Essay On Interracial Identity

We all have times in our life when we struggle with our identity and who we are. For some people it's their size, for others a certain characteristic about themselves, for me, the color of my skin. I was never ashamed of being biracial. I grew up with my white mother and black father until they separated when I was 8. The concept of an interracial couple was never foreign to me because I grew up around it my whole life. I never acknowledged the idea that to some people is seemed "wrong" or "disgusting". I met my girlfriend when I was 16 years old. Never did I look at her as “white” but as the girl that I had feelings for. I was aware that we were different races but did not consider that that was a problem to some people. I never realized that in public or even in our place of work …show more content…
Nothing! "how can I stand by and do nothing" I thought to myself. Surely my parents were mistaken, so I asked friends and co-workers of mine what I should do and same as my parents, they said I should do nothing. It did not make sense to me. I was distressed, hurt, and outraged. I had to take some time to myself and truly ponder on what happened and how what the man said affected me. It took a little soul searching and it is always hard being the bigger person but I forgave him. Not that it did not still upset me, but I realized that nothing I said or did was going to alter the way he thinks. I learned a great deal about myself and other people through this experience, but the major takeaway I had from it was that it does not matter what other people think. Now I'm not saying that because it doesn't matter that I no longer dress professionally in a formal setting or have lost my manners, but I do not need to put on a certain face for every person I meet. I am myself and I am proud of who I am. All I can do is be the best version of myself that I can be, and whether people accept me or not is up to