The Race Card Project
By Michele Norris
McKenna Book,
Sioux City, IA
I was raised by a family who was generally quite closed to other ethnicities/cultures. I never knew any differently and never questioned it as I thought it was normal. As I got older, I found myself loving the diversity of other cultures and have found most people from these cultures are so much more accepting than people of my own race. We are all humans and all so deserving and worth of acceptance and respect.
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 at folk who don’t look like me thinking “There goes Jesus, incarnate again.” I have to work at letting my prejudice go. But for this young man, it just came naturally. He was a blessing to me and I’m grateful.
John Howard Faultersack,
San Antonio, TX.
Everyone is prejudiced, but racists do it on purpose, and I’ve never understood why.
Lauren Slotsve,
Santa Rosa, CA
Hatred is a learned behavior, but it can be unlearned. For many people, they will spend their whole lives unlearning prejudice and hate.
Ebony Nichole,
Cincinnati, OH
For three days after my birth I was nameless because my Mama didn’t know she was having a girl. Born very light-skinned, my now very dark complexion didn’t come in until I was a week old. My mother’s friend came to the hospital to visit and brought her an Ebony Magazine. My mama asked her friend for girl name suggestions, and she recommended to name me….Ebony! My Daddy was adamant in choosing my middle name which is….Nichole. I share this naming story because it will become very significant in just a little bit, but first let me share some knowledge about racism.
Racism is a mental illness in case you weren’t aware. Just think about it, to harbor feelings of hatred towards disliked groups for reasons of skin color which is outside of anyone’s control. To physically attack, demean, belittle, have prejudice, bigotry, murder, discriminate for the mere reasoning of one’s hatred of skin color is delusional, and these are symptoms of mental illness. In America, it has become the accepted norm for the vast majority of it’s white population to have this mental illness. I am living in a world specifically in a country where living with the mentally ill has been tolerated, but no longer. I will no longer be a victim subjected to this kind of treatment and abuse. Since, I was a child I have been traumatized by racist acts against me, because of my dark skin. Normally, when someone is deemed mentally ill they seek mental health treatment, and/or hospitalization.
Now, here’s where the significance of my name comes into play. I have a purpose here on earth. My name was given to me by divine design, one that I was not aware of until just a few years ago. Let me break down the meaning of my name Ebony Nichole. Ebony means Black, and Nichole means the Victory of the people, now put those two together and you get…… Black People’s Victory!
I no longer apologize for my blackness and my black culture. I utilize every moment as a teaching moment for my white brothers and sisters to give them knowledge. You see Racism is not a black issue, but a white issue and they just need some education and connection in order for them to understand and accept that there is a problem in this country, and they can make a difference. I will continue on my mission to try and make a difference in this country and stand against racism, inequality, and injustice.
My name has a meaning and a purpose, and I will do everything to fulfill it.
Lee Masty,
Waynesville, NC
A great idea for a much-needed platform for all to hear and learn
Tam Wilson Powell,
Submitted via Twitter: @TAMWILSONP
#theracecardproject
Osher Fein,
Cupertino, CA
This took me an embarrassingly long time to realize, but there’s this weird thing that white Jews experience called “conditional white privilege”. As long as my Jewishness isn’t obvious or doesn’t “offend” anyone, I experience the same privilege every other white person does. But, it was the moments of overt antisemitism that made me wonder if I fell under “minority” or if I fell under “privileged white person”. Eventually, I realized that these experiences don’t discredit one another. Do I experience bigotry? Yeah. Does that erase the fact that I still benefit from this corrupt system? Nope! I still benefit from injustice, unfortunately.
Ashton King,
Canada
Racial prejudices are more dangerous than racism itself which is now agreed to be a systemic issue. Prejudice requires a person to ACT upon their racist ideas and prejudice is something every person of every race as we can see it very clearly any time we hear “fuck white people.” “Fuck the police” “white colonialists should be eradicated from the earth” or my favourite… “white people are racist by default!”
Amber Roberson-Rowell,
Essex, MD.
That was my second incident of prejudice and what instilled in me that race–the color of my skin–was a problem. The first was during my first day of pre-school and being pushed off a tricycle by a little white boy and being told “You don’t belong here!” I was the ONLY black child in my class. Back then I was definitely too young to even comprehend what his words meant, but now that I look back I find it rather sad he knew what they meant. The incident above happened around the 3rd or 4th grade. A fellow classmate was handing out birthday invitations which held the equivalent of finding the Golden Ticket. I was so excited like many of the other kids in my class and was anxiously waiting for my invitation. One by one, I watched as my classmate handed them out and was just ready to get mine before we dismissed. As she got to me, she politely smiled and whispered in my ear, “I would invite you to my party, but sorry; my mom doesn’t like blacks.” I was so in awe, like a genuine confusion came upon me. I didn’t understand why me being black made her Mom dislike me. I had never had anyone dislike me at that point and definitely not because of what color I was. I was friends with almost everyone in my class, I wasn’t bias or prejudice. I am a people person and have always been. My brain couldn’t comprehend what was so wrong with my color of skin and why didn’t my mother didn’t like me because of it…and to this day I still don’t understand the under meanings of prejudice. That day I realized even at a young age, what the little boy did to me in pre-school and why I wasn’t invited to my classmate’s party was correlated. And from that, I just realized people white people don’t like blacks. And THAT was what introduced me to racism.
Markus & Moya claim that “Contrary to what most people believe, race and ethnicity are not things that people have or are. Rather, they are actions people do” (p.4). Based on my earliest exposures pertaining to race up until now, I completely agree with that statement. My stance concerning race is that is a factious ideal; it’s no realer than Santa Claus or unicorns. It is something society and the media has built and upheld on this pedestal and is only validated its longevity which makes people believe that is something real. Since race isn’t made up and it has nothing to do with our biological, it can only be implemented through society’s actions and thoughts, therefore making race an action. By discriminating, stereotyping, and prejudice race is an action. I’ve never seen any difference or felt a difference between any other people except when it came to color, but I let it interfere with our interactions. It is not our color that separates us, but our personalities. I’ve not gotten along with whites, blacks, Asians but not because of their skin color, but because of the actual individual. People will sometimes take one individual’s demeanor and actions and cast it upon anyone who looks like them. That is what doing race is.
Bob,
Boise, ID.
I honestly believe that racism and prejudice has become worse in the last couple of decades because it has become a two-way street. Ethnic “minorities” have pre-judged whites just as whites pre-judge them. Can’t we move on. I have met so many wonderful persons of diverse backgrounds and races …. and yes, in some cases because of my prejudice, I was surprised at what I found. It’s hard, but I’m trying to not pre-judge.
Natalie,
Kansas City, MO.
I believe ignorance is a key that goes hand-in-hand with fear. We are afraid of what we do not know or what we cannot understand. If we simply educated ourselves on certain topics,we may be less likely to jump to conclusions, opinions and prejudice’s. Ignorance is blind to those who we cannot see or try to understand.
Our color is ONLY skin deep. We all have hearts that pump the same blood, that fuels what powers our mind. I choose love and understanding over ignorance and hate any day.
Debra Rosenberg,
Phoenix, AZ.
I am the person I am meant to be, and proud to be a Jew even though growing up I knew what it was like to be “Black”. I had to overcome many obstacles of prejudices.
Tyler,
CA.
If there’s one thing I’ve observed in my life that pertains to the current state of racial prejudice in this country, it’s that the prevailing fuel for white people’s racism is their fear of the possibility that they might finally become less than the majority. With two white parents, as kind as they are, little phrases have always popped up that appear to have racist roots. Things like mentioning the statistics on how many children the middle eastern families have, and how fast their numbers are growing as a result. Obviously not felt by all, but the fear of not being the majority seems to be what drives a large amount of today’s racism.
CBU HIS311
Anita Cohen,
Boca Raton, FL.
I did not even know about prejudice until Martin Luther King was killed and I was in my best friend apt baking cookies. Her mother wailed and when I left I was surrounded by people who wanted to hurt me. Her mom took me home. I never hated anyone for trying to hurt me. I was 9. I did not understand what was happening. My parents never infused hate or prejudice in otlr to me. I hate the hate that we all live with.
Donna Corrigan,
Bloomingdale, IL.
People would not be so afraid of the changes happening with racial imbalance in our country if laws weren’t being broken, people weren’t coming illegally, committing crimes, selling drugs. Of course it’s not everyone! But there are make people afraid and that’s enough to cause prejudice. Fear promotes anger. Anger promotes bad behavior . . . . by everyone.
Wendy,
Albany, NY.
I was told outright my entire childhood (by mom and grandparents) to be not prejudiced. This seemed the height of progress. but now in middle age it seems there are so many nuances, so much backstory, too huge a body of knowledge about the entire experience that I just don’t know. being taught to be not prejudiced seems like, not a solution to the country’s ills, but at most, no more effective at addressing the issue than, say, releasing an eyedropper of clean saline water into the ocean would be to clearing out pollution.
Judith Hickey
Austin, TX
Since I became disabled and had to live with and among blacks, I have become very prejudice. I am fed up with their whining and always using their race for every darn excuse. All of our ancestors were slaves when they first came to America. My kin, the Osage Indians, were killed and abused for the greed of the white man. Yet, I am what are called the “white people”. The government is causing prejudice to become more and more. Texas fair housing has decided that blacks are to be considered first above all other races. That is not fair. It’s supposed to be who is the most qualified despite color or race. The government is causing the rest of us to become very prejudiced. What I see now is very aggressive blacks who don’t care about following any rules of civility. Blacks went from dependency on their owner to dependency on the government. When are they going to be made to grow up? I hate their attitude of yelling louder to get their way. They tear up their own stores burn their own cars like a teenager throws a temper tantrum to get their way. Now I have decided that I prefer living around white people not spoiled teenagers. I of all people do not feel sorry for them and never will.
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