Bare with me on this one…
I’m not really one to comment on race unless it’s in jest as the whole debate is pretty pointless if you ask me. I mean of course racism exists for many different reasons, we live in a world where the most powerful man on the planet wants to build a wall to divide his nation from another. It’s sad to live in a world where opinions and views based on people’s race, ethnicities, nationalities and beliefs are so prevalent.
With recent media coverage on police brutality against blacks in America and Trump winning the election has only fuelled the racial debate further. I’m not going to preach about racial harmony or write a post as an attempt to end racism because no matter where you go it will always be around. Instead I’d rather promote equality and acceptance of those around us.
If we were to go into space and you looked down on Earth you wouldn’t see any borders or segregation. You’d just see giant masses of land where we, the human race live. Claiming different parts of the earth was something that we did. Racism isn’t a natural occurrence, We have fallen victims to our own standard and way of life. I don’t want to walk down the street and judge that person for the colour of their skin or the clothes they’re wearing. And although a lot of us would like to think we don’t judge people… we do. Whether you like it or not, because it’s the environment we’ve grown up in and has now become part of our human nature.
Now for me, the way I see it is I rarely see myself has black. I mean of course I know I’m black but I don’t walk round thinking about the perceptions others have of me because I’m black. Does that make sense? How limiting would that be if I was wary of speaking to old white ladies because they thought I was some thug. Of course the way not only blacks but every race are portrayed in the media only fuels the fire. Especially where I’m from blacks don’t get a good wrap and we’re all criminals apparently. If I was old and white I’d probably think the same thing to be honest. That’s what you get when you walk down the street with your trousers half way down your legs and wearing hoods when it’s 30 degrees outside. We all don’t fit the mould, but with that perception already ingrained in our brains that isn’t going to change anytime soon. So no longer are we trying to be who we are but we spend a lot of our time proving to people that we are not who society says we are. Maybe they just forgot to wear a belt today or the barber effed up their hair. What we look like doesn’t make or define who we are. Our opinions, intelligence and creativity does that.
Interracial relationships are also a point of discussion. We’ve all looked at a couple, maybe a black man with a white woman or an asian boy with a hispanic girl, I don’t know there are plenty of combinations. But for some reason don’t we always assume that we are going to date someone of the same race as us. I’m going to be straight up if my white friend introduced me to his girlfriend and she was black I’d be a bit surprised. Not because there’s anything wrong with it but again, the “perfect family” has been built up of white man with white woman or black guy with black woman. Why would we try and marry outside our own race come on that’s absurd. Who wants mixed race babies anyway. It always puzzles me when people say “I don’t date *insert race and sex here*”. Come on really. Of course I understand that people may not be able because of religious beliefs or just strict parents but can we really limit ourselves this much. You’re making yourself unavailable to like a good chunk of the worlds population just by practising that belief. If you get on, have common interests and enjoy spending time with them why should the colour of their skin even matter. I get too that we all have preferences but to just outright say you don’t go for “those kind of people” is just a bit… odd.
Now I don’t know too much about this but I am sure it happens, skin bleaching. Often used by celebrities to get a lighter complexion. Which is further emphasised by this whole “lightie” culture. What even is that and what does it mean. Congratulations on having slightly less melanin than others and slightly more than the rest. Just because you’re a lightie doesn’t mean you can ignore my messages or leave me on “seen” for months on end. The skin in which you are born in doesn’t give you that privilege. How can you rate yourself above others because of a physical characteristic none of us get to decide. It’s moronic. But back to skin bleaching and lightening, if you want to do it then do it, but let’s not try to promote it as something that is necessary or something people aspire to partake in. Skin is a beautiful thing and something that we should all cherish, no matter the tone, scars or winkles.
I don’t know about you but I am tired of being seen as that white guy’s “Black friend”. If we say “oh do you know Mark” and the other person is like “ah I can’t remember can you jog my memory?” If you say “the black one” 9 times out of ten the other person will be like “damn yeah I remember thank God you classed him by his skin tone”. It works for every race except white. Now I am not getting ahead of myself I understand that in the UK the dominant race is white and Mark is in fact black but I am just making a point that his skin colour shouldn’t be that 1 thing that defines him.
I will never say I am proud to be black because quite frankly I don’t know what that means. I am aware that black people have achieved great things in the past which in turn has done a lot for black people. Bit if this race thing didn’t exist in the first place then they wouldn’t have had to go through the struggle that they did. The fact that they were black just amplified the kind of person they were. Instead I am proud that I am educated at masters level. That was down to hard work and perseverance. I am proud that I have made a positive impact on people’s lives because of the person I am on the inside. And I am proud that I get to write this blog and that you guys read it because for all you know I could be a robot.