Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

It was immediately after I had completed my undergrad course entitled “African American History in the 19^th Century” that I first became aware of the acts of microaggression towards African people that brought them and my family to this country after the colonialization period of the 1800’s from Africa that I felt empowered to take charge of my life; tell  my own personal story, live life from  my own cultural perspective; forever wear my own natural hair as a proud symbol of my personal  identity and live by my own choice to be forever free from the dominate culture’s distortions.  

“All my life I had to fight” (Walker, 1982) the myths about my culture and somehow, I never believed that my culture wasn’t as intelligent, as beautiful or as articulate as the dominant culture. My grades were great. I had earned some spelling-bee awards for being one of  the best spellers in the city, then state and I was offered the choice of taking one of two tests for High School—Girls High, one of the top college bound schools in Philadelphia and Murrell Dobbins, one of the top vocational schools.

My mother encouraged me to take the vocational school and come out with a skill that she said would guarantee a way for me (a female) to take of myself, in case something ever happened. So, I chose the vocational school and became a respected Secretary/Administrative Assistant in the field of business. I married shortly after High School. We bought a two-bedroom house and I bore two children, spaced 5 ½  years apart. After another 5 years, I divorced my husband but the most important lesson I’ve learned through this journey is that after I graduated High School, I felt empowered. After my marriage, I felt empowered. After we bought a house, I felt empowered. After the children were born, I felt empowered. After the divorce, I felt empowered because like my mother noted, I was able to take of myself and my children. I still feel empowered today--both my children are grown now. Both, have decided to continue their post-secondary education and as graduate student, I still feel empowered to tell my own story and walk towards my own dream of becoming the educator who is committed to eradicating the chains of classism, racism, the myth of the culture of poverty by continuing to make a meaningful contribution to the lives of preschool children, from birth to 8 years, where it can really make a difference.  

Reference

Walker, A. (1982), The Color Purple,             retrieved from

http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/542253-all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to