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 […]
Moonlight Lady, Piedmont Triad, NC I am white, and I am sick and tired of African Americans who continually live in the past, and shove their distorted and many times incorrect atrosities onto white generations of today. Blacks in America are doing nothing but continuing to divide the races by trying to inflict unfair blame […]
Deb, Australia “Every Country” treated People poorly/ badly/ hurt people since the year dot. Still is happening. Us Western Countries demand racism to stop. Racism happens to all of us. Me Too, Same but different… Other Countries are treating their own people terribly, starving them, no health care, still happening to this day. I think […]
Rafael, Lake Forest, CA People will never understand the hardships and stress racism brings on people.
James Stuart Wilber, Racine, WI.
April Barney Pouncy, Richardson, TX I am Jewish my husband is black and over the last few years I sincerely felt like we might be in danger. I worry for our adult and teenage children. We have both subconsciously begun to view the American Flag as a symbol to put us on high alert. Now […]
Kristina T. Sanders, Sumter, SC. A regular day at work turned into an eye opening experience. I had helped a customer pick out a pair of shoes, and it was time for him to purchase them. The customer was a tall middle age Caucasian gentlemen. I gave him his total and he pulled out the […]
Athena White, Chicago, IL. Embrace the power of love for it has no color. Teach others that lack this purity and watch how well it blossoms. “Love” speak it, mean it, live it…nourish one another by erasing racism, hate and terrorism within our own country against one another and we shall unite as one.
Anusha Ghildyal, USA I used to get this comment often when I was in elementary school. I would be surprised to hear this comment because it was never something I associated with myself and my identity. Now, I wonder why people would involve my Indian food to serve as a stereotype for my race and […]
Lanthe Keller, Knoxville, TN I grew up in a small suburb outside of Seattle, WA. I played with and had friends in my class who looked nothing like me and only when moving to the south did I realize I had never seen so many white children. The south has a reputation for racism, it’s […]
Eric Evans, Tarboro, NC. Our God-given differences are meant to be appreciated not to keep us separated. As a Native American man I live in a world that doesn’t know what to think of me outside of a reservation or the pages of a history book.
Alberto Lopez, San Juan Capistrano, CA
Katie, Salem, OR I struggle with feeling heavy and saddened by the history of the United States. I want to do my best to protect and support all of those that suffer from racism as it is absolutely not ok.
Elizabeth, Salem, OR.
Susie, USA
JP, Harrisburg, NC As a 50-year-old man from the South living in the south I frequently find myself in situations where only men from the South are around (barbershop, hardware store, etc.) It is apparent that this mono-population loosens the tongues of those who think they are now free to say what they want in […]
Lars Olsen, Honolulu, HI I am white, Viking white… yet I have experienced racism. We humans are strange creatures. It’s great that we all want to express our individuality, our uniqueness. It’s also great that we want to belong, to something, some group. What I find sad is that in doing this great things, somehow, […]
Paulie Toner, Toronto.
Bana Goldsmith, Canada. My high school teacher told me once that he was looking forward to the day when everybody’s skin was the same colour because that would decrease racism. I see his point but, apart from thinking this is not likely to ever happen totally, I feel we need to mature past racism as […]
Jua Fluellen, Washington, DC. I would like for more people to deconstruct the role race places in the way they are perceived and responded to within their immediate environment. I would like for more people to develop the skills of conversing about race across difference in a way that can deepen our understanding of what […]
Yzolde Chepokas, Eden Prairie, MN. Going through this process of learning about race, racism, culture, multiculturalism, diversity, and so on, I have come to the conclusion that being aware of the world outside of my own world is only the beginning of this journey of supporting social justice. As this change occurs within myself it […]
Courtney Jones, Denver, CO. People hide behind the stereotypes, racism, politics, and labels to avoid CONNECTING with others. Are we afraid people have more in common with us than we allow our differences to believe? My pride in my race contributes to my Life & community. It takes nothing from you & we all gain […]
Michael, Livonia, MI It strikes me over and over again that we confuse the problems of being poor with racism. Dr. Martin Luther King understood the problem isn’t race: it’s economic. The reason we see a deepening divide, and a growing sense of racial tension, is because more and more middle-class white folks — the […]
Yuka, Brooklyn, NY. Least sympathy-eliciting kind of racism ever! It’s like complaining about being rich, smart AND hot! (Image: screenshot of Google image search for “Asian women”) HAHAHAHAHA I want to kill myself.
John Sutter, Porterville, CA My wife, who is white, was discriminated against when she was a restaurant manager at a national fast food restaurant in the South. Her crew was composed of black men, who made life hell for her. They would set off the burglar alarm during the middle of the night so she […]
George, Minneapolis, MN. I never got it. It felt so much like insults you’d hear as one-ups in childhood. What’s the point?
Darren Joyce, United Kingdom Racism exists. Privilege exists. there are people out to get you. I’m not racist. I’m not privileged. I’m not your enemy. Just because a white [insert position of authority here] is a shameful human being that will target you more than me. Just because this generates a justifiable fear and different […]
Valerie Evans, Chaska, MN
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 […]
Anonymous, NY And every Asian, Hispanic/Latino, and Native American people are living in it. We need to understand why being an anti-racist is not just pro-Black, and Black people need to understand that most don’t see the world like they do. We have different cultures and experiences, but understanding that most of us don’t live […]
Langley B., Siloam Springs, AR. I am a 21-year-old white female. Currently, I am taking a class at my university in which we discuss race and all the weight that it carries in our world. It was not until now that I realized how long it took me to step outside of my ignorance. The […]
Anna Fox, Goldsboro, NC I am a white women, and growing up, I did not really realize how much privilege I had. I went to a small private Christian school starting in seventh grade and eventually graduating as a senior in high school there. The whole time I attended this school, I think there were […]
Stephen Still, Birmingham, MI I’m from a small town in the state of Washington, didn’t see a black person until I was 10 years old, but parents laid down the law early, I had to love everyone! Be like Jesus…”Red and yellow, black or white, they are precious in his sight”. My dad was transferred […]
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 […]
Kaydence, Burlington, IA Race is a social construct, but with that came real life issues. I am thankful to have the opportunity to learn about racism instead of experience it. A lot of people like to brush off the issue like it is nothing, but racism is still prominent all around us. I see it […]
Patrick, FL I grew up to racist parents in a particularly a diverse area. You can imagine the views I developed. Over time I have unlearned what was fed to me. I still hold a few cultural prejudices that I cannot work around as they really do go against my values. But I’m proud to […]
Dora Stephani R. Gonsalves, Silver Spring, MD Ethnicity never describe anyone that how he/she is! Racism can make a separation between a human. Sometimes it really affects people as badly.
Mengyao Jiang, Chengdu, Sichuan Racism is hate, racism thinks one is superior, another is weak. However, race is a matter of just means different. Different means variety and variety is beautiful. What we need as one human race is a change of mindset and teaching to a budding generation the real meaning of race; just […]
Brittany Pitt, San Jose, CA
Justin Hoehing, Macomb, MI The year 2020 has revealed the ingrained racism that many in my family aid in perpetuating. This occurs with my pale-faced relatives despite the actions taken by younger relatives and my relatives of color. What is happening now has happened in the past. Old habits are difficult to end but they […]
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 […]
Darcel Reyes Yonkers, NY I am a nurse and the concept of cultural competence is taught in nursing school and addressed in mandatory inservices in healthcare organizations. I am now a doctoral student and find that the topic is being researched to death. But white cultures get a pass on cultural competence. We only have […]
Bunny Blake, Washington, DC
Alexis Balkissoon, Bloomfield, NJ
Aubie Hartman, Sioux City, IA I chose these six words because I think that a lot of people see white people as racist. I am not only white but I also live in the midwest. I had a teacher who moved to my hometown from a big city. When this teacher came they always tried […]
Tori Carter, Sioux City, IA My name is Tori, and I am a senior at North High School. I am dual-enrolled at Western Iowa Tech Community College. I was assigned to create a race card, and this project got me thinking. When you hear the word “racism”, you think of slavery, internment camps, or the […]
Harleen Thind, American Canyon, CA. The reason why I chose these six words are because my mother and father are of different races, my father is European and my mother is Indian. Indians and Europeans were enemies in the past, they despised each other in the worst of ways. My father decided not to care […]
Octavia, Louisville, KY. In 2014, our 11 year old son would play outside everyday with the neighborhood little boys. Our son was told by the 10 year old friend and next door neighbor his mom said my son could not come inside his house. He was also NOT invited to the 10 year next neighbor’s […]
Hollie Watson, Murfreesboro, TN Technically seven words, but oh well. The only way I can relate to racism is through the hate I get by being gay. People that don’t really know you automatically hate you and judge you based on one thing. I’m just fortunate enough that I can be a coward and hide […]
Carmen Davis Portland, OR I was a very young child from the Midwest traveling with my mother by train to Detroit in the 1940’s. There was an African American couple on the train with a wonderfully packed picnic basket. As a very gregarious child I was eager to explore the car. My mother told me […]
Dilan Edward Kirkland, Apopka, FL I used to care, but after all the rioting, looting, raping, and killing, I honestly couldn’t care less about racism or social injustice any more than I do right now. my daddy always said you can’t always have what you want. Just a part of life. Only a degenerate doesn’t […]
Susan F. Bohrer Merced, CA I started a tutorial program and later worked as a social work intern in a middle school where 70% of the students lived in poverty; 80% belonged to minority populations. From the teachers I learned that college was for other kids, and from the students I learned that it didn’t […]
Megan Schubert New York City, NY Include that in background checks.
Chinna, Vallejo, CA. I love my Caucasian brothers and sisters I just HATE the institutions in which racism is embedded in.
Julie Simon Los Angeles, CA In 1959, members of the Collins Park community (New Castle, Delaware) firebombed the home of one of the first Black families to move into the neighborhood. On the second occasion, the house was destroyed. Historian Yohuru Williams has written about this event and it is included in the Encyclopedia of […]
Amelia Ketzle, Carbondale, IL. I was at a Halloween party no more than two years ago, hosted by a girl I had lost touch with recently, when some new arrivals showed up. Everyone had been having a harmless, normal, good time, when this (white) couple came in carrying axes and machetes and covered in fake […]
Jayden Berrios, Boston, MA.
Madison Martin, Ewing, NJ. Growing up in a predominantly white town, race was not a topic of much discussion in the classroom. My parents were good role models to me and my brother and did not hide us from the world outside the “bubble” of our town, but the rest of my town seemed to […]
Ron Corley, Montrose, CO. I’m 81 years old, and I’ve seen life from the worst to the best.
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, […]
Anthony Whittum, Portland, OR. As I get older (56) racism seems more prevalent or at least more “advertised” by those that hold racist beliefs. Or perhaps as my childhood, young manhood and middle age fade into the rearview mirror my awareness of all things grows. It seems that racists are most often categorized as “white […]
Allen D. Jenkins, Gulfport, MS. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear… I John 4:18
Zack Ritchie, Boulder, CO. I am a white male. Race doesn’t play a very important role in my life. I go through my daily activities without having to think about how people view the color of my skin. My uncle, however, is African American. His children, my cousins, have dark skin. Because of that, race […]
Tian McPherson, Baltimore, MD. …and these recent events are the visible rash. If a country practiced slavery, the racism problem is already inside it. It’s been there, largely unseen or easy to neglect… but it’s starting to burn and crackle now.
Joyce Goodluck, East Lansing, MI. On Location, MSU. Before coming to MSU I knew one side of racism from media. Whites discriminating Blacks. I even once experienced that when I passed by Akers Hall and some one shouted at me from his window black and African. I was like he is a racist.But whom am […]
Erika Ortiz Alvarez, Woodburn, OR
William G Doyle Jr., Castle Rock, CO. From the time I could remember my father expressed his racism against African Americans. I fought him because of it throughout my life. Usually it exposed itself the most after we would go to church and listen to beautiful sermons about God’s love for all people and then […]
David Chen, New York, NY. I grew up in China listening to artists like 50 cent, Tupac, Snoop dogg (lion), and Jay-Z. I have every one of Jay-Z’s songs memorized and for a Chinese kid, that wasn’t easy. For as long as I can remember, I was fascinated by African American (is this the politically […]
Suzanne Rogers, Sherwood, AR. I was born with white privilege. I didn’t know true racism until I was married. I didn’t know that supposedly “good” people could be blatant racists. I learned my own white privilege wasn’t because my parents went to college and worked hard. It was simply because they were white. No one […]
Thierno Diallo, Madison, WI. It is really painful to be a minority in the US. It is a heavy ‘extra’ burden that you carry even to bed, hourly. Race is a determining factor everywhere.
Nicole D. Riggs, Inkster, MI I believe racism is rooted in fear. In the case of Whites versus Blacks there is fear of our ability to thrive, survive and excel despite all that is done to keep us from doing so. Even with their feet on our backs we manage to rise.
Harper Grey, Philadelphia, PA I see too many white people saying being white makes them a scapegoat, and complaining that everyone calls them racist “just for speaking the truth”… all while publicly espousing racist views & white-supremacist opinions that are as far from “truth” as it gets. Almost without exception, these are white conservatives. I’m […]
Kenyel Clark, Wayne State, Detroit, MI If you are privileged, you do not feel the effects of what socially going on.So, if you want to understand racism talk people of color, listen to them and STOP talking over them.
Michael Atkinson, Herriman, UT The more I’ve learned about racism, the more I’ve realized that even if we consider ourselves kind-hearted, stalwart non-racist, there’s subtleties encoded and enculturated into our thinking and language that’s astonishingly invisible to us. We must fight this by caring enough to learn learn learn.
Seungmin Shin, Korea, Republic of. I’ve been watching standing comedies these days, but I stopped watching it recently. I found a serious irony from those standing comedies; they make fun of Asian people a lot, and they feel no guilty, while they very carefully or never make joke about African-Americans or black people. People are […]
Charlotte Kendall, Orlando, FL. This was in New York in 1967. The sh** hit the fan at school! Family and church were there for me. I couldn’t believe the racism, from students and teachers. We learned a lot.
Sarah S., Washington, DC. My Puerto Rican grandmother used to call me “muchacha fea,” while calling my dark-haired, dark-eyed, darker-skinned, curly-haired sisters, “muchacha linda.” That woman treated me like Cinderella. When we were kids, one of my sisters took my grandmother’s cues, and decided to torment me by saying that I was adopted (I wasn’t), […]
Jack Kiehl, St. Louis, MO. I live in a city that is significantly divided between blacks and whites. The division and living in such homogenous communities is one of the strongest reasons why racism, both subtle and overt, continue today. This project inspired a deep look into this issue and was the inspiration for an […]
Anonymous, San Francisco, CA. I am so grateful for increased awareness about racism in our society (it certainly still exists and we should continue to focus on efforts to achieve equality) but I am also concerned about suggestions of racism (with ensuring public outrage) in cases that do not seem to involve racism at all. […]
Malcolm Harris Jarvis, San Diego, CA. Unfortunately, the apple does not fall far from the tree leading, in many cases, to generations of racists. Racism in any of its myriad, ugly and self crippling forms will always be deeply entrenched and ensnared in the soul of countries and their citizens unless we have the unthinkable, […]
Matthew Thomas, Brea, CA. My opinion often is viewed as less online because I’m white and “haven’t experienced racism” isn’t that racism itself?
Jonathan Bennett, Forest, VA. The only problem is it does and to too many. America, the America I grew up in, was described as a melting pot where diversity was supposedly celebrated. Now I see that there was always a thin veneer of racism strewn throughout my childhood that still persists today, especially with this […]
Submitted via Twitter: @vijayiyer
Patty Hoyt, Novato, CA. A brilliant project. Thank you!
David Thomas, Pasadena, MD. White Grandfather to two African American grandsons, what a world we have created for them. I loath the day they realize racism exists and have to explain why.
Dick Hougardy, Cleveland, OH.
Linda Aitken, Thailand. Born in 1937- raised in a small town in Pacific Northwest – never occurred to me to think of racism as an issue growing up. Wonder if it would be less of an issue if there was no new media?
Bobby Brown, Baltimore, MD. It wouldn’t be racism if it wasn’t for white people.
Amanda Adams, MA. People don’t realize how deeply ingrained racism is in our country and in the whole world. We can’t ignore such a painful and divisive issue- instead, we must work to overcome people’s hate and ignorance so that we can truly start to judge people only by their character.
Daphne Chanoine, Brooklyn, NY.
Amelinda, New Haven, CT. I am as white as they come… Blonde hair, blue eyes; English, Swedish, Irish, German, French heritage… I grew up in Nebraska, surrounded by the ‘whitest’ people you can imagine. The first ‘black’ person I saw was a professional photographer when I was a toddler, and I was absolutely shocked (I […]
Brian, West Hills, CA. To expand on those six words, I’d say that discrimination against people of color still exists, though often more subtle than it used to be (e.g., implicit bias). Still, the degree of discrimination is vastly underapreciated, especially by whites. On the other hand, whites are always under suspicion for being racist, […]
Katy Wilkerson, Houston, TX. In the deep South, in my experience, racism is pervasive, especially when you talk about poorer and poorer white people (not just men). There truly does still exist a level of social acceptability that is just not OK. I’ve always been extremely disgusted by it, despite being white and having these […]
Chinwe, San Jose, CA.
Lianne Holloway, Joliet, IL.
Diane Tepfer Washington, DC
Katie Foxx, San Jose, CA. I shouldn’t have to feel ashamed of who I am. Because I was born white people automatically assume I’m racist and have had everything given to me and have never bared any hardships myself, and never been a victim of racism. I shouldn’t have to worry about everything that I […]
Gay White, W. Bloomfield, MI. I am a product of the civil rights movement and I watched racism go underground until we had a Black President then it all started to rise to the surface we are only seeing what had always happened the difference is that we are going to have to teach then […]
Brandon Watkins, Clarksville, TX. I am an African American from North Texas. I have lived here all my life. I have never been one to see color nor have I ever been one to judge or stereotype anyone. I love all, and raise my children to love all. Some of the things I see in […]
Christopher McBride New York City, NY Brooklyn Seeing that exhibit really brought about a strong reaction emotionally from myself. As a musician, seeing the visual art side of things was really powerful.
Walter Harris Gavin, Sarasota, FL. Walter Harris Gavin is the author of The Autobiography of Obsidian Dumar, a novel of identity and creator and producer of Race Across America: Inconvenient Truths, Uncomfortable Conversations a web series if visual essays.
Niyah Graves, Siloam Springs, AR.
India Mallory, Dorchester, MA.
Tim Buer USA My maternal family was from the South. The N-word and racial slurs were part of normal conversation. Those old tapes still roll. My thinking has changed a lot for the better, but I’m not there yet.
Courtney Chandler, Roseville, CA. The inherent racism our society exists with is devastating. It’s been more apparent since Trump became president, but that doesn’t mean we can become complacent after he is out office.
Sandi, Brooklyn, NY. I hear this question often by non-black individuals who haven’t experience racism (overtly or covertly) in their lifetime. And how these individual usually turn a blind-eye when incidents of police brutality occur across the USA by ROGUE law enforcement and UNARMED black citizens.
David Murray, Highland Heights, KY. I feel, especially now, that this sums up what is going on in not only our country, but the world. With what is happening with Trump now and what happened leading up to the election and inauguration, it is clear to see that prejudice and discrimination are alive throughout the […]
Joyce Corley, Montrose, CO. As an educator, I witnessed the results of racism that targeted the most vulnerable people in our society.
Jim Solomita, Portland, OR. Enslavement is one of the most evil things a human can do to another. However, no one likes to think of themselves as evil. Therefore, the slave owners needed a way to justify what they were doing. Their solution was to consider Africans as less-than humans – tantamount to animals. Then […]
Selena, San Francisco, CA.
Rebecca Hassine, Palo Alto, CA. With racism being such a prominent issue throughout the world, especially within the United States currently due to the hostile political atmosphere, I always feel as though I need to defend my race. Defending my race, in other words, is like constantly needing to defend my identity. No one should […]
Christopher, Seattle, WA. I was born in the US in the late sixties, I am Caucasian, and I had not even once experienced any form or racism, whatsoever, until I was in my later 20s. I am 50 year old now, and I have only seen that racism against whites in the black community has […]
Rhonda Carr, Tigard, OR. Thank you for encouraging dialogue on the difficult subject of race.
Logan Russell, Grand Rapids, MI. Racism will never go away, but I do not believe that one race is being ill-treated if anything the white race is
Danny Denzler, Wichita Falls, TX. There’s a difference between being realistic and being racist. Police profiling isn’t racist. Look at the facts. Who commits the most crime even while being less than a 1/4 of the population? Personally, I know that not all blacks are bad, just like all whites aren’t good. I will say […]
Kristina Weems, Virginia Beach, VA. In order to implement any real change, we must take off our blinders and cure our cultures ignorance. Love needs to prevail! 🙂
Ngan Lam, Virginia Beach, VA. I learned race, prejudice, racism, stereotype, and developed my own personal biases, but when I look at my child I only see a precious human being and spirit…just him and forget about all that I learned.
R.E.A.L. Talk, High Tech Middle Media Arts, 7th Grade Trailblazer Last year when the police brutality shootings started, my parents talked to me about what happened, they were really surprised and I was to. I wondered why these policemen would do such a thing when we have come so far with racism. I run into […]
R.E.A.L. Talk, High Tech Middle Media Arts, 7th Grade Trailblazer Race and racism isn’t something I’ve had really any experiences with all my life. I don’t know anyone, I’ve never heard or seen anything before videos and everything with this project, and nothing has ever happened towards me. The only experiences I’ve had are from […]
Phyllis l. Johnson, Washington, DC. We as black people still suffer from the vestiges of slavery, like colorism.
Raquel Villalobos, Sacramento, CA. Most assume that all Mexicans are in the U.S. illegally and that is simply not true. We are in the 21st century, it is time to bring racism and stereotypes to an end.
Howard Hilliard, Grapevine, TX. Dialogue can’t be honest about race when the use of the word racism isn’t even defined. People that have different values than racialists are demonized even if they couldn’t care less about about the color of someone’s skin. Not believing in a certain form of multiculturalism has been conflated by the […]
Alexi D., Glendale, AZ.
Robert De Dios, Sanger, CA. I am a high school student who use to get the ” oh you were born here in America?” Back when I was in middle school I often got this question simply because I was intelligent and these group of people never really heard about a Mexican or Latino being […]
Celest, Lakeland, FL. Southeastern University, Understanding Human Diversity Class. For everyone living in today’s society; we can all grow if we are honest with our choices, words, & actions. Honesty; that time when my a group of my white friends and I changed the letters on a church sign to say, “church of the nig,” […]
Hailea Shallock, West Chester, PA.
Jason, Canada. Perhaps the time has come for non-european cultures to address racism and discrimination within their own social groups? The attempt to social ostracize people who disagree with you by classing them as morally inferior is quintessential to fascism and is a tactic heavily relied upon by the regressive left. This blanket attack on […]
Bryan Maloney, Indianapolis, IN. A dirty little secret of institutionalized racism in the USA is that racism is a great way to distract the working class.
An Luu, Houston, TX.
Melissa Lush, Dayton, OH. Can we learn to recognize the racism that lives within us even when we swear it does not? How to reach inside our being to find that spot that requires one to be a hate filled racist?
Donnaven Kroenert, Jacksonville, FL. The Civil War is still being fought in the South, whites are being thrown under the bus everyday, people won’t drop the past, and keep bringing up a subject that just causes more problems.
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 […]
Sheryl Huntsville, AL There are genuinely good people that would discourage racism towards minorities any day, but who unfortunately are extremely ignorant, so their perception of other races are still innacurate and stereotypical. For example, a friend of mine–Black–started working at a law firm. He and his White co-workers were talking about politics one day, […]
Mike R. CA. Just some shower thoughts. It occurred to me that while I am fully aware that most people really DGAF, the mass proliferation of anti-white sentiments online bonded with the few personal experiences I’ve had. I now nearly suffer anxiety attacks when I have to deal with large numbers of “non-whites”, not because […]
Emily Bagnell, West Long Branch, NJ. Monmouth University
Krystle Ruggiero, West Long Branch, NJ. Monmouth University
Tia Cunningham, Charlotte, NC. I love people & our world. I hate corrupt systems. Due to my love of humanity, I am compelled to speak up against injustices throughput the world.
Ashley Crean, West Long Branch, NJ. Monmouth University
Julia, Monmouth University
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, […]
Raul, Long Branch, NJ. Monmouth University In my opinion, racism is a Serious sometimes curable mental disease. I believe like many diseases, if caught early, it can be cured. Unfortunately, many times the disease remains dormant throughout life or suppressed by the perspectives of society manifesting itself only behind closed doors. The disease continues to […]
Anna Berch-Norton, Pittsburgh, PA. Yeah, when white guys call their friends “my nigga” and people say to their Vietnamese friend, “it’s funny cause you’re Asian”, that doesn’t mean that we’re totally over that whole racism thing. It means that people are subscribing to the hipster theory of racism that you can say really racist, disgusting […]
Heather Simms, Suffolk, VA. Something that has bothered me throughout the years is the immediate perception because I am a middle class white individual that I automatically have some sort of racism integrated into my DNA. I respect and love everyone regardless of color, ethnicity or appearance. Racism is a concern in our society but […]
Anonymous, Long Branch, NJ. Monmouth University In my opinion, racism is a Serious sometimes curable mental disease. I believe like many diseases, if caught early, it can be cured. Unfortunately, many times the disease remains dormant throughout life or suppressed by the perspectives of society manifesting itself only behind closed doors. The disease continues to […]
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 […]
Bonny Hanan Cottonwood, AZ I am not a racist and I know this sounds bad. However, I grew up in a very small town that was largely controlled by racism even in the recent past. It was so bad that Black people didn’t live here for very long when they did try to move in. […]
Erin, MN. Racism isn’t in our curriculum, it’s not a lesson taught by chalkboards and worksheets. However it is learned. Yes, in school but also at home. It is taught through culture, through actions. This problem cannot be solved by a student’s eraser or a teacher’s pen.
Michelle, Rochester, NY. My liberal white colleagues have long conversations about the problems with racism in American. They have interesting ideas about solutions to the problem, but they rarely listen to the brown people in the room. Is this a white savior problem?
Gelila Selassie, Charleston, SC. I pray that my hometown will stop racism before it results in body bags.
Jennifer Arnold, Radford, VA. We are one. I am colorblind. Racism is done; At least in my mind.
Ugo, Spencer, WV. Racism is a problem, I will admit that, but I also think that if black people don’t want to be called the N word by white people, then STOP CALLING EACH OTHER IT. I constantly hear black people throwing the word around to each other, but then suddenly a white person says […]
Darrell James, Canal Winchester, OH. Racism is about hatred and ignorance!!!
Allie Herb, Akron, OH. Living in the area that I do, I have experienced a lot of racism. Whether it be in Akron, or have heard about it in the Cleveland area. It’s a never ending battle.
Anonymous, Knoxville, TN. I’m from the Mountain South, where white privilege and racism take on a range of meanings outside the mainstream. I’ve heard our regional identity described as a kind of “otherized whiteness,” and I think that’s about right. Whatever else we were, we always knew our whiteness was the wrong kind. That’s what […]
Johnson, USA. I am sick to death of people trying to pretend like there aren’t legitimate reasons for racism. Not always, but they are there. I was raised not to be racist and people say racism is a learned behavior…yeah…I learned it myself from being around blacks. Black people can’t see it like everyone else […]
Calli, Portland, OR.
Glenn Allen Campbell, St. Louis, MO. I always make a point to treat everybody with kindness and courtesy but it is rarely reciprocated by blacks. Yet the mainstream media tells me l am a racist. This is real I am not imagining this.
Liz Miller, Las Cruces, NM. I am a white woman grappling with my own racism.
Javier, Roma, TX. I grew up in a little town in Mexico, near the border with the US, there was not as much cultural or racial differences as bigger cities have. I know that racism exists in Mexico, because I have read articles where they explain how Mexican people discriminate people who they consider Indians, […]
Rachel Matheson, Bethesda, MD. I’m a member of Operation Understanding DC (OUDC) Class 20.
Lucian Hand, Bozeman, MT. To those of us who deplore racism, “racist” is a deeply offensive epithet – use such powerful words with discretion.
Jamie Thompson, Palo, IA.
Kade Ferris, Belcourt, ND.
Benjamin Macedo, Mountain View, CA. Racism is largly due to the lack of trust amongst people. This feeling unfortunately tends to be distributed through media by presenting the negative relationships which encourage prejudice behavior.
REPOST: AtlanticLIVE online – May 20, 2015 Atlantic national correspondent Ta-Nehisi Coates and NPR host and special correspondent Michele Norris have a conversation about Norris’s Race Card Project, Coates’s noteworthy Atlantic cover story, “The Case for Reparations,” and how the conversation about race has evolved in the past year. See more from New York Ideas 2015: […]
REPOST Lannan.org April 15, 2015, Ta-Nehisi Coates, writer, journalist, and educator, is also a senior editor for The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues. His recent piece titled The Case for Reparations intricately and provocatively traces the history of racism in the United States from slavery to recent examples of housing discrimination. The […]
Rita Burch St. Paul, MN Submitted via twitter: @reetstweets
Sarah Brush, Delaware, OH. I have friends that are of other races and I don’t care about their skin tone or how they look. I look deeper than that. The term race is constantly brought up when talking about racism. I don’t think race truly exists. Yes people have different skin tones. But we are […]
Haley, Memphis, TN.
Connie O’Murray, Castle Rock, CO. Everyone I know is one shade of brown or another. I have never understood racism.
James Rick, Oceanside, CA.
Anonymous London (studying in Chapel Hill)
Christopher Oneill, Mechanicsburg, PA. I don’t know what it’s like to have people hate or judge me because of my race, but I think I can at least relate.
Amanda Bechler, Van Dyne, WI.
Michelle Brooks, Bay Area, CA.
Rochelle Cook, USA.
Lorain Henderson, Dunwoody, GA.
Jamie-Claire Chau, Philadelphia, PA. We have reached a dilemma in our fight for justice. How can we intentionally battle racism without being racist? We think reconciliation is embracing people because of their race rather than despite of their race. I constantly question whether I have what I have and am where I am because I […]
Giovanna, Atlanta, GA. I am a second generation American Jew (meaning none of my family members ever owned another human being) I was raised to treat everyone for who they are – not outward appearance – I just moved to the south and have experienced something entirely different. In a city full of educated, eloquent […]
Andrew Shie, Davenport, IA.
Julia Pichler, Salem, OR. Picture Source: http://turnlol.com/images/2012/10/touhou-flandre-scarlet-bad-apple-fresh-hd-wallpaper-400×250.jpg
Keith Rhodes, Albany, NY. We can make this world a better place for all people one person at a time. Know that your actions become your qualities. Perform the actions that you wish to be the qualities of all who observe you.
Susan Crandall, Albuquerque, NM. I was infected with racism early breathing it in almost with my first breath. I was injected with racism early along with my immunizations, this one, though, making me prone to its infection, instead of immune. Although my mother tried to teach me otherwise, racism lives in the voice floating up […]
Annette Harris, Upper Marlboro, MD.
Bob Johnson, Colverdale, CA. It saddens me to see so may people using accusations of racism against them as an excuse not to take responsibility for their own actions and lives. You cannot improve yourself by hating or blaming others. Of all the races, whites are by far the most conscious and careful about not […]
Johnny V. Miller, Syracuse, NY.
Dana Tuohey, Syracuse, NY. Community Member I believe that racism is more harmful now to society than ever. I believe this is so because we have convinced ourselves that slavery and the civil rights movements were “victories” for the minorities of our society and we no longer owe it to the other races to continue […]
Barry Irving, Syracuse, NY. …white people are bred from the notion color superiority and first privilege. They don’t see others as equal and that is a distortion that is age old. So when addressing race, the new descendants of old Racism think that they have no blame whatsoever. Even though Their social attitudes are in […]
Vicki R. Brackens, North Syracuse, NY. Community Member
Robert L. Hewitt Sr., Chambersburg, PA.
Liz Wright, Englewood, CO.
Alex Small, Norchich, VT.
Malcom, USA. Racism is bad and we should stop it in fact we WILL stop it!
Sanpreet Samra, Canada. Awareness and understanding are the way to fight racsim and this is done by educating everyone.
Kalie Marsicsno, Hanover, NH. I grew up with the misinformation that the civil rights movement had ended successfully, rather than learning that racism and systematic oppression still dominates our daily life.
Paul Young, Hanover, NH.
We are excited to share our partnership with PBS to capture the reactions from “AMERICA AFTER FERGUSON” — a PBS television special moderated by Gwen Ifill. This PBS town hall meeting, moderated by PBS NEWSHOUR co-anchor and managing editor Gwen Ifill, explores the many issues brought into public discourse in the wake of Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson, […]
Mike Padden, Chicago, IL. The conversation would be much if improved if the inflammatory and innacurate term “racism” were substituted with the much more accurate and potentially productive term “prejudice”.
Lawrence Cohen, Long Beach, CA.
Kathleen E Lo Pinto Vignolini, Long Branch, NJ. No other group, except maybe the Jews, have had such a long period of discrimination against them. From Slavery, to post Civil war (the North won the battle, but lost the war!) of Jim Crow, “separate but equal” led to Segregation both de facto & legalized, all […]
