I remember talking to a 'friend'
about this same thing a while ago. She was saying that when she goes home, people from her neighborhood, her family, and people who went to her HBCU say that she acts white (she's in grad school now).
A few weeks later, she starting saying those same sort of things to me! She started criticizing the movies and TV shows I do and don't watch. She talked about me because I went on a day trip and learned how to snowboard. She even criticized me because I like smoked salmon! WTF
I know what sort of things I will like and I do them, with or without the approval of others. I don't bother with things that I know I won't like, regardless of what others think I should be interested in. I also enjoy trying NEW things to broaden my horizons. I shouldn't have to defend myself because of this.
I shouldn't need to prove that I am black. Though negative experiences are not the test of blackness, I experience racism and prejudice just as much as anyone else. I overcome it. That, I believe, is the true spirit of our race. We have come from the lowest of low and are now in some of the highest places in our society. People who think it is a virtue to stay down and out make a mockery out of the lives and deaths of our ancestors.
Though I experience the negative aspects of being black, I would like to have more experiences of the positive aspects. It is sad when we can't even be supported by our own family.