My Identity Research Paper

When prompted to describe myself, I would normally use characteristics of my physical stature such as short, brown hair, or green eyes. From kindergarten to my senior year of college, many times have been presented to me that I have had to describe myself, but thinking back to all of those times I have to question myself on why I never defined myself using my race. Clearly, the people around me could see that I was white just as they could see that I had brown hair, but why did I never use my race? The answer is simple, I was colorblind. I was ignorant to the fact that I had privileges because of the color of my skin. I was aware that whites did have more privilege, but I thought that personally I was not racist. I thought that I was not a …show more content…
Growing up with a police officer for a father, I heard a lot of derogatory remarks about African Americans. I was taught to avoid them because they were criminals. I grew up going to a school that was predominantly white and I never had the experience to be around African Americans, so of course I believed what my father told me, I trusted him. When I started college, I formed a new identity. I had an African American male lab partner. I invited him over to my house one day so that we could work on our lab. We eventually become very good friends and that’s when my identity changed and I learned that every African American I meet is not a criminal, and that I should form my own opinions separate of my fathers. I started to believe that I was not racist because I had an African American friend and though he deserved the same opportunities that I did. I thought that affirmative action groups were one of the best creations society had. With the start of our class, social justice, I started to learn that my current views were wrong, and I am in the process of a more educated …show more content…
Until this class, I thought I understood what racism was and I believed that it was very rare in the world today. I thought I identified as being non-racist and supportive of everyone, but I realized I was wrong. It was not until my understanding of mass incarceration which can be defined as the “New Jim Crow,” that I realized I was sorely mistaken. I had no idea who I was or where I played my part in relation to power relations around the world, until I learned about them. It’s only been since September that I have started to learn, understand, and form a new identity that is still in the