"i don't see color"
I was talking to one of my co workers, who is a Person of Color (POC), and she said to me “yes, that’s because that’s how you were raised, not everyone is raised that way.”
With the last week, I have become aware that saying this statement is not accurate. Because the truth is - I DO see color. I see so much color, all of the time. And I love it. I have always been that way. So why have I told people “I don’t see color?” Because I wanted that person to know that I wasn’t going to judge them based on the color of their skin. But now I know that that’s the wrong statement to express what I’m trying to say. People want to know that you see their color and that you accept it and aren’t going to treat them any other way.
My grandma lived in St Croix for a while right before I was born. The Virgin Islands are full of people from all different places in the world. Skin colors of multiple shades, accents from all countries. She is the one that taught me not to discriminate. She taught me to recognize people for what they have on the inside- not the outside. I’ve always had friends with various backgrounds whether it be their socioeconomic status, their skin color, or their family situations. I have been immersed in a life with POC and have never known any different.
I remember in middle school I started dating people POC, (shoutout to Joel & JR) but just like all middle school relationships ... I think they only lasted a couple of weeks. Anyways, I remember people whispering and gossiping about it. People were saying I was a “wigger.” Because I liked to listen to Snoop Dogg & Outkast, had a pair of phatfarms, and liked POC. Middle schoolers suck.
Fast forward to high school- I went to a magnet school for my first two years. (Whaddup Southeast!!) As a white girl, I was technically a “minority”. But I never felt like one. Everyone was a big family at Southeast. Everyone hung out with each other, talked to each other, did all of the high school things together.
My whole life, I have been surrounded by people of all sorts of colors - human beings. I have been surrounded by beautiful human beings. Because at the end of the day that’s what we are. We all bleed the same. I was raised not to judge people by the color of their skin. I was raised to see people for who they are on the inside, not the out.
To all of my friends who are POC- please know that I see you. I respect you. I love you. I will make sure that I continue to work on my shortcomings that come along with my white privilege. But most importantly, I will stand up for you & I will be here for you.
To stay on brand, here’s a list of some of things I’m doing:
Reading White Fragility.
Talking to my white friends about this situation.
Talking to my friends of different colors about this situation.
Working on myself to recognize statements, actions, etc that need to be removed or adjusted from my life.
Supporting black owned businesses.
Sending love and support to everyone during this time.
I am open to any and all suggestions as to what else I can do. Please send them my way!
xx,
Linsey
