When I Knew I Had No Support
So let me tell you a little story from my past. Just for some background -
Im mixed race (white, black, hispanic) I was adopted into a white family, in a small white town. I always had friends to play with growing up. Race never became an issue until highschool - when after Hurricane Katrina, lots of black families from the affected areas moved to the area where I lived (in the north - cheap housing, great schools). So the difference between me and the other 5 black kids became apparent very quickly....especially in the way we talked....
MY STORY
At a friends birthday party, Junior year of high school, my friends and I and some acquaintances from school gathered to play a party game. A word game.
Everything was fun, until Elizabeth - who I had known since I was a little girl - said that all black people were bad and thieves....BOOM
Now, I'd known this girl my whole life, we didnt hang out, but for a time in elementary school we were friends. Our older brothers knew each other. We played at each others houses. We werent thieves....We were nice :(
But all of a sudden, because of my skin - I was bad.
I tried to speak up and defend myself - "What do you mean?"
She ignored me. Everyone did. Even my best friend Cassandra who sat across from me in the circle. No one said a word - not one "that's not nice" or "come on don't be mean" or "Catplum is right there...why would you say that!?!"
NOTHING FROM NO ONE....
I got up and left the party and drove home in tears.
You never know whos a racist until they say some shit. And you never know who supports you, until they see something not right and decide to look away and ignore it.
Trust Issues +100