Race constructed to keep us separated
Adrian Headley,
Roslindale, MA.
Thanks for the wall!
I am more than religion requires
Hannah Drillings,
Chester, NY
I am ethically an Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jew, but have always felt disconnected from my religion. growing up in an orthodox synagogue, the women were separated from the men, and shunted to the back of the room. I never felt seen or heard as a person. as an adult, I want to be understood as only myself, culturally and ethnically Jewish, but not religious.
Holy Cow! It’s a black person!
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. Recently however that has begun to change. As a result I have seen a few black people around town. Since this is new to me I have a tendency to stare. I don’t mean to but it is actually a culture shock to me. I always feel guilty about it later. The truth is my little town and I have been so separated from black people that I honest to god have never even had the opportunity to try to get to know any of them. If you’re one of the people I stared at I’m sorry! I swear I didn’t mean anything by it!
Sometimes I forget I’m not white
Darshi Balasuriya
Long Beach, CA
I spend my days mostly in Orange County California. I live in this white world and often see myself in the reflection of those whom I love and enjoy the company of. I rarely think about color of skin or race. But occasionally I encounter treatment from others that doesn’t align with my world view. This is when the jarrign happens and forces me to see myself from the outsider’s point of view. Yes, my skin is brown, I look typically south asian. I am not white. they are not like me on the outside. We are suddenly separated from the color of our skin rather than that which I see when I look into my husband’s beautiful eyes.
Still separate, still unequal! CHANGE NOW
Sophie Dover
Jamaica Plain, MA
Despite all the gains we have made as a country (which people love to harp on) – a harsh reality still exists for people of color and low income individuals across the nation. Schools and neighborhoods still remain separated by race and income. More money is funneled into schools serving better-off, white communities while lower income communities of color suffer with worse quality education and worse educational outcomes as a result. Let us re-examine our national rhetoric surrounding race, from – “well, Obama’s president, so anything’s possible!” to “Obama’s president, so why is this still so hard?”
