Singled Out

Mrs. Dietzel turned to me, a wiry second-grader, and said, "Danielle, why don't you tell us all about...about...YOUR PEOPLE." My first memory of Black History Month was created around the feeling of being singled out for being diferent.

As one of only a handful of ethnic children in a small town, I was constantly being singled out by my classmates - my skin was "too white for a black person", my hair was "weird - why don't you wear it down like us? Why is it always in braids?" After a short time, I grew to expect that feeling from children, but often found solace in adults. My teachers never cared that I was black - only that I spelled my words correctly. They never cared that my hair was in braids - only that I wasn't pulling the hair of another person in class.

At seven years old, I knew very little about the entirety of the civil rights movement. I only knew how important it was to my family. I knew who Martin Luther King, Jr. was, but wasn't prepared to give an on-the-spot lecture about his life. My teacher pointed me out because of the color of my skin, assuming that no one else would have knowledge of "my people".

I see people making this assumption today. When a white professor taught a Black History class on the campus where I used to work, the students protested. When standing next to one of my Asian friends at a lecture, a woman we were speaking to started asking her questions about how Pearl Harbor affected her family (my friend is Filipino). It's not a wonder how some bloggers are starting to feel like this.

I appreciate that BlogHer is interactive, that other editors can add content to each topic. We all have something to offer, new or different information, in conversations about race and ethnicity.

I am driving from Alaska to Rhode Island. Today, I am in Seattle, surrounded by amazing friends and beautiful weather. In the few moments I have to myself, I've been thinking about Black History Month, and more specifically about Martin Luther King Jr. I know more about his message than Mrs. Dietzel could ever give me credit for.