Monday, June 26, 2006

My first post


Hello and welcome to the inaugural post of myblackfriendsays.com You're probably wondering, "What the hell is this?" A reasonable question...

myblackfriendsays.com is a blog where you can read about racial issues and ask me (your black friend,) questions or for advice.

" Well, who the hell are you; and why would I want to ask you questions or for advice?" Another reasonable question...

I am a black woman in my late 20's. I grew up in predominantly white neighborhoods and went to predominantly white schools. Like many people in this type of situation, I always knew I was black, but it was not something that I gave a lot of thought. Granted, there were definitely experiences (usually negative,) that reminded me, but it wasn't until I entered graduate school that I really started thinking critically about race.

One thing I began to notice was that the white people I knew were interested in talking about racial issues. But at the same time, they were extremely apprehensive to speak because they didn't want to say the "wrong thing." So as a result people, have all these questions and comments that they want to make, but they stay silent to avoid creating any kind of conflict.

I believe the only way that we are going to make any progress on this issue is if we are able to talk honestly and openly about our beliefs and experiences. And so, this blog was born. I'll write about things that I think are important, you'll ask me questions and we'll all be better people for it.

"I'm not convinced. Why should I listen to you?"

Okay, now you're starting to get annoying...

You should listen to me for several reasons:

1) I'm black and you're (probably) not. Being black is like living in Minnesota. You can't really know what it's like until you experience it. BUT, if you have a friend who lives in Minnesota and they tell you all about it, you can learn little random stuff like where the best place to park is when you go to the Mall of America.

2) I have a background in psychology. This means I know how to be nice to people, so you shouldn't be afraid that I am going to go off on you for asking me a dumb question. It also means that you don't have to only ask me race-related questions, you can ask for advice about your life, to get my unique perspective.

3) I'm really smart. I'm not trying to brag (that much) but let it suffice to say that it has recently been verified by an outside source. This means I have creative ideas, and when you read this blog you're going to see things that you don't see most other places. It also means I totally kick ass at trivia, but that is not as relevant.

So I'll leave you now. I hope you'll become a frequent visitor, tell your friends, and that we can all learn something in the process.

4 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:38 AM

    my first comment

    Race is an uncomfortable topic. Like cross-racial facial recognition. It's an interesting topic, right? And some interesting research has been done. My asian friend and my black friend can talk about it. But when their white friend does, it's like everyone is afraid what's being said is "they all look alike to me." An uncomfortable position for a white liberal to be in. So you (myblackfriend) could conduct the research and be more comfortable about presenting it than I could, I betcha.

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  2. About the "they all look the same" thing:

    I teach ESL, and I have a lot of Asian students in my classes. Inevitably, it takes me longer to learn their names than it does for me to learn the names of the non-Asian students. At first I was thinking, man, I feel like an ass--I can't explain this, other than "they all look the same." But then I figured out what was going on. It wasn't the way they looked, it was their names. With western names, I know if it is a guy's name or a girl's name. With that information, the pool of students gets cut in half. It also helps that there aren't that many non-Asians in my class, so they are at an advantage for name remembering. Even with say a Russian, or French person, I can also use their accent to remember: Dimitri doesn't necessarily look Russian, but he sounds Russian!
    I can't distinguish between men's names and women's names in Chinese, Japanese or Korean. So I'm left with a sea of people where I can't use that way of remembering.

    So, yeah, an interesting tid-bit anyway. Just thought I would share.

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  3. Anonymous11:39 PM

    I just saw you post someplace else and came over for a look. I might like it here.

    Good at trivia?

    In 1969 Elvis release In The Ghetto which only went to #3. Who wrote it?

    I'll be back to see if you know. Hint, it was by a big time writer and singer of the day.

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  4. Your site is dope!!!!

    ReplyDelete