Introduction to the Racial Divide

09
Feb

Introduction to the Racial Divide

My next journey was to the United States of America where I was off to college on an athletic scholarship. It was another moment of adjustment, as it was here I was introduced to racial undertones of Black and White culture. I was told trusting the white man is dangerous. I was told of the two political parties in America one was for Blacks and the other was for White people. For me, this did not sit well. I made it my duty to learn the history of the American culture. After all, it was both Black and White coaches who recruited me to the same university.

When I came to America, it was with the hope of earning a college degree and having a successful athletic career, I had very little. I had a backpack, a duffel bag, and some money to start life anew. However, if the system was so rigged against the Black race how could I, a black immigrant, succeed in such a culture? What I quickly learned about America was there was a system of law and order. There were also rewards and failures. Here, opportunities were unlimited and there was nothing that could prevent you from accomplishing your goals. I learned quickly to be successful, I had to see beyond racial matters and ignore the ideas of racial quotas.

Being told certain industries were for Whites only did not makes sense and was not my reality. I see myself as a man only limited by what I tell myself is unattainable. There were times of perceived racial issues that created distrust, but they were not the norms. Now this is not saying there are no racial issues in American society, but I chose not to entangle my mind with what I could not see. Some people would say to me the reason I succeeded as a Black immigrant in America is that I was not born here.

But the question I asked often was how would someone know that without knowing me? After all, my color is quite visible. And even after talking to me, my accent is not always that obvious. My ancestors, like Black Americans, were brought to Jamaica the same way as American Blacks. So, why did my father and mother not get afflicted by the same pathologies? My parents did not raise us to be distrusting of people because of how they look,. Instead, they focused on hard work and education. They stayed together despite the harsh realities of history, poverty, and poor governance.

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