It is hard to pinpoint one specific memory during my schooling where I “noticed” that others have a different colour of skin than I did. I say this because looking back, the elementary school I went to was an amazing environment that welcomed anyone and everyone and made them apart of our family, or at least that’s how I saw it. As students we were consistently taught to treat others how you would like to be treated. Were there times where kids were picked on and bullied? Yes, just like any other school there was times of trouble. Some kids are really mean even when they might not know any better. The bullying that I encountered or heard about was never because of someone’s skin colour. At our school everyone was equal and that was how we were taught to look at the world. Little did I know that outside of the school the world was a very racist and hateful place. When I moved on to high school, it was very similar in the way that I never encountered any situations where there was a conflict because of colour of skin. Now that is not to say that there wasn’t any because I obviously cannot speak for everyone, but that was my experience.
Looking back and thinking deeper about the question, I began to think about the schoolwork we were doing. Even though it was a number of years ago, I remember the textbooks. More specifically how there was mainly white people in the textbooks. At the time I would have thought nothing of it. Looking back now if I put myself in someone else’s shoes and not seeing anyone in the textbooks that have the same skin colour as me, it would make me feel out of place. I would start to ask questions as to why that is and why I do not see people with the same skin colour as me.
It is clearer today than ever for me as to how prevalent racism is and how people can be so racist. Since the Black Lives Matter movements began, I have been wanting to learn and educate myself more about racism. I have learnt about white privilege, and how divided our society is. It is truly sad we live in a world where someone is treated differently because of something that is out of their control, that being their skin colour. I struggle to understand why I should have more opportunities in life based on the colour of my skin. It is something I have grown very passionate about and I want to continue to educate myself and try to understand why these things are happening in our world.
I really enjoyed hearing about how you want to educate yourself on racial issues and how you have recognized that the curriculum you were taught was primarily from a white standpoint. I would have really liked to have seen you expand your thoughts and feelings towards your view of the curriculum and give more examples of times when you noticed what you were learning was primarily white from a white perspective. Speaking on the first half of your story, it was good to hear that you were taught to be equals and admit that sometimes there were issues with students following that. For the purpose of flow, it would have been nice to have your first paragraph dealing with your view on the world while in school and your second and third paragraphs a little more connected, to help get a better understanding of your view on race and racism in school and the real world. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your story!