High school was a time that I really began to understand my racial identity. I came from a small town that was quite racially divided between Caucasian and Indigenous people. In the classroom I began to notice that people sat in racial groups, had friends in racial groups, and generally associated with people of the same racial group. It was very notable if groups mixed or if you had friends who were a different race. I was lucky because I had older siblings and parents who had friends who were from different cultures and races. It took me some time to realize that though that was true, there was still racial inequality in my school and town and a distinct advantage in being Caucasian. I could miss a day of school and people thought that I was sick while my Indigenous friend missed a day and people assumed that they were lazy. I had inherent privileges just because the color of my skin and who my parents were. If I had money to buy new clothes it was normal and good, but if a student who was Indigenous bought new clothes then there was judgment behind their back because people thought that they were just living off the government. It was shocking for me to realize the freedoms and lack of judgement I received simply because of my race. Because of this the illustration of the backpack full of privileges really resonated with me.
This was brought even more into the light when my teenage niece moved in with me to attend high school. She is a person of color as her dad is from Nigeria. I began to notice how little people of color are represented in the media and if they are it is often a negative representation. She often commented on how the black sidekick always died in the film or was the “bad guy.” It was illuminating to watch movies and representations through her eyes, and through a caregiver’s eyes, as I so badly want the best for her. Every child should be able to see themselves as the hero of the story. I certainly wanted this for my niece. Every person should see positive representations of their race in media. It is a simple acknowledgement and validation of who we are as a people.
As a future teacher, I want every child (and family member) to feel valued simply for who they are. I want to promote open conversations about our lives and cultures in my classrooms because those conversations were sadly lacking in my school. As we hear from other people and their experiences we grow as people and learn more about people and the world around us. I would like to experience this for myself in the classroom and enable the students to do that as well. I would like privilege to be recognized but not celebrated and hopefully close the gap a little.