“Nobody in history, has ever gotten their freedom by appealing to the moral sense of the people who were oppressing them.” Assata Shakur
This week it seems like the world has been turned upside down, but it is more like a match has been struck after America has spent years stumbling around in the dark. If only I had a dollar for every time I heard a non-black person say “I didn’t see color growing up and I don’t see color now.” Colorblindness aka “color-denial” not only invalidates the identity of a group of people; it nullifies one’s individuality.
America is now learning that colorblindness is not the answer to dismantling racism. Perpetuating
racism, denying color allows you to be “blind” to issues that disproportionately affect people of color.
As a woman of color, the world reminds me every day that I don’t have the privilege of turning a “blind” eye.
People gravitate to Charleston, SC for a lot of reasons: its charming southern restaurants, proximity to the beach, swanky bars and historic homes that line the Battery. I have traveled to Savannah, GA and fell in love with its southern charm, but had never set aside the time to take in all that Charleston has to offer. One long summer weekend in 2017, I decided to go on a Girls’ Trip to the birthplace of shrimp & grits to soak up all the southern charm that the city had to offer.
The thing about being 3 black women ready for a holiday adventure is that you may go through your favorite mainstream travel sites checking off local attractions to visit, packing your favorite sundress and sandals the same way that you would when prepping for a trip with your non-black friends, but you never know when something or someone will pop up to remind you of your blackness (as if I could ever not be aware). At a plantation tour when someone turns to you and says, “this must be tragic for you” or even interjects during the tour to say that the enslaved people should have been happy because they were clothed and fed or hitting the group with a “did slavery really exist, I heard it was a myth.” Nothing like going to check into your bed & breakfast and the manager tells you that she feels “threatened” because you are inquiring about the amenities that you were promised at booking and have not received. Just taking a stroll around the battery, brings face-to-face with a man wearing a confederate uniform and hold a confederate flag. A “blind”
eye not taking the time to look through a lens outside of their privileged perspective, we are where we all today. As people take to the streets this week, we all can see -- black, white, brown, blue and those that claim to be “colorblind.”
I’m proud of my melanin-enriched skin that my ancestors have passed down to me. Why do you insist on claiming to overlook it, as if it is something negative that needs to be hidden? It is not invisible people who are more likely to die from an encounter with the police or be threatened by a hotel manager — it is black people. My people. How can you possibly fix something that you don’t see?
