I remember the first time my mother took me to get my hair straightened. I clenched her hand as we walked into the salon. Beautiful women lined every station, bickering about their husbands, gossiping about neighbors, all managing to stay intertwined in every conversation. It was rapid; it was raw, it made me smile. I remember the smell, the fetid ooze of creams wafting over the stations.…
When I was in six grade, my PE coach made it clear to me that I wasn't alone, and I could accomplish anything I put the time and effort into. He was the football coach for Atascocita middle school. An African American in his late 20s, very friendly, and Guidable when it came to his students. On the first day of school as a new student with no knowledge of the language, I was extremely terrified to transform from speaking different language, and having a similar set of friends into an inexperienced world and dissimilar students who I had absolutely nothing in common with. Fortunately, I had my brother as a personal translator throughout the year.…
As a child growing up in Rhode Island, the smallest state in the Union, the idea of a vast planet brimming with civilization and culture was more like something out of a fairy tale than it was reality. So, when my father announced that we would be leaving the country to go to Scotland, the home of his and my ancestors, my world began to expand at a rapid pace. This trip could not have been timed more perfectly. The summer of 2007 marked the end of fourth grade, my first year at Saint Mary Academy Bay View.…
As typical with most friendships, during the course of several conversations the subject of our childhoods aroused. To my surprise, mentions of my experiences growing up in a suburban New Jersey neighborhood produced incredulous gazes. Based on my descriptions, it was concluded that I grew up in “the Hood”. My friends were surprised that my personal conduct and philosophy did not overtly reflect my background in a manner they expected. “The Hood” is associated with all forms of disenfranchisement: poverty, violence, low employment, lack of public funds, and poor education systems.…
An elder black man let me in to his house. He had his older daughter visiting him. He traded one Cigar for the black scarf an ex boyfriend gave me for Charismas. He also traded me a Cincinnati Reds Baseball Card for The 80’s Greatest Rock Hits Cassette that was my favorite and only tape when I was young.…
Words are merely a conjunction of jumbled letters. We still rely on its usage, as our existence micro aggressions through them. But, though essential to understanding our past, they cannot encapsulate our inexplicable thoughts and emotions. Writing this letter to you all, will not sum up all of your feelings, but as a member of our community, I want to address the truth. Before you read the rest of this letter, I want you to introspectively think about anything that bothers you at the moment.…
I am not ghetto, or loud. I do not clap my hands, roll my neck or kiss my teeth. Naturally, I am not confrontational or a fighter. I am a sixteen year old East African girl who wants to talk freely like water spilling out of a faucet but is constantly being plugged. I spend my time reading blog posts and learning about the role oppressed groups play in society and how difficult it is to break cycles of poverty or injustice.…
I have lived in Alaska for over 20 years. During this time period, I have been a mother, a foster parent for special needs children, child care provider and a business owner. I had the ability to work and volunteer for several Alaska Native Conferences and activities. I am African American myself, and have participated in activities for African American youth such as, conferences, and Black history presentations.…
I want to attend TASS to improve my social and writing skills, further my knowledge of African American culture and be able to incorporate it to my everyday life. Learning about another ethnicity 's history and background will provide insight and aid me in understanding the differences and similarities between us. With this knowledge, I will form a strong intelligent opinion all while being able to present the necessary evidence in order to support it. I am not only of East Asian descent, but also female. In this society, I am considered an ethnic minority but I will not let this hinder nor undermine my abilities or potential.…
In a post-apocalyptic modern Japan, 35% that is in ruins from the mass attack of Akatsu when they first appeared, has been abandoned. This night was named the Akayume (赤夢 - red dream), as a way to describe the rain that turned red with the blood of the victims lost that day and the collective thoughts of the people who wished with all their might that it was nothing but a bad dream. We used this abandoned place to get rid of anything that would bring chaos, to create a system where its citizens could live without fear. That 35% part of the country is called the Black Society, where you can get your hands on anything illegal that's been banned and where most criminals and those in poverty live.…
Life in Black and White Every child dreams of the air, of flying like Superman or like the birds, of getting away from the rules and the crowds and the bustle of the ground. We dream of the freedom and escape that flying may bring. Now, I never learned how to fly, that’s impossible, but there are some things out there that get pretty damn close to that feeling. Where I’m from, almost everyone skated: speed skating, figure skating, ice hockey, they did it all. I grew up watching Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue, and old tapes of Sonja Henie; all of them highly regarded figure skaters.…
I grew up in two seemingly separate worlds: black and white. My everyday life is lived primarily in the "white world". I went to a Catholic grade school where less than 1% of the population was black, I spend holidays with my mom 's Irish family in Ohio, and I live in the white suburbs of Kansas. I have never been able to relate to the "typical black experience". My dad is a first generation immigrant from Ghana.…
At the time of writing this note, my advance age of seventy-four should discourage me from sharing this perplexing odd feeling which I have always had from the age of about seven or nine years old. I was always the smallest and the youngest amongst all my friends and the one who tirelessly seek answers for weird questions. We were six friends playing football barefooted in front of my grandparents’ house in the village, Abodom. There was a sudden unusual humming sound in the sky, far beyond the birds’ flight range and there was something looking like a huge bird flying across the sky. All of us stopped playing and started staring and talking about that object.…
“Hello World!” I stated as I ran my first computer program. I’m a programmer and until now, that is all I have identified as. This is my first year at DePaul University, therefore I am required to take a Discover Chicago course. These courses are intended to expand one’s knowledge in a specific region determined by the course title.…
I just arrived home after being at a conference for teachers for several days. It was a great conference in general but for me, it was gut wrenching because I learned a few things that I was not expecting to learn. I am invisible in the eyes of most Americans. On July 7th I awoke to information that there were 2 documented accounts of yet another unarmed black men being killed by police officers.…