Molly Woodbury,
North St. Paul, MN
I am White. That’s my race. I’m a white woman in America. I’m upper middle class. I am privileged. When I think about race I think about the groups of people. I normally think of it on a very base level. Just groupings of people. And I fit into the group of white people. When I think of the white people I think of people who are pale. Polish people, Irish people, German people, French people, Russian people, Portuguese people, and the list could go on. I am not including American people because the Americas are so diverse. There are all kinds and colors of people in America. Because ethnicity and race are different; I’m just white. If we were talking ethnicity I’m way more than just white. I’m a little Polish, German, Nomadic Irish more known as Mincéirs or Pavees, and probably more that I don’t know. But thats not race. So when I think about race I think about all the people I’m like. And when I think about other races I think about all the other people who have their own people. That’s just the first chunk of the iceburg, race is ingrained in me and the people around me.
I titled my race card “Wait, am I crying crocodile tears?” because I know I’m privileged, but I see the injustice in our world. And sometimes I feel bad that I’m not going through that. Not that I am “jealous” or something silly like that. But I mean that I know that I will never have to go through the things that POC do. I know that I have things easier. I’ve never been pulled over by a cop, nor have I been in the car while my family gets pulled over. I’ve never been called a slur. I’ve never been denied service or help at a store. I’ve experienced police brutality, but I have seen these things. I try to stay well informed, so I see a lot of what happens in the world. When George Floyd was murdered just miles away from me. I was disgusted by very police that my community was supposed to trust. And now with Ice in my own neighbourhood I hate it. I’m white and I stand with my community that is being hurt. But Ice isn’t going after me? Is it wrong for me to cry. Is it wrong for me to feel scared. Sometimes I feel like I shouldn’t be crying because I don’t go through the things I’m crying about. But I think the difference between me and people who cry real crocodile tears is that I truly care about the things I am crying for. I am crying in anger for the the POC that are being targeted because of their race. I know I’m white, I know I’m privileged, and I know I can use my privilege to fight for the people who will be killed if they try to fight.
So I sometimes feel guilty about my race but then I know that can use my race to join with other races, as the human race. Race does not define anyone. I don’t want it to define me and I don’t want it to cause me to try and define anyone because of their race.
