Quote:
Originally posted by Afrochic
Another thing I can't stand is job interviews. I have a name that you wouldn't know the race until I step in the door. I don't think white people mean it, but some act as if they have never been around a black person before who can speak English and dress in business attire. Sometimes they act as if I'm the spokesperson for the entire black race. One day I went to an interview and I was at the head of the table while a good seven or eight people in the company interviewd me. One white lady told me she wish she could tan and get my color because she turns red when she tans. She also wanted to know what hair color was in my head because she liked it. And the other lady said my God look at her teeth, they are gorgeous. I felt like sideshow damn bob up in that piece on display. What in the hell did any of that have to do with the job? How long have we been in America? There are a wide array of hues in the black race. Why is this an issue?
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I've had the same thing happen at job interviews and in instances where the person knew my name before they actually met me. It's sad and sometimes infuriating b/c they really think of things like this as a compliment
...Just b/c I'm Black does not mean that I can't speak correct English
--I went to High School and College just like you did
As far as the "light- vs. dark-skinned" issue goes, it is a deep-rooted issue for me b/c where I live there is no such thing as "brown-skinned"--you're either light or dark. I qualify as dark, and therfore am considered second best to many men (particularly Black men in my age group, 22 yrs.), even though I get the "You are SO Beautiful/Gorgeous/You look like a model (I'm 5'10")" comments all the time from people that are either my age but I'm not interested in (friends, family, whatever), or from older people I don't know...I refuse to buy into these stereotypes that light=beautiful, b/c Black people come in all shades of the rainbow, and WE AS A PEOPLE ARE TRULLY BEAUTIFUL b/c there are no other people on this earth like us. Beauty is not one color/shade!!! But it
really saddens me that people in this day and age still buy into this mentality, and that our own people are continuously perpetuating it (i.e. music videos on BET that always feature light-skinned women with long hair). People need to get real and remember that there are bigger issues out there that need our attention than this pettiness...