"You're not a typical white girl."
Thanks, Michelle.
The context of this comment:
New fourth grade teacher at work (first year out of college) asked me where I live.
"18th and Halsted," I reply.
"What neighborhood is that?"
"Pilsen."
"Isn't Pilsen like, the ghetto?" she says in a slightly incredulous/condescending voice, laughing a little.
"No, actually it's not. But East Pilsen is maybe a little nicer than West Pilsen, and that's where I live."
"Oh, then I must have been thinking of West Pilsen."
"But West Pilsen isn't bad either. I spend a lot of time there. Some people just think it's ghetto because the population is mainly Hispanic."
"Oh... I must have been thinking of another neighborhood."
At least she had the sense to look slightly embarrassed.
I related this exchange to Michelle later, and it was at this time that she made the typical white girl comment. She went on to say that most people, even if they claim not to be racist, still have some race issues deep down. "But you, I don't get that feeling at all from you," she said. "You're not like that."
So that was cool. And Michelle is that same way; race is not an issue to her. On Institute Day, she showed off pictures of her adorable 6-month-old son. One teacher asked what his name was. It is a perfectly nice, normal name, but the teacher's reaction was, "But that's not a black name!" Michelle's comeback was, "No, it's a resume-friendly name."
Thanks, Michelle.
The context of this comment:
New fourth grade teacher at work (first year out of college) asked me where I live.
"18th and Halsted," I reply.
"What neighborhood is that?"
"Pilsen."
"Isn't Pilsen like, the ghetto?" she says in a slightly incredulous/condescending voice, laughing a little.
"No, actually it's not. But East Pilsen is maybe a little nicer than West Pilsen, and that's where I live."
"Oh, then I must have been thinking of West Pilsen."
"But West Pilsen isn't bad either. I spend a lot of time there. Some people just think it's ghetto because the population is mainly Hispanic."
"Oh... I must have been thinking of another neighborhood."
At least she had the sense to look slightly embarrassed.
I related this exchange to Michelle later, and it was at this time that she made the typical white girl comment. She went on to say that most people, even if they claim not to be racist, still have some race issues deep down. "But you, I don't get that feeling at all from you," she said. "You're not like that."
So that was cool. And Michelle is that same way; race is not an issue to her. On Institute Day, she showed off pictures of her adorable 6-month-old son. One teacher asked what his name was. It is a perfectly nice, normal name, but the teacher's reaction was, "But that's not a black name!" Michelle's comeback was, "No, it's a resume-friendly name."
Comments