white neighborhood Archives - The Race Card Project

Mainly white neighborhood, racism is normalized

August 26, 2024 Bondurant, High School, IA, joke, normalized, racism, slur, whit edemographics, white neighborhood

Eden Coy,
Bondurant, IA

I am from an area with high white demographics. In my high school, there is a small percentage of people of color. Often, walking through the halls at school I hear slurs used in everyday conversation. When a person makes a racist joke, many laugh and encourage them. There have been incidents of students doing blackface and mocking people of other communities. However, my school does little to discourage these actions. It is seen as kids just being kids. If one were to comment on the disrespectful nature of people’s actions, they would be brushed off as “it’s only a joke.” I believe racism should not be turned into a joke, and it is not ethical to bully other cultures. The normalization of racism in my community creates a negative environment. I am ashamed to hold any relation with my peers.

Will they ask me or assume?

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 adapt, ask, assume, biracial, Hillary Buren, Hispanic, Kansas City, mistaken, MO, what are you, white neighborhood

Hillary Buren,
Kansas City, MO.

As a biracial women growing up in am almost entirely white community I have adapted to addressing my racial ambiguity (I am most commonly mistaken as Hispanic but even have been confused for as Indian) and usually I resort to humor when it comes to this topic. However it never ceases to amaze me how uncomfortable it is for people when they cannot classify me right away. I run into 2 types of people those who just ask and those who assume…on the rarer occasion I met those who allow me to bring it up in conversation… and those are the people who earn my trust the quickest.

“A Teacher Who Looks Like Me”

December 1, 2022December 1, 2022 being black, CA, disney, Marvel, Meghen, neighborhood, questions, stories, white neighborhood

Meghen,
CA

I’ve been babysitting for my current family for about a year and a half now, and I’ve heard of and been present for stories in that time on being Black in a predominantly white neighborhood. One of the first and better chats was my 10 year-old getting excited about moving as she would have a chance at a teacher who looks like her. Being a white woman primarily taught by white women and men growing up, I’d never experienced how it might have felt to not have had others outside my family look like me in my formative years. She, her mother, and I have also had conversations about representation in Marvel and Disney films, the questions/stares both daughters get when they braid their hair, and many more.

Calling me white is not compliment

June 16, 2020June 16, 2020 act black, act white, black male, Chappell Watkins, compliment, IN, Indianapolis, white, white neighborhood

Chappell Watkins,
Indianapolis, IN.

I’m a 47 year old black male I’ve grown up in all white neighborhoods, and over the years I’ve had multiple white friends tell me I’m not black I’m white as if it were a compliment. My question is if you think calling me white is a compliment, what do you think of being Black ?

What white neighborhood has MLK high?

January 20, 2020January 20, 2020 atlanta, Black History Month, black neighborhood, GA, High School, Karen Gold, Missoula, MLK, Montana, ProPublica, School USA, Six Word Stories on Education, USA, white neighborhood

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 high schools. Most of those years were in over 99% black schools. A lot of our black schools have been given “Black History Month” names like GW Carver, Booker T. Washington and Benjamin Banneker. Amazingly, these names only appear in black neighborhoods. This isn’t the biggest issue or the second-biggest either. but it tells us something, and it tells all those children something. We need to think about what that message is.

White country, white privilege, yet minority

February 22, 2019February 22, 2019 1970's, Asian Immigrants, Australia, blonde hair, blue eyes, Emily Carter, identify, MA, Minority, Needham, trapped, two worlds, White country, white neighborhood, white privilege

Emily Carter,
Needham, MA.

I am un-mistakenly white. I have blonde hair, blue eyes, grew up in a neighbourhood full of other white people, and had teachers who were all white. I have an name that is unmistakably white and very easy to pronounce, yet in a classroom filled with children with difficult sounding, Chinese and Asian names, it was my name not there’s which was always the stumbling block.

I went to school with and was solely friends with 1st or 2nd generation Asian Immigrants. They were elite academic schools, that were 99% people from Asian descent, who had parents who were extremely serious about school, and me. While I was also very serious about school, there were so many bridges that I couldn’t cross, my parents were considerably less strict than most of my friends, all of my friends went to the same academic centres after school, they ate different food, they went to different places, and no one identified with or understood my cultural heritage. I was effectively a minority in a country which was 90% white.

I was raised in Australia, a country that up until the 1970’s had an immigration policy known as the “White Australia Policy” and so, especially in older generations, there is very little racial diversity. and as such many people in my neighbourhood, and the Australia community at large, had deeply negative views of my schools, and my friends, thinking that we were “unnatural” and used methods that were “cheating” at school and on important country-wide tests. My parents often asked me and encouraged me to find friends who I had more in common with or shared my values. I couldn’t bring friends home without having theme endure an onslaught of difficult questions.

I found myself trapped between two worlds. While I knew I had significant advantages being and looking white, I often felt like I wanted to be of an Asian heritage like my friends, so I could fit in. Yet I knew that I had no claim, and no real sense of what Asian heritage actually was, and felt extremely guilty knowing only some of the disadvantages that my friends faced. When I moved to the United States to study, and found myself for the first time surrounded by white people, I found that I identified very little with my own heritage, and fit in even less. Even though it should be simple, I still don’t know what to define my race as.

Let them stare, it doesn’t matter

January 14, 2019January 14, 2019 colorblind, divide, first experience, interracial dating, it doesn't matter, judgemental, let them stare, MA, Phillipston, Samantha Charter, small town, story, understand, white neighborhood

Samantha Charter,
Phillipston, MA.

My six words may seem a little odd until you hear the story behind them. I am white and my boyfriend is not. I grew up in a small predominantly white town and because of this the few non white families in town tended to stick out a little. No one made a huge deal of it especially my parents we were raised not to see race or color as an issue because they themselves did not. It was not until I got older and met my first non white boyfriend that it became an issue, not for us so much as everyone else it seemed. My friends and family were fine with the fact he wasn’t white but at times when he would visit me and we would go out we received looks and judgmental stares from people around the area. I never noticed because for me it was home I never imagined the area I lived in and loved would be like that until he started pointing it out to me. It bothered me and it still does but I have come to realize that its their problem not ours and whats more important is how much we love each other not what others think.

Truthfully him being my first non white boyfriend has also opened up a whole other world for me. at times it feels like there is an imaginary divide between us when things such as ferguson or baltimore happen but at the same time I begin to understand the other side of the story and it leads to some very interesting debates between the two of us.

I am always the Black bestfriend

November 19, 2018February 21, 2021 Albany, black friend, first experience, NY, Roslyn Jefferson, white city, white neighborhood

Roslyn Jefferson,
Albany, NY.

I grew up in a majority white city, so this was the story of my life! When younger, didn’t know how to address racial issues or topics, when they popped up, with my white friends. Thank goodness I feel comfortable with that now!

Yes!! My name means White in spanish!!

August 27, 2018August 28, 2018 ashamed, Blanca, Blanca Soto, CA, CBU HIS 311, Hemet, name, Spanish, white, white neighborhood

Blanca Soto,
Hemet, CA.

I grew up in a community that was composed of mostly white people. Every time someone would ask my name they would go on to say doesn’t that mean white? Yes! I would reply. Mostly likely laughs would follow and the oh so unique question of “why would your parents name you after a color? Those experiences made me ashamed of my name but as I got older I realized my name means White in Spanish and I love it!!-CBU HIS 311

Let’s get over our white selves.

March 27, 2018 affordable housing, awkward, black friends, Christine Pado, dark skin, discomfort, IL, live, moved, shock, Third Lake, United Nations, white, white neighborhood

Christine Pado,
Third Lake, IL.

Yeah – so, I’m white and I live in a mostly white neighborhood. We moved out here for affordable housing. Before that I lived in area that seemed like a mini United Nations. It was a shock moving out here but now I guess I’m used to it. Now and then I will see a darker skinned person at a parade or a meeting or event and it suddenly strikes me JUST HOW WHITE this place is and wonder just how awkward is that for the few black friends I have. Do I feel some discomfort when suddenly I’m the obvious minority? Yeah. Hmmm. Don’t love that about myself. Confronting that discomfort is what’s necessary though – not bitching that I can’t be comfortable.

Gaining knowledge to break the cycle

August 15, 2017 cycle, first experience, Japan, learn, racial slurs, Regina Hatten, white neighborhood

Regina Hatten,
Japan.

I grew up in a predominantly white area with family who used racial slurs regularly and racially profiled all those who were different. As an adult I learned how wrong they were and I don’t want that to be who I am.

Be mighty whitey not humble honkey

April 25, 2017April 25, 2017 Baltimore, black neighborhood, dangerous, M, neighborhood, Todd Johnston, white neighborhood

Todd Johnston,
Baltimore, MD.

Tired of the violence and racism towards productive working white folks that gets swept under rug and buried by the media. Why am I racist for wanting the same respect as blacks, it’s ok for blacks to preach and say black power yet I’m scrutinized for just writing this. Recent web video shows blacks beating up a white mother and child on a playground,,,nothing on news? It’s one of a daily trend of black on white attacks that go unheard of because the liberal media CHOOSE not to show the public the reality of our society. Honestly, face it, walking thru the black neighborhoods in Baltimore at night is 100xs more dangerous than walking thru a white neighborhood.

The difference between realism and racism.

March 21, 2017 alone, attitude, black neighborhood, culture, Danny Denzler, difference, hip hop, police, population, profile, racism, Racist, realism, rude people, TX, walk home, white neighborhood, Wichita Falls

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 that not all black people I’ve been around have been rude, but most rude people I’ve been around have been black. I believe that their hip hop culture breeds their attitude and behavior. They need to change things from within and stop playing the race card. That’s how race relations will improve. I’ll end with a question to ponder…. if your daughter was forced to walk home alone at night and could walk through a black neighborhood or a white neighborhood, which one should she choose?

Change must come from within you

December 14, 2016December 14, 2016 anonymous, change, OR, Portland, white neighborhood, within

Anonymous,
Portland, OR.

Honestly, the change had to come from within. I grew up in a very white area and my parents were raised in a way that was unacceptable and I had to change myself and their views. So I say, it comes from within because if you truly believe things should change, it’s inside you, you can change, if you want to. It’s a matter of thinking, believing, feeling and being.

Half black, nobody knows or cares

December 24, 2015 CA, care, discrimination, ethnic, Half, half black, integrate, look white, Newport Coast, nobody knows, other, Peter Nanula, racial, racial judgements, white neighborhood

Peter Nanula,
Newport Coast, CA.

I look white and was raised in mostly white areas, so no one knows I am half-black. Because they don’t know, they don’t make racial judgments. This feels hopeful – as we inter-marry (like my parents did) and integrate our society, bias and discrimination go away over time. We all become partly racial or ethnic, and then no one is “other” anymore.

You talk white. Where you from?

June 24, 2015June 26, 2015 1987, adapt, Chicago, IL, Kelli Watson, South-side, speak proper, suburb, West Side, white neighborhood, you talk like a white girl

Kelli Watson,
Chicago, IL.

I grew up in a predominately white suburb in Chicago. We were the first black family to move to my block in 1987 and one of a handful in the school district. Around the age of 10 or so, I started to get this question over and over, “you talk white. Where are you from?” And it always came from other black folks … of all ages. The second I opened my mouth–whether I needed my sandwich dressed at Subway or was just shooting the breeze with other people–I’d get some variation of “you speak proper” or “you’re really articulate, always followed by where are you from.

My dad grew up on the West Side of Chicago, my mom on the South Side. I didn’t speak any differently than they did. I found myself getting more and more upset over the years. I knew who I was and was proud of being me, a young African American girl with a great family a great education. I always told people that I speak like an educated individual. And just as people have regional accesnts, I speak no differently than everyone else around me. What saddened me was that so many black people were adopting stereotypes suggesting “proper, educated or articulate” could only be associated with whiteness, and further, a perceived hatred for who I was.

Junior High was perhaps the worst. The beginnings of white flight started to take place in my town. Black families from the city were moving in and white families were moving out. And there was some clear culture shock. On nearly a daily basis I was called an Oreo (black on the outside, white on the inside). The new kids were telling me that I not only spoke white, but wanted to BE white. And I was having a WTF moment each day. To adapt, one of the black girls I grew up with started changing to connect with the kids, even introducing me as mixed. “That’s Kelli. She’s mixed,” she told the new girl boarding the school bus. The new kid couldn’t believe it. This chocolate brown girl is half white? “Really?” she asked. “No, she just acts white.” That field trip ended with a trip to Dairy Queen where I ordered my favorite…an Oreo blizzard. And you can only imagine the response that elicited. I decided to keep my mouth shut around them, so they didn’t have anything to talk about.

I later signed up to do our school’s daily radio announcements and was pretty good at it. I realized that there was power in public speaking and that I wouldn’t let anyone silence me again. After three years of being picked on, I grew the courage to stick up for myself. Interestingly, by high school, many of those girls apologized. I went on to study broadcast journalism and became a TV news reporter before transitioning into corporate communications.

Those experiences shaped who I am and I think about them often. Words have so much power, and the right message can change mindsets—even unconscious ones. However, you can’t impact positive change by being silent.

Northern Mother Southern Father meet middle

June 12, 2015 Brookeland, cleaning lady, father, middle, mother, northern, Sandra Hart, South, southern, TX, white neighborhood

Sandra Hart,
Brookeland, TX.

This is an amazing thing to do. Growing up in the South in a white household with a black cleaning lady I felt there was more to the story. But no one would tell me anything or even answer me truthfully. I felt that Emma on orders from my mom would only answer with what she felt we wanted to hear. I feel we all are equal…always have.

Changed my name to hide from you

May 7, 2015 60's, caucasian, hide, mixed, name, what's in a name, white neighborhood

Yolanda Brantley,
Minneapolis, MN.

Growing up as a mixed race child in a predominantly white neighborhood in the ’60’s was scarring. I knew I could appear as only “Caucasian” but my name gave me away. So I changed it to hide from everyone.

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