National news, racism, and my kid
I'm a white woman. If you were given the task of describing my skin tone, words like "florescent" and "bleach-white" would be on the list. My "people" are from England, Wales and Ireland. Needless to say, racism isn't something I have ever personally faced. The only time I could even remotely imagine that I was the victim of racism is a story I tell with a laugh, rather than with anger. Do you want me to tell it? Of course you do.
When I graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology I had a little trouble finding someone to hire me. As it turns out, a bachelor's degree in psychology is only good for applying to graduate school. Anyway, during the job search process I applied just about everywhere. I even got so desperate that I used a job search company so they could submit my resume to job openings. I actually got an interview through the efforts of that job search company. There was a medium-security men's prison that was about 45-minutes away from where I lived. They were hiring for substance abuse counselors. As a 5'1" tall 22 year old with no substance abuse experience, I was certain it would be a successful interview. When I arrived and throughout the interview, the fine folks at the prison continued to give me strange looks. Several times throughout the interview they came back to questions about the extra-curricular activities I participated in during college. That seemed strange, but I was new to interviewing and wasn't sure how abnormal it was. As it turned out, the second page of someone else's resume got stapled to the first page of my resume. That second page was full of African American clubs and organizations. Needless to say, they were mighty surprised when a 22-year old, florescent midget walked into the interview. And it goes without saying that I was not offered the job.
I guess you could say that was discrimination based on race.
This year in the national news has really made me keenly aware of racism. It seems that every week there is some terrible tragedy related to race in America. One week it is riots over the handling of a white police officer shooting a Black suspect. The next week it is a white police officer dragging a Black teenager to the ground and placing his knees on her back. The week after that it is a white lunatic opening fire on a Bible study at an African American church.
Race is all over the news. It is impossible to miss the fact that America is still a place where the color of your skin matters -- and can have deadly consequences.
And as the mother of a beautiful bi-racial daughter the national news has me worried. Will it someday be my sweet daughter who is wrongfully accused of a crime just because she is the one in the room with brown skin? Will I get an awful call someday that my daughter was killed because she pulled her sweatshirt hood on during a cold day? Will my daughter someday be the one who is in the line of fire while studying the Bible with her friends?
The national news has me worried about what my daughter might be facing in our own community that I haven't noticed. Is she missing out on opportunities because of her skin color? Is she being overlooked by kids in her class because her appearance is different?
I have no answers for this subject, but I do know my Mom Radar is on and I am keenly watching how the community treats my daughter.
When I graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology I had a little trouble finding someone to hire me. As it turns out, a bachelor's degree in psychology is only good for applying to graduate school. Anyway, during the job search process I applied just about everywhere. I even got so desperate that I used a job search company so they could submit my resume to job openings. I actually got an interview through the efforts of that job search company. There was a medium-security men's prison that was about 45-minutes away from where I lived. They were hiring for substance abuse counselors. As a 5'1" tall 22 year old with no substance abuse experience, I was certain it would be a successful interview. When I arrived and throughout the interview, the fine folks at the prison continued to give me strange looks. Several times throughout the interview they came back to questions about the extra-curricular activities I participated in during college. That seemed strange, but I was new to interviewing and wasn't sure how abnormal it was. As it turned out, the second page of someone else's resume got stapled to the first page of my resume. That second page was full of African American clubs and organizations. Needless to say, they were mighty surprised when a 22-year old, florescent midget walked into the interview. And it goes without saying that I was not offered the job.
I guess you could say that was discrimination based on race.
This year in the national news has really made me keenly aware of racism. It seems that every week there is some terrible tragedy related to race in America. One week it is riots over the handling of a white police officer shooting a Black suspect. The next week it is a white police officer dragging a Black teenager to the ground and placing his knees on her back. The week after that it is a white lunatic opening fire on a Bible study at an African American church.
Race is all over the news. It is impossible to miss the fact that America is still a place where the color of your skin matters -- and can have deadly consequences.
And as the mother of a beautiful bi-racial daughter the national news has me worried. Will it someday be my sweet daughter who is wrongfully accused of a crime just because she is the one in the room with brown skin? Will I get an awful call someday that my daughter was killed because she pulled her sweatshirt hood on during a cold day? Will my daughter someday be the one who is in the line of fire while studying the Bible with her friends?
The national news has me worried about what my daughter might be facing in our own community that I haven't noticed. Is she missing out on opportunities because of her skin color? Is she being overlooked by kids in her class because her appearance is different?
I have no answers for this subject, but I do know my Mom Radar is on and I am keenly watching how the community treats my daughter.
Comments
Post a Comment