I DIDN’T KNOW I WAS BLACK

Clearly, my skin is black blikiddy black. But growing up, I didn’t really know that I was “Black”. I was HUMAN, that’s all that ever matter. Growing up in Zambia everyone looked like me, and spoke like me- we were all one big community. My parents never once came to me and said “Sweetie, you are black and this is how the world will perceive you, or this is how you are expected to act” It was a no brainer, almost everyone looked like me, so there was no need for such an awkward conversation. My life and childhood in Zambia were pretty normal and nothing like the “Africa”  we see on TV.

When I moved to the United States in 2011, It hit me that I was different. I was BLACK. I spoke “African” and looked different, that alone would get me the side eye . To top it all I pronounced water as wota instead of WATEERRRR. I finished all my words, TWENTY instead of TWENI. It made it even more transparent that I was a fish out of water. It felt like I came from being a part of a majority group, to being a part of what felt like a minority group.

Then again, I found that the African continent was misrepresented, the very first thing I had to point out to some was that Africa was a continent, not a country and that I didn’t know their only African acquaintance from Togo, or Ghana (Oh so you are from Africa, you might know my friend Mohamed. He is from Africa too). Just like they wouldn’t know my friend from Idaho or Arizona.

Africa is not home of “diseased and impoverished children”, lions and tigers in people’s backyards, and naked people swinging from treehouse to treehouse.  It is home of gold, diamonds, coffee, wildlife, and civilization. I bet they did tell you that huh? Yes civilization begun in Egypt, Africa. Africa is home of the victoria falls (Zambia), which is largest waterfall in the world. It home of the Sahara desert, largest desert in the world. Nile river, which happens to be the longest river in the world, mount kilimanjaro- the tallest freestanding mountain in the world, also known as the rooftop of Africa, and the very famous pyramids of Egypt. I could go on and on, really. It’s such a beautiful place.

On the bright side, there were those who were socially aware and in touch with reality. They understood the culture diversity, wonders of nature, economic struggles and relevant day to day struggles. I too got in tune with the struggles that my Afro American brothers and sister had been facing. The Racial/social injustices such as police brutally, discrimination on the basis of skin color alone, Gender inequality and any other, also became a part of my struggle too. I had to educate myself with black history and just American history in general. I have learnt how to be BLACK in America.

The abundance dose of melanin doesn’t make me black or African, it is what comes with it. As for being African, I love the rich culture heritage, the sense of belonging and Ubuntu (shared humanity), the vast history- I could go to my grandfather today and trace my ancestors up to 2 to 3 generations as far back as the 18th-19th centuries. We could roughly pinpoint where my journey begun.

And as a resident of The United states of America, I love that it is home for immigrants and a land of opportunities. You can literally be whoever you want to be in this land. You could be Cardi B or Ava Duvernay. You could be Ru Paul or P. Diddy; whatever floats your boat.

With all the opportunities and struggles that come with both worlds, I humbly say that I am blessed to experience them both. I will thrive to wedge the gap between the two and hopefully help people understand that we are more alike than different. I thank you for reading.

Did you ever feel different because of how you looked, spoke or based on your religious beliefs? Share your DIFFERENT story with me, I’d like to hear it.