Blog
on being brown
A summary of racial related conversations in the last month:
1. “oh… you are Eliacin, I’ve been meaning to meet you. You are latino right? From Mexico!
- No, in spite of your idea of all latino’s on this side of the country being mexicans, I am Puerto Rican.
2. ” I don’t see your color. You are just a person to me. (Later in the same conversation) I love your bronze skin, your kids are so beautiful because they are mix-race.
3. (In reference to a brown skin, brown eyes, brown hair boy) Eliacin, your son is over protecting the dessert.
- Ladie, he is not my son. We might have brown skin, brown eyes and brown hair but we are not related.
This new season of eliacin.com would be focus on issues of my journey toward Priesthood in The Episcopal Church, photography, liberated spaces, spirituality, alternative living, America Latina and homegrown revolution.
it’s good to know these comments happen across the board. i get similar ones on being yellow. here are a few:
1. origins
them: so, where are you from?
me: i’m from seattle
them: no, really- where were you born?
me: detroit
them: no, i don’t think you understand- where are you REALLY from- like your ancestors
me: my great-grandparents immigrated from china…
(apparently i don’t look “american”)
2. english
them: wow, you speak english so well!
me: thanks, so do you.
them: (confused) well of course it is!
me: …
3. questions
them: are you good at math? do you know kung-fu? do you eat a lot of rice?
me: somewhat, no, and yes.
4. ichiro
them: you look just like ichiro! i think it’s your eyes.
me: …
welcome to america, brother!
Believe it or not these comments are not restricted to those of you who are brown or yellow. As an Australian when I first came to the US I also had people say :How amazing you speak such beautiful English.” I was also asked “Do you have kangaroos in the streets?” and the worst of all “Australia: Is that overseas?”
I think that part of the problem is that many Americans have very little idea of geography or of culture. They don’t mean to be offensive. They are just ignorant