Sienna,
Australia.

I grew up believing racism didn’t really happen to white people, or at least not that often. But moving schools changed my perspective a bit.

I moved in Year 9 and at first it was a really good change. The school is mostly Asian students, which I didn’t mind at all — I actually wanted a different environment. But after being here for about a year and a half, I’ve started noticing comments that make me uncomfortable, and I don’t know if I’m overreacting or not.

One time, my friend was talking about counselors and said, “(Counselor name) is better. White counselors are bad and never work for me.” The counselor she liked was Asian, while another one was white. I understand feeling more comfortable with someone from a similar background, but saying all white counselors are bad felt unfair to me.

Another time, some Muslim girls were doing henna at school. I’ve always loved henna designs, and one of the girls did really beautiful work, so I waited my turn and got one done. While everyone was talking, someone asked, “What do you call henna?” I thought everyone was just joining in, so I answered, “Isn’t it just henna?” Then everyone paused and looked at me, and one girl said, “Bro, you’re just white.” It honestly made me feel awkward and embarrassed, like I was only being seen for my race.

These aren’t the only situations either. The longer I stay at this school, the more nervous I get about saying the wrong thing or speaking at the wrong time. I’m not trying to attack anyone or act like I have it worse than other people — I’m genuinely asking if these comments are racist or if I’m being too sensitive.