture
Lourdes, Atlanta, GA Being born and raised in the South in predominantly white areas being a hispanic was a lot. It was hard to make friends and it was hard to be seen. As a kid I neglected my culture and tried to assimilate to my white friends and peers just so I could feel […]
More than what meets the eye
Brooke Evans, Auburn, GA Many people assume that because I’m white I have all of the opportunity or the upper hand compared to people of other races. While in some cases that might be true, I’ve faced my own struggles too. I didn’t always have it easy growing up and I’ve had to work hard […]
I cannot open carry and survive.
Durand, Stone Mountain, GA. Rights are completely equal in theory. But ill-advised in practice. Secondary essay: White guy. Crowded theater. Anybody scared?
“You’re basically a white boy now”
Sergio Albarran, Acworth, GA Ever since I lived in the area I live people I know make little remarks saying ‘well you’re basically white” they say that because of the way I dress and talk.
I do not need your validation.
Sheila Caldwell, Gainesville, GA. It appears that minoritized groups are constantly trying to explain race to be understood by the “majority.” I hasten the day when minoritzed groups do not need to be validated or prove they are good enough or just as good as the “majority.”
I am a student athlete
Kevin Verrill, Atlanta, GA Performing on and off the course, and learning the qualities of honesty, acceptance, sportsman spirit and teamwork are the values of a student-athlete. It’s hard to do well in the classroom and excel on the course.
Bird Watching: A Metaphor on Race
Keenan Chandler, Atlanta, GA. There are all sorts of birds in the world: big birds, small birds, flightless birds, aquatic birds, birds with wondrously colorful plumage and those with subtle, dull feathers. If we want to appreciate them equally, do we pretend not to see their differences? Do we say the pigeon is the same […]
White but not proud of privilege
Harley Guyton, Waleska, GA Being a white passing Arab has its benefits. To others, I am seen as privileged. That is something I am not proud of though. Not only is there a disconnection with my culture due to the color of my skin, but there’s also a disconnection to society. White privilege is something […]
People fear what they don’t understand…
Tucker Lowe, Jasper, GA
Being white doesn’t mean free privilege
Jacob Wallace, Waleska, GA
More than just a dumb blonde…
Amanda Walker, Waleska, GA
I can and should do better.
Walter May, Kennesaw, GA
White to Latinos, Latino to Whites
Carlos Guerrero, Cumming, GA So I’m half Mexican and half American. I get the looks from my white mom which puts me in the middle of two vastly different cultures. I know I’m one of many White Latinos, just using my voice for my other hermanos.
White, jock, straight, country, long hair
Jack Walper, Acworth, GA
stop the hate spread the love
Reid Schratwieser, Waleska, GA
Can we all just get along??
Calvin Issac, Waleska, GA
Being black in a white town
Jarrett Burney, Suwanee, GA The place where grew up really didn’t have many problems considering the town wasn’t too big and everyone for the most part cared for everyone else.
Black People Deserve To Be Equal
Vincent Miller, Canton, GA
My favorite superpower is my kindness
Jillian, Waleska, GA
Practice Tolerance. Love even if you disagree
Samantha Gore, Woodstock, GA One of the hardest things to watch in our current world, is we have this belief that in order to love someone you must agree with everything they say. We can disagree and still love each other to try to find common ground and work together. We need to celebrate the […]
Change is good, Educate your parents
Jessica, GA Our society is changing and many older generations cant accept that.
My Family is of many races.
KANIYA Almond BRAHAM, Waleska, GA
Soul over body, love over fear
Charlie Rice, Douglasville, GA As a transgender person, I am often reduced to being no more than the body I was born in, and oftentimes that leads to my entire person being overlooked. People automatically have a thousand assumptions about me before they know the first thing about who I am, and even people I’ve […]
I Am More Than Just A Blonde
Ashtyn, Waleska, GA
Change is good, change is healthy
Alexis, GA
Where I’m from doesn’t define me
RaSean Tisinger, Waleska, GA Because it’s easy to judge a book by its cover
You will never be the best.
Sarah Bruce, Waleska, GA
Life’s hard sometimes. Never give up!
Haley Sturla, Midland, GA
I’m white but not a white supremacist
Jax Weaver, Cumming, GA Stand against racial profiling
i’m white but not as white as snow
Elsa Koss, DUNWOODY, GA
Different on outside, like on inside
Leah Alexander, Cleveland, GA I believe we were all made by a Creator that loves each and everyone of us very much, but He loved us enough to make everyone different and unique. By doing this, we are able to find unity and community with each other, not based on like appearances, but because of […]
Where do I even fit in?
Isabel Walkup, Waleska, GA Being a light-skinned Puerto Rican obviously has its perks! I can easily get jobs, I rarely experience racism or discrimination. However, when it comes to fitting in, that is something that doesn’t come easy. I’m too culturally different from my whites friends and I’m not Latina enough for my Hispanic friends. […]
Family contrast black white shows beauty
Sherry Weaver, Woodstock, GA. Our family is a beautiful rainbow. We are pink with brown spots and brown with pink spots. We are just a family. I didn’t “rescue” anyone-we gave each other gifts. I was given the incredible gift of love and diversity, and they got a family who loves them and can appreciate […]
Awkward black girl, my safest trope.
Danielle Countryman, Columbus, GA
I survived the white flight.
Misty Johnson, Lilburn, GA. I moved to Georgia in 1988 when I was 8 years old. My father left his job on the oil rigs to start his own landscaping company in Lithonia, Georgia. I was a minority at my elementary school back in Texas, which was predominately Hispanic. The move to Atlanta was different […]
Who’s the white guy with Cameron
David Mercando, Norcross, GA This October my wife and I celebrate our 31st anniversary. We are a mixed race couple. I am white and my wife is Filipino. We noticed right away that we were not treated as equal to other young couples in Princeton, NJ in the 1990’s. It slowly changed but is still […]
Ugly, Invisible, Accused of Insanity
Molly Katerson, Atlanta, GA. I’m a black woman and I feel ugly and invisible most of the time. When I talk about it – the white washing of Hollywood or how that Adria girl’s twitter blew up with racist sexist shi*, I am told I’m crazy. It hurts. Everything hurts.
Homo sapiens; are we getting closer?
Les Stanford, Marietta, GA When I dwell on it, I get overwhelmed with emotion. the attitudes I once had are shameful, the struggle to rid myself of them totally is ongoing.
You’re bi? Just make a choice
Elizabeth Dziedzic, Acworth, GA
Law Enforcement on Stereotypes and Misfortune
Malachi Hicks, Kennesaw, GA Both my parents are officers in law enforcement. many police officers are good, but there are a few bad apples that spoil the bunch. My mom always told me that when you someone doing something wrong, you should speak up.
Ready to listen to your story
Karen Orellana, Suwanee, GA. Last year I joined a group that focused on finding civil ways to improve the polarization in this country. We work on asking questions and listening first before sharing our own stories. I know there is a lot to learn about other people’s experiences, especially about race. So my goal going […]
They won’t listen, They won’t learn
Lexie Hunter, Acworth, GA p>People don’t like to listen and learn. In June the black lives matter protests hit an all-time high, and many people simply dismissed the issue because it wasn’t happening to them or the people they care about. They say it is unnecessary, but they do not take the time to learn […]
I am NOT who they are
Lorali Nelms, Jefferson, GA It’s no secret, racism exists. With recent attacks on Asian-Americans and African Americans, more white people are becoming aware of the racism other races experience. I feel like I experienced a sheltered childhood and I thought racism was a thing of the past. However, as I’ve grown up I’ve seen that […]
I’m amazed at Lillian Smith’s courage.
Bob Thomas, Rabun Gap, GA. I have been working on a web site for the Lillian E. Smith Foundation located in Rabun County, Georgia. In doing research for the project I’m learning more and more about a remarkable woman who as a Southerner spoke out frankly and with unflinching certainty against segregation. As an author […]
Too Loud, Yet Still Not Heard
Siera Adams, Conyers, GA I live in a country that stereotypes black women, like myself, as “loud”. If I laugh, it’s too loud. If I talk, I’m too loud. If I express any form of joy, I’m too loud. People want to silence, arrest, and kill us for the noise we make. However, when I […]
You’re not white, What are you?
Sheena Biggerstaff Atlanta, GA I get this statement/question combo all the time. It’s amazing how many different races I’ve been grouped into by people trying to find an answer. The conversation always ends the same. Sorry, I don’t know, I was adopted.
BLM protests have turned me
Jö Sharsvën, Atlanta, GA The BLM protests have made me “racist”. I use that loosely. I don’t care anymore. If once there was a glimmer of camaraderie with blacks, it’s completely gone now. Racism against whites is growing exponentially. And for some reason it’s acceptable. The unwarranted hate I experience on a daily basis is […]
Disappointed Perceived Progress Evidently Sentiment Concealed
Julie Dickard, Sandy Springs, GA p>Asian kid schooled in the South in the 80’s. Was hopeful for progress, participated in many racial bridge builder programs, encouraged inclusiveness in me. Though I thought that by the time I reached adulthood, it would be a better world. Adult me is broken-hearted to see progress was really sentiment […]
I am a privileged person of color.
Thai Johnson, Roswell, GA
Racism is not a harmless joke
Sofia Cuenca Rojas, Acworth, GA I am Hispanic and due in great part to my parents, who I am thankful for, I have been protected from racism for the majority of my life. And yet when someone makes what they would consider a harmless joke, safely from the other side of a wall they use […]
No way, Miss, you’re not white!
Joan Evans, Lawrencevillve, GA. And I am 100% white. But (far too many of) my students associate “white” with oppression and bigotry. When they tell me I’m not white, they are trying to tell me I’m not a racist. Telling me I’m not white is a compliment. Pretty damning, huh?
Grandmother ate in kitchen with housekeeper
Alice J Walker Gay, GA This concerns a story told to me about my grandmother, who died in 1960 when I was five years old. In the mid-fifties, she lived with my aunt and uncle and their boys in Rome, Georgia. On one rare occasion, she was home alone when Carrie May, the housekeeper came […]
Teacher of black youth, ancestors slaverholders
Ernie Lee Savannah, GA Struggling with my whiteness and my student’s blackness until we connect. I am a good teacher and after a while I don’t color just students who want to learn. It is more of a socio-economic divide, but I will never know what it means to be black as my students will […]
White trash married to black man
Tamera, Evans, GA. I still hear this comment from people even after being in a 32 year long loving marriage, having 3 children, and 5 grandchildren. I have heard that comment or a similar one from whites and blacks and that is truly sad to me. Love has no color boundaries in my eyes and […]
Military families: ahead of the curve.
Monique Hollis-Perry Alpine, CA Military bases overseas were homes to many biracial families like mine, and my sister and I went to school with classmates who looked like us. It was many years and thousands of miles from being sent to Fort Gordon, GA as a test case in the 1960s to see how (or […]
White? Just don’t think about it.
D., Toomsboro, GA I grew up in a small southern town with a fairly even mix of African Americans and whites. I went to a school that was predominantly African American, had friends of both races, and an understanding that the kind of person you were had nothing to do with what color your skin […]
I am not my racist parent
Anonymous, Sidney, GA
Free to live how I want
Megan L Thorne, Lakeland, GA. I have white privilege.
Proud White Man No Guilt
John Reuter, Cumming, GA Fortes Fortuna Adiuvat
From a white teenage girl’s perspective
Victoria N. Fortson, GA My ancestors came to America just like many others. Just because I am white, does not mean my family “owned” “slaves”. When an African American girl says to me “you’re so lucky to have that hair” or “I would pay a lot for some of your hair”, it makes me mad. […]
Latinas with fros are sexy too!
Jeanette Ruiz, Atlanta, GA. Growing up I learned to hate my afro hair. I was the only one in my family with course African hair texture. Although there were others in our Hispanic neighborhood with course hair and dark skin, my mother with straight silky hair made it seem like a problem. She would take […]
Pale faced; I must be guilty
Katherine Atlanta, GA I am not responsible for the actions of people one hundred and fifty years ago who enslaved an entire race. The institution of slavery is a horrific part of American History, and it was a heinous crime against African Americans. Because of that institution, there is racism alive and around still and […]
Then he died in our alley.
Sue Blanshan, Okemos, MI. My family lived in segregated Georgia when I was young. A playmates mother called the police to report a black man smelling her clean laundry on the back yard clothes line. The police came and chased him three blocks and shot him by our house in the alley. He died there. […]
I fear for my son’s life.
Glenn Howell, Lilburn, GA Black Lives Do Matter
Black Means Racing to Live
Laura Steele, Atlanta, GA This is what came to me immediately. The play on the word race and the feeling that black people have been racing for fairness and equality and to just live fairly alongside and among everyone. My heart is broken over every story I have seen or heard about black people being […]
You’re you. I’m me. We’re beautiful!
Leah Wright, Cartersville, GA. My mom is my hero because she stood tall against her racist family and refused to pass on the fear and hatred my ancestors clung so tightly to. She raised me with the understanding that we are ALL God’s children. That is why I don’t understand so-called Christianity today. So much […]
My Family Well Kept Secret Revealed
Mary F. Howard, Stockbridge, GA. I discovered I am one-fourth Native American. My paternal grandfather is full blood Cherokee. I just learned several months ago by eavesdropping on a conversation about race between my paternal uncle and aunt. They had just learned of additional children by their father outside of the marriage. It has often […]
Dark But Light And Its Right
Mirabella Maldonado, Atlanta, GA You Can Be Dark But Weather You Show It Or Not Is A Different Story! I Am A Mexican Girl With A White Mom And A Mexican Dad.
No, you cannot touch my hair.
Ashley Turner, Winder, GA. I say this politely as possible but just because you haven’t seen hair like mine, it does not mean you can touch my hair or ask to. I mean where have your hands been?
I’m white but I’m not basic
Lauren H., Loganville, GA I am a mother, wife, daughter, sister, niece, cousin, friend, dog mom, student, Yankee, Type 1 diabetic, and a recovering alcoholic. I have drank coffee in Costa Rica and I have sipped water from inside a jail cell. I have been on the college’s President’s list and I have been on […]
I want to eliminate subconscious prejudices
Tori Vintzel, Lookout Mountain, GA
What white neighborhood has MLK high?
Karen Gold, Atlanta, GA. Collected during: Six Word Stories on Education Last fall, ProPublica and The Race Card Project teamed up with two Tuscaloosa, Ala., high schools — one integrated, one almost entirely black — to tell the story of resegregation in the South. I am a 25 year veteran teacher in metro Atlanta GA […]
“Content of character is NOT color-blindness.”
Dexter H. Bridgeman Atlanta, GA In his iconic “I Have A Dream” speech, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated the following: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their […]
Black and proud black and flourishing.
Devonna, Lawrenceville, GA
I am more than just pigment.
Ruth Mengesha, Snellville, GA.
The beaner who served our country.
Salvador Palacio Elk Grove, CA
Economic Independence Key To Black Freedom
Merlin Gentry Atlanta, GA Blacks can learn from Jews.You get your revenge by getting rich and making hiring decisions. When you’re collectively wealthy, you can influence local policies to your advantage. That’s just how the world works. How do you get rich? By owning your own businesses, not by working for others. How do you […]
Why do we have “black communities”?
Vicotor J. Boney, Acworth, GA. Any legitimate discussion about race in America must include this question. Fifty plus years removed from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, we remain segregated and unequal.
Mi madre, Americana; my dad, Paraguayan
Clay Oreste Cabrera, Athens, GA
What is, uhmm, race is uhmm…
Mahlon Gumbs, Atlanta, GA. What is uhmm… Race is uhmm… The thin line that Blinds us, Confines us, Keeps us at home base. If we cross that line It’s a crime, No matter the time; Society will put us back in our place. But what is uhmm… Race is uhmm… The thing about which we […]
But Elizabeth, you’re not really black…
Elizabeth D Atlanta, GA But I’m sure not white either. You think because I speak a certain way and dress a certain way, because I don’t fit your stereotypes, I’m not ‘black’ enough? Sorry if I shatter your preconceived notions, but as always I’m just being myself.
She called me: Basic White Girl.
Molly M., Savannah, GA.
Stop explaining why black lives matter
Tonisha C., Jonesboro, GA. All lives didn’t matter until black lives mattered. This response is no mistake. It is intended to be dismissive of the perils faced by people of color. It is humiliating and degrading to have to explain why black lives matter. It is a waste of time to explain, time and time […]
I hate fearing for my sons.
Christina McConnell-Hicks, Lawrenceville, GA.
What if everyone was the same?
Drew Middleton, Summerville, GA. My six words are about people thinking that they are different but they are all basically the same in one way or another.
If you’re black, watch your back
Adeatric White, Atlanta, GA
12 million reasons to be exceptional!
Anita Hughes, Ellenwood, GA For all the 12.5 million Africans who were shipped to this part of the world we owe it to them to be better African-Americans. Every single slave is a reason why we ought to do our best and be our best at all times and in all places.
“You remind me of my mother.”
Susan Boyer, Decatur, GA. These words were spoken to me by a young black waiter. I’m an old white woman. “We got a connection”, he said. And I felt it. I was so touched by his generosity of spirit. I walk around my diverse city, aware of my racist culture and upbringing and practice looking […]
Crazy Family Learning Acceptance Loving Life
Brett Corey Miller, Athens, GA.
Daddy, which box do I check?
David Bundrick Tucker, GA My mixed race children never knew which race to select on forms. I think it made them feel different from their friends.
I’m just as perfect as you
Gavin, Summerville, GA. People think they are better than other people just because of their race.
One race, one family: Human. Embrace.
Carla Brady, Peachtree City, GA. The internet allows us to share our lives and hearts. Why do we not see ourselves in each other and understand, forgive, support, and grow close?
Just call me a human being
Rocio Tapia, Forest Park, GA. Being from Mexico, I do not have any sense of race. I know what I am and do not identify with any of the categories listed when I am asked about my race or ethnicity, so I often leave it blank or choose “Other” if I am pressed to select […]
Can you tell what % black?
Alfred Eric Richner Prieto, Duluth, GA. 14% and Iberian, Dominican,, Swiss, Scandinavian. We are all in this world together.
Racial Construct that won’t stop me
Leonard McReynolds, Atlanta, GA. I’m a black Puerto Rican who lives in the United States. At Times, it makes navigating race relations difficult, for everyone likes to put me in a box. Either I am not black enough because I speak Spanish, or not Puerto Rican enough because I am black. However, I will not […]
Proud to be a slave’s descendant.
Eva Elisabeth McFadden, Stone Mountain, GA. Why do so many people the world over, deny their African Heritage? What is so wrong with being Black??
Prayed God would make me White
Amber Price, Atlanta, GA. I was raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I grew up ashamed of my Blackness. I heard the n-word for the first time in elementary school. I prayed every night for God to make me white. At the age of 17 I was told to go sit with the rest of the Blacks […]
…dreamed of being Nino Brown’s accountant.
Styron Pennywell Atlanta, GA After watching New Jack City, I dreamed of being Nino Brown’s accountant. He was the only respectable brown face that didn’t have to shoot anybody. I was eleven and gang-banging was on the rise in the early 90’s, spreading it’s way through the deep south, black boys with bravado, eyes sparkling […]
A costume I can’t take off.
Anonymous Athens, GA Centuries ago, on the Horn of Africa, where my parents originated, Arabs crossed the Red Sea then crossbred and/or raped the indigenous Africans. This event has confused generations of “my” peoples’ sense of identity. I pose the question to my mother, “What are we?”, to which she responds, “Look in the mirror. […]
WHITE AND I AM NOT SORRY
Holly Rhodes, Pitts, GA.
Not Mexican, stop calling me that
Carolina, Powder Springs, GA. As a Hispanic person, being called Mexican can be seen as an insult, but what is worst; the fact that I feel offended or the fact that it can be offensive?
They told me I couldn’t be Asian
Phil Vongsavang Midland, GA I volunteered to join a faith based prison ministry and was told by the local sheriff’s department that I was not allowed to join as an Asian. Said the deputy “we only do white or black. Do you want to be black today?” After more than a year, including receiving a […]
Dance is color blind universal language
Brian Hayes, Atlanta, GA. I got into Salsa dancing because I wanted to try something new. I never knew it would open my eyes and allow me to meet people I never would have interacted with before. Upon doing that, I realize that we are much more a like than different. I found my love […]
A Mississippi secret – not “accidental drowning.”
David Morath, Wrightsville, PA. On August 14, 1973 three black children from Atlanta, GA drowned in Waveland, Mississippi. Eyewitnesses reported that the children had been harassed by white boaters, The coroner’s jury closed the case without investigation the following day. Because of Jim Crow mortuary policies, locating a funeral director who would deal with African-Americans […]
Why is HATE a ‘family value’?
Crystal Woods Lagrange, GA We don’t talk about it nearly enough.
Hate can’t defeat hate; only love.
Bradley D. Perry, GA. The greatest way to overcome darkness is with light. Lets put on our light to prevail over the dark.
Many different roads, but all connected
Ethan Triebsh, 12 years old. Marietta, GA. Read more about the racial divide in Marietta, GA.
Unintentionally privileged and intolerant by association.
Abigail Sorrow, Lookout Mountain, GA.
Grateful for the grace of friends.
Jen Yearwood, Milledgeville, GA. I am grateful to friends that provide me knowledge and perspective as it pertains to their diverse background; whether that’s race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, religion, etc. These friends allow me to learn from them and gently nudge me when I may say something that I don’t realize could be offensive. […]
Simplest way to conquer and divide
Barry L Hutchinson, Atlanta, GA. From politics to money to real estate, often peoples deciding internal factor is revolved around race.
I’m more than just a color
Jasmyn Joseph, Lithonia, GA. I’m from Mobile, Al….. Bible Belt city, unfortunate my grandparents where witch doctors. My granny is half Black-American and Native Cherokee and grandfather was said to be Haitian. While my dad is a creole and Black-American mix. Yet, with some many mixtures in the boiling pot, I’m usually all the time […]
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 ancestors passed. Their history: invisible.
Margaret Angela Thomas Chatsworth, GA I’m the descendant of a runaway slave who passed as Latin and was beaten to death by a slavecatcher, other runaways who moved to Indian Territories to pass for Cherokee, and a trafficked Chinese woman. I look Scotch-Irish and have a huge red vascular birthmark. I live with color bigotry […]
Brown marries white. Lives happily forever.
Sid Atlanta, GA
Because I’m dreaded, I’m categorically placed…
Valaire L. Moore, Morrow, GA. I am a black woman with locks. From white people I am seen as an Islander and from blacks I am seen as a weed smoker…from all I have been labeled Rastafarian, Hippie and basically everything, but ME…the image people have of me clouds the actual vision of ME…they see […]
Showing my black daughter the cabins
Benjamin Baugh, Athens, GA. I am a white man and my daughter is a black girl. One day, I will have to walk with her down into the woods behind the old family farmhouse and show her the place where the short row of cabins once stood, and I’ll have to own that ancestral sin […]
Too articulate to be from Harlem
JaNohn B. Snellville, GA. When we look at someone or find out where they are from, we assume they speak a certain way. When the person debunks that myth, it appears that everything that is said is some wonder. I went to school just like you did. It’s just a place you’re scared of and […]
White Privilege makes me very bitter
Jessica McMurtry, Collins, GA. I am white, yes, but it makes me very bitter when other white people refuse to see how being another “race” could affect their life. Empathy is not the same as not being prideful of your heritage. My ancestors were Irish, Scottish, and Native American- and I am supremely proud of […]
Mom always said “You’re too American.”
Ben Sian Atlanta, GA Born in the US to Filipino parents.
Race shouldn’t mean “a professional victim.”
Malorie, Statesboro, GA.
“You look nothing like your mother.”
Katherine Brooks, Marietta, GA.
My identity is not a box
Mason Colquitt, Athens, GA.
I wish demographic questions didn’t exist.
Heather Holdridge, Dunwoody, GA. I am a high school student and every time I take a standardized test it asks me for my race and ethnicity. Why do these questions matter? We are all human.
Not White Nor Asian But Wasian
Bryce Barrett, Summerville, GA. I am Asian-American and that means Asian jokes. People call me Wasian when I say am part Asian, Thai in particular. Im not offended by it and sometimes I play along with them. It sometimes gets on my nerves that that say “Hey Wasian!” instead of my name. :L
“Race” is fake; I am not.
Dennie T, Atlanta, GA. “Race” is a human-concocted, cultural construct that has nothing to do with biology and everything to do with (negative) cultural conditioning in racist societies. Human DNA produces a single species of humans – not multiple races of humans. If we are to have an honest discussion of “race,” we need to […]
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 […]
Recovering Southern Privileged White Girl
Tiffany, Indianapolis, IN. I was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. But I grew up in the middle class suburbs. My schools were overwhelmingly white. Black was something you saw on the news, heard about from others or saw on Marta. I grew up in a neighborhood where ding dong ditch was called N-word Knocking. […]
Color Defined, Now Mixing is Fixing
Doug Shipman, Atlanta, GA. The demographic changes seen in the census are at a turning point– race has to change because the categories are rapidly falling with intermarriage, internationalization and the rise of majority-minority in America.
Government, media, businesses all perpetuate race.
Manu Jeffers, Atlanta, GA. AMERICA could effectively end racism easily but its a revenue based immorality. Basically when a group or person loses it becomes another person or groups gain. Marketing, sales, city developers all use those statistics and data samples to determine who and where these people are.
My creamy white baby, new minority.
Stephanie Hawkins Atlanta, GA
You’re athletic, for a white guy
Jonah G., Athens, GA.
Are you a honky, or not?
Jeremy Wilhelm, Atlanta, GA. Got this from a peer while living in Kansas in the late 1980s. I didn’t know what honky was. Picture is me with my Indonesian great grandmother.
When will the next one go
David Rotenstein, Atlanta, GA. In April 2012, I sat in an elderly African American woman’s Decatur, Ga.,dining room with a digital recorder asking her questions about gentrification in her neighborhood. For more than a decade, developers have been buying small homes and tearing them down to build large new homes some people call “McMansions.” The […]
Don’t fix anything; Create something New.
Andrew De Loe, Statesboro, GA. We seem to be focusing on fixing the wrongdoings of past generations. As important as it is to look back and know where you come from, it is also important to look forward to see where you will go.
My origin, why not my personality?
Ileana Contreras, Athens, GA.
I wish I knew my roots…
Tiffany Chatman Loganville, GA African-American? Well, where in Africa? Should I just be American since that is the only place that I have ever lived and that’s the culture that I know. Sometimes I feel like I don’t truly know who I am. I wish that I could trace my roots to a particular country, […]
We have to fight just to dream
Arielle Ramey, Atlanta, GA. I see humans but no humanity.
Honestly, I’m sick of white people.
Priscilla Almonacy, Atlanta, GA.
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 […]
People aren’t ready to face Race
Yusuf Wyatt, Atlanta, GA. The history of race in America is a topic that makes many people uncomfortable because it’s a perpetual issue and not one that dishonest or politically correct speech will make any better. If we don’t understand what racism really is, there can be no honest dialogue.
Come look, black people on television!
Ron Boose, Atlanta, GA. It wasn’t until 33 years after the first television was invented in 1927 that a black actor and actress were seen on television.
Hate overwhelms us; love is submerged.
Susan Knight-Smith Marietta, GA
The suffix “ism” ruins everything.
Dallas Yates, Dunwoody, GA. Race is merely a form of innocuous classification used to identify and group individuals of a common heredity. The concept only becomes socially divisive when people begin to erroneously assume that their own race is inherently superior to others and act in accordance with a such a belief.
Police reports had the notation TND
Lois Norder, Atlanta, GA. One of the experiences that forced me to shed my naïveté about race. TND in Urban Dictionary: Police jargon to be used for the really shi**y area of town which is usually primarily ococupied by races of “color”.
Confederate Flag: The American Swastika
Wayne K Robertson, Decatur, GA. That’s how we should think of it – a banner that intimidates.
Emanicipation is still just a word
Winfrey Young, Atlanta, GA. Emancipation did not reinstate self-esteem, justice, dignity or reality. Freed slaves were not endowed with freedom to love or with pride of self. There was no one to help us heal. We cannot move toward each other if our self-image and ideals are shackled—and we continue to wallow in the sicknesses […]
Your different than other black people.
Marie Adams, Lilburn, GA.
Mountains of terrible history to undo
Jonathan O’Neill, Evans, GA.
I’m happy for my sister’s engagement
Benjamin Boober, Doraville, GA.
Easier to pretend not to notice
Anna Dolder, Dunwoody, GA.
I am more than my skin
Lisa Gullion, Nocross, GA. I only look white, I am a high percent of Cherokee (whom were murdered by the dozens for land), I am Irish who were shipped as slaves just like Africans (they were bred with africans for higher priced mixed slaves). My ancestors faced the same deadly history as your’s but I […]
Black kings sold people into slavery
Robert Michael, Atlanta, GA.
No seriously I am not Hispanic
Emily Alfonso, Summerville, GA. Everyone thinks because of my last name, that I am hispanic. But I’m not, I am Italian, Irish, and French.
Not all southern people are racist
Logan Money, Summerville, GA. As southern citizens, we are often accused of being racist, homophobic, and resistant to change. Some are, but not all of us are. Most of my friends are minorities and that includes homo/bisexuals. as a matter of fact, most of the major towns are culturally diverse.
Hate overwhelms us; love is submerged
Susan Knight-Smith, Marietta, GA. Read more about Michele Norris and Crossing the Racial Divide in Marietta, GA. One Church was founded by slave owners, the other by former slaves.
What are you? The ubiquitous question.
Laura Mariko Cheifetz Atlanta, GA I call myself hapa yonsei. I’m biracial white Jewish and Japanese American, fourth generation on both sides. However, there are two assumptions that I run into all the time. First, “what are you?” People want to know my ethnic background (not racial… that doesn’t satisfy their intrusive curiosity), but they […]
People are selfish, race provides cover
Errol Stewart, Statesboro, GA.
I’m Jewish. I have worse. Promise
Jake Abraham, Statesboro, GA. I get attacked for religion and skin color and have to live my life walking a completely separate spiritual path than the social norm.
Choose one: White, Asian, Other
Mia Manning, Atlanta, GA.
Forgotten history will always be repeated
Maranda L. Glass-Shelhorse, Grovetown, GA. We can forgive; we must never forget. History forgotten is doomed to be repeated.
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 […]
Perceptions of race…change….over time…
M’Karyl Gaynor, Decatur, GA. I am 52 years old and I am from the Midwest (Rockford, IL) and while there was not an absence of racism per se…my friends and I were fortunate enough to grow up in a community where our families, communities and educational experiences allowed us to experience integration at its best…I […]
Growing Together Within The Same Soil
Steve Wilson, Marietta, GA.
Racism isn’t gone it’s just tolerated
Lorain Henderson, Dunwoody, GA.
Tomorrow’s promise Yesterday’s shame Today’s discussion
Vivian Johnson, Marietta, GA.
Beyond the divide, all one tribe.
Susan Knight-Smith, Marietta, GA.
Walk a mile in their shoes.
Kelli De Guire, Calhoun, GA.
White, male, privileged, finally getting it.
J. Calvin Smith, Ranger, GA. After years in the Federal workforce trying to engage said workforce in my own philosophical struggles with whether statistical under-representation should be sufficient reason to favor female and minority candidates for hiring or promotion, I finally heard some speakers talk about the implicit privilege that comes with being White, Male […]
I never understood why. Do you?
Kristen, Two Rivers, AK. Grew up in the 60s in south Georgia. As a child, I didn’t know there were differences. I didn’t know to discriminate. They tried to teach me, but I don’t think I ever really learned.
Mixed people are black, at CONVENIENCE!
Carrie Stowers, Statesboro, GA.
Challenge assumptions-find truth through dialogue.
Sharon Christian, Whelan, GA.
Life experiences shape our daily lives.
Kristine Yager-Rushton, Statesboro, GA. Our life experiences make us who we are. I grew up with a chronic disease that led to me having an organ transplant several years ago. In my volunteer work, I get to share my story as I help mentor future organ transplant recipients on what to expect. I often find […]
Blacks Are Their Own Worst Enemies!
Anonymous, ND. I grew up in a small mountain town in Northwest Georgia after my mother ended her military career and took me back to her hometown. All of her maternal family and most of her paternal family was there, so she thought she would have a great support system,but her family was the greediest […]
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