I don't wanna be a stereotype
So, I heard one of the most dissapointing comments I've ever heard this weekend by one of my good friends. After the wedding, we decided to go out for drinks in atl. We're driving on the highway and there's a nice, black, SUV riding next to us and it has rims on it. They weren't obnoxious like most of the ones I see, and it was on a nice car too. Someone said, "look at them rims!"....silence...."they're probably black"
wow. I went off on her about how that's racist and stereotypical, and her response? "you know what? I don't really care"
wow. So, that pretty much ruined my night and I have been thinking about it all night and all day today. It just blows my mind that someone can say something so derogatory about an entire race of people. Who does she think she is? And the fact that she knows she said something derogatory and doesn't care just blows my mind. This is the same girl that will start a story by saying, yea we were going to go here but there were these sketchy black people outside so we left. OK. what were they doing that was so sketchy? Was it the fact that they were black that led you to believe you were in danger?
Being in the south where I feel like I've been time-warped 50 years, I try so hard not to be a stereotype. I don't want to be the rich white girl who gets anything she wants. I don't want to ever get used to some of the comments I hear on a daily basis. But what am I doing to change anything? Most of my friends at school are white or european and I see them on a daily basis as a housemate, teammate, or classmate. I need to stay cordial with these people even when sometimes I wish I could just say, I don't want to have anything to do with you. When I graduate, most likely I will leave this area. A lot of it has to do with the backwards thinking that goes on here. I feel like I'm helping the problem by leaving by taking the easy way out. "They're not like me so I'm going to go back to where I'm comfortable". But how is the thinking ever going to change?
It's so strange how different races isolate themselves here. You can literally see the break-up of races just by walking around campus. It just adds to the misunderstandings people have about one another. My friend just sees a group of African Americans and it just adds to her perception of the stereotype. I'm so frustrated with her and with everyone else here. I hate the separation and I hate the misconceptions that I hear about African Americans and Latin Americans as well. I hate the accents and the impersonations and the jokes. I can't stand the southern pride and the "all-american" attitude. I want diversity, I want a change, and I don't want to be a stereotype.
wow. I went off on her about how that's racist and stereotypical, and her response? "you know what? I don't really care"
wow. So, that pretty much ruined my night and I have been thinking about it all night and all day today. It just blows my mind that someone can say something so derogatory about an entire race of people. Who does she think she is? And the fact that she knows she said something derogatory and doesn't care just blows my mind. This is the same girl that will start a story by saying, yea we were going to go here but there were these sketchy black people outside so we left. OK. what were they doing that was so sketchy? Was it the fact that they were black that led you to believe you were in danger?
Being in the south where I feel like I've been time-warped 50 years, I try so hard not to be a stereotype. I don't want to be the rich white girl who gets anything she wants. I don't want to ever get used to some of the comments I hear on a daily basis. But what am I doing to change anything? Most of my friends at school are white or european and I see them on a daily basis as a housemate, teammate, or classmate. I need to stay cordial with these people even when sometimes I wish I could just say, I don't want to have anything to do with you. When I graduate, most likely I will leave this area. A lot of it has to do with the backwards thinking that goes on here. I feel like I'm helping the problem by leaving by taking the easy way out. "They're not like me so I'm going to go back to where I'm comfortable". But how is the thinking ever going to change?
It's so strange how different races isolate themselves here. You can literally see the break-up of races just by walking around campus. It just adds to the misunderstandings people have about one another. My friend just sees a group of African Americans and it just adds to her perception of the stereotype. I'm so frustrated with her and with everyone else here. I hate the separation and I hate the misconceptions that I hear about African Americans and Latin Americans as well. I hate the accents and the impersonations and the jokes. I can't stand the southern pride and the "all-american" attitude. I want diversity, I want a change, and I don't want to be a stereotype.
posted by Ali Piacente at 5:09 PM
1 Comments:
I felt, heard and saw similar things in 4 years down South. I will say that, thankfully, most of my close friends were not like that (especially the European tennis players) but I did hear it every now and then. It was probably around me a lot more often but I became close-minded and closed-eared to it because it made me very uncomfortable.
Growing up around here is a completely different environment than many places-- save places like NYC or LA and bigger cities I would imagine that are similar to DC. It's culturally diversified in many social aspects from race, religion, financial background, ethniticity, class, etc.
We also have the added fact that we come from a politically-infused city where being politically correct can make or break whether you're re-elected.
You know, come to think of it, I hate to steal or borrow from an idea but this is a good blog topic. I'll end this by agreeing with you 100 percent, but don't feel like you're running away from the issue by leaving after graduation.
It's not an opinion-- no matter how the majority or the minority of it-- that will unlikely change 180 degrees in the near future because it's so deep-rooted. Fortunately, not everyone is like that and we have to remember that. If we, as Northerners, classified "the South" as being a certain way, aren't we doing the same thing to them?
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