Today I went to see the talk by Mbenga Sesan on technology
in Nigeria and after his rushed 15 minute talk (he had to catch a plane), I
decided to stay and listen to the next speaker, who gave an incredibly
inspiring talk on black identity. Being white, you probably wouldn’t think I’d
find it all that interesting, but I found myself on the edge of my seat.
She started off her talk with a question to the (mostly
black) audience: “When did you realize you were black?” And the answers really
surprised me. Anybody who was an immigrant said they realized when they came to
Canada, where being black stands out. The speaker said in Canada, people
describe others using hair colours or freckles, whereas in Africa, these
differences don’t exist. She also described an event where she felt stereotyped
based on her race, when a cashier made sure to count her money twice to make
sure she wasn’t ripping them off. She transitioned her talk into a call to
action: “You can redefine the black stereotype”. Although I couldn’t relate to
her challenges, I left the room feeling empowered.
But her question also really got me thinking. When did I
realize I was white? Personally, I cannot think of a defining moment and I’m
not sure I’ve ever had one. But I’d like to ask you that question. When did you
first realize race existed and you were categorized in one group or another
based on your skin colour? And what do you think should be done to reverse negative racial stereotypes?
Wow the speaker asked a really interesting question! And from your retelling of the talk I can picture "the room feeling empowered" at the end.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I haven't really thought about it, nor could I say at what moment I realized I was white or that I was different from other people/other people were different from me. I think I have grown up used to living with people of other races and never really questioned the existence of race - I grew up in Mississauga and was actually a minority in my class. And when my brother was younger, for a while he thought he was black in the way he identified with people. So he might have an answer for when he realized he was white... but evidently defining one's race is a very interesting concept!
If your brother would be willing to answer, I'd love to hear what his perspective is!
DeleteI think this is an interesting thing to think about - I'm sad I missed the talk! I can't say for me there was ever really a defining moment, but I do recall one story in particular from my childhood.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a town of predominantly white people (~98% white, ~1.5% aboriginal, ~0.5% other minorities). I remember in grade 3 a female of Vietnamese people moved to my town from Toronto. At this point in time, my school literally only had white children in it, so to the rest of us this was a huge culture shock. I don't think it was so much the fact that we realized we were white, but that we realized people of other cultures had the ability to assimilate into ours (keep in mind we were 8 years old and didn't know too much about the real world). I can only imagine the difficulty they must have felt, coming from a big city with a variety of races to our "white people party" for lack of a better term. I'd like to think now that as adults a situation like this wouldn't be so shocking, but based on the information you've provided it seems this is not the case.
It's difficult for me to think that we live in such a "progressive" society, yet these divides still exist.
Very interesting post Darrelle!
ReplyDeletePersonally, I find that interacting with strangers does not usually bring up a question of my ethnicity as most people are unable to determine where I am from just by my looks.
However, its when people ask for my name that they tend to question my ethnicity. I learned over the years that once people have a certain stereotype about a certain race, they tend to refuse the fact that these stereotypes might be wrong.
Many people I interacted with have a hard time accepting the fact that I am Middle Eastern. They usually doubt me by stating that I look "Whiteish" or my skin is not dark enough, that I lack middle eastern features, or don't dress and sound "Middle Eastern" enough.
I think racial stereotyping goes beyond skin colour and encompasses features, accents, ways of dress etc.
Interesting. It surprises me that people stereotype so much based on these types of things. I feel like in Canada, there is so much mixing of cultures that there shouldn't be so many stereotypes. I know a lot of white people that prefer spicy Indian food over Indians, or many people dress in clothing that is often identified with another culture.
DeleteFirst of all, I am very sad that I did not read your blog earlier. This is an amazing concept and definitely one that will keep pulling me and other readers back to read more of your posts.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I felt I was categorized once I left my home country, Pakistan, and moved to Dallas, Texas. Having never lived outside Pakistan, I never got to engage with people of different backgrounds. Dallas consists of mainly white and black people. See the problem? I stuck out like a sore thumb! Even got called a terrorist in grade 6 (lol). It was fun while it lasted but I am very glad that my parents decided to move to Canada instead. Having more of "your kind" around eases tensions, gives you confidence and makes you feel safer, and allows for other races to get to know you better. For Canada to have developed a society where races of different countries are able to mingle much better than a lot of other places in the world is definitely something to be proud of. For the racial stereotypes that still exist within our society, I think it is imperative to encourage fraternizing between different racial groups. I think the next couple generations of the Canadian society will definitely define one of the most interconnected multiracial societies in the world.