Race And Ethnicity (90 found)
Note: These stories are from Represent and its sister publication, YCteen, which is written by New York City public high school students.
After the wave of protests following George Floyd's murder, many organizations asserted that "Black Lives Matter" to them. Gabrielle asks the ACS Commissioner how deep that commitment goes. (full text)
Stephanie's 8th grade history teacher makes racist remarks all year; she tells another teacher, who won't do anything. Finally, at graduation, she confronts the teacher, finding a new courage. (full text)
Shocked by the murder of George Floyd, Gabbie goes to her first Black Lives Matter protest. She is moved by the shared sense of purpose and embarks on more activism. (full text)
Josiah has studied the history of white violence against black people for several years. He thinks the country may be "awakening" in the wake of George Floyd's murder. (full text)
Kevin describes the double fear of disease and racist violence that Asian Americans are experiencing during the pandemic. (full text)
Claire and her family are shunned and insulted by xenophobic jerks in New York City. She questions her inclination to endure it without complaint, which is part of her Korean American upbringing. (full text)
Kevin interviews Meera Venugopal of the Asian American Federation, and Joyce Moy of the Asian American/Asian Research Institute, about how Asian Americans and allies can fight back against hate. (full text)
Christina has always felt invisible except as a “model minority.” After a classmate calls her “Corona” and she notices more xenophobia everywhere, she feels “seen” in a new and awful way. (full text)
Two therapists who specialize in trauma talk about why youth might minimize what they've been through and how misogyny and racism lead adults to underestimate and even blame youth for abuse they experience. (full text)
Confronted with racism and loneliness, Gabrielle drops out of college. Back home, she works hard to turn her life back around, inspiring her little sister and other Latinas in care. (full text)
Bryant joins the youth program Police Explorers, and then gets racially profiled by two officers who haul him down to the station. He explores both sides of the issue of police harassment of young black men. (full text)
Jazmine connects bell hooks' insights on class and race to what she sees around her and suggests ways for poor people of color to organize. (full text)
The author is raised by a volatile and abusive mother. When she finds herself acting like her mother and screaming at her boyfriend, she is appalled. She gets therapy. (full text)
Jessica experiences racism and internalizes it. A natural hair blog and a growing understanding of society help her see that black is beautiful. (full text)
Christina feels unconnected to her name. She doesn't know her father, her mother abused her, and her last name can probably be traced back to slavemasters. She tries out some new names. (full text)
James conducts a brief lesson in African-American history, in the form of a quiz. We learn about the first African-American to earn an international pilot's license, in addition to more well-known greats from the past. (full text)
At April’s school, students segregate themselves by hanging out in different hallways according to race and ethnicity. (full text)
Hattie's relationship with her latest foster mother bends but doesn't break. (full text)
When she enters 7th grade as the only black student in her class, Desiree is thrown into confusion about her racial identity. (full text)
Natasha interviews minority teens in the suburbs to explore the relationship between race and success. (full text)
Angelina feels out of place at the elite private school she attends where she’s one of the only black students. (full text)
As a Muslim teen who dresses traditionally, Sara becomes an object of attention after 9/11 and gets harassed on the street. (full text)
Anne, who lives in a group home, meets Cliff and they soon fall in love. But Anne can't tell Cliff her living situation, nor that her mother is a racist. (full text)
Kizzy is nervous about attending an overwhelmingly white school in Minnesota. But once on campus she makes friends of all races. (full text)
When George, who is Chinese, moves to the Bronx, he is frequently taunted by black kids. But after a black youth befriends and defends him, George moves beyond his stereotypes. (full text)
Jamal speaks standard English, can’t dance, and prefers baseball to basketball. Does this mean he’s less black than his peers? (full text)
Allen's family and friends call each other "n-gga" all the time and it isn't until the 4th grade that he learns the racist meaning of the word. He's been confused about whether or not to use it ever since. (full text)
Sue’s boyfriend tells her that if she were a “real” Korean girl, she would listen to him when he told her what to do. (full text)
Edwidge describes the bewilderment, culture shock, and stereotypes she faces on arriving in the U.S. from Haiti at 12. She will later credit this essay with helping to inspire her novel Breath, Eyes, Memory, which became a New York Times bestseller. (full text)
Rainier feels different at his predominately white school, but writes that "hearing I’m 'not black enough' stings worse than being the odd one out." (full text)
Savannah reads about accomplished black women and writes, "When I learn about historical figures who look like me achieving great things, it shows me that a lot is possible despite the odds I may have to face. (full text)
Frustrated by school experiences that devalue her identity, Christina writes, “I don’t have to conform to this one-dimensional caricature of what it means to be black.” (full text)
Rainier writes about the conflict between society expecting him to be unintelligent because he’s black, and his parents’ high expectations. (full text)
How should schools respond to racist behavior? Rainier looks at both sides of the issue surrounding a protest staged by students of color at Ethical Culture Fieldston high school this past winter. (full text)
“When I tried creating black characters, it felt forced. I worried about creating racist clichés,” writes Savannah. (full text)
After she begins struggling with her own mental health, Gaby explores the Black community’s stigma around seeking professional help. (full text)
The writer wants to fit in with his friends so much, he is willing to remain in denial about their racism. (full text)
Melissa writes about colorism not just in her Guyanese community but within her Guyanese family. (full text)
Christina vividly explores her feelings surrounding the burden of being one of the only people of color in her school. (full text)
Angie feels discriminated against when a teacher accuses her of cheating after she performs “too well” on a quiz. (full text)
The writer is upset with the superficial way that Black History Month is traditionally taught, so she takes it upon herself to learn about lesser-known historical figures.
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In his sports column, TJ’s Take, the writer reports on high school athletes who have been emulating the N.F.L. pros by kneeling to protest injustice during the national anthem. (full text)
Ria examines how Black people have been historically oppressed from after the Civil War to the present. “Slavery and legal segregation are still affecting us,” she writes. (full text)
“Being Chinese felt like a bad kind of different, like a crack in a wall,” writes Winnie. Determined to push back against the racist remarks she encounters, Winnie takes action and writes a play. (full text)
In grade school, Gaby is often called an Oreo and writes, “I began to feel as if I wasn’t black. That I was an outsider in my own race.” (full text)
Is the two-time NFC champion quarterback not getting offered a contract because he’s being punished for his activism against racism? Toyloy presents his case for why he believes that he is. (full text)
As a reporter for her school newspaper, Aishamanne is accused of being angry and “ranting” about race. After discussing this with friends, she concludes it’s important for her to speak her truth, no matter what others think. (full text)
When Aishamanne changes schools in 3rd grade, the new girls make fun of her dreadlocks. She begins exploring her historical heritage and learns her dreads are a proud "radical expression of my blackness." (full text)
Bryant joins the youth program Police Explorers, and then gets racially profiled by two officers who haul him down to the station. He explores both sides of the issue of police harassment of young black men. (full text)
Jaelyn heads down to New York City’s City Hall to cover rally protesting police brutality against black people organized by Millions March NYC, a local group affiliated with Black Lives Matter. (full text)
Aniqa reports on racism experienced by black students in her school. When a #hashtag is created to inspire students to speak out, the school community must confront difficult issues. (full text)
Imani is persecuted in grade school for being dark-skinned. Then a book and a famous actress help her claim the word "dark" as one that describes beauty. (full text)
Kristine is half-Japanese, half-white and is stared at in Japan. When she moves to New York, she's happy to find that nobody gives her a second glance. (full text)
After Lisuini learns the history of the ‘n’ word, and “how it was used to abuse and demean black people,” he decides to drop it from his vocabulary. (full text)
Andre says he feels like he has more in common with a white runner or writer than he does a black hip hop artist. (full text)
After the decision not to indict the white police officer accused of killing Eric Garner, who was black, five writers went to their first-ever protest. (full text)
Chimore ponders how other black people use the "n" word lightly. The word's history as a tool of oppression ultimately keeps her from joining them in using this or any slur. (full text)
Jovon reviews a film about teens wrongfully convicted in the 1989 Central Park jogger rape case and considers whether the same thing could happen today. (full text)
Brief comments from Queens teens on what it's like to live in America's most diverse county. (full text)
Nesshell admires the Anti-Defamation League's message of tolerance. But in attempting to spread this message, she learns that she won't always meet with like-minded people. (full text)
Describes a recent wave of attacks on Latin Americans in Staten Island, the community's response, and the definition of a hate crime. (full text)
Angelica researches the origins of some common ethnic and racial slurs, and notes that it's the intent of the user—rather than anything inherent in the word—that gives a slur its sting. (full text)
As a person of mixed race, Brittany has never considered interracial relationships a big deal. She interviews peers who have been involved in interracial relationships to learn more about the practical pros and cons. (full text)
Margarita unintentionally offends a black classmate. After the two girls cool down and talk, they find friendship. (full text)
After being mugged by two black boys, Chantal—who is African-American, herself—starts to think that racial profiling is justified if personal safety is at stake. (full text)
After talking to author Adam Mansbach, Evin realizes that white people in America still enjoy certain advantages. (full text)
Meghan is the only white girl in Anita's junior high grade. When Anita, a black person, befriends Meghan, she learns about a culture she never experienced before. (full text)
Samantha, who is black, has a difficult adjustment to the overwhelmingly white University of Michigan. (full text)
In junior high school, Nesshell was ostracized by her peers for "acting white." More recently, she was taunted and called the N-word by white kids in a chat room. Labeled on both sides, she wonders in frustration whether people are capable of seeing her for herself. (full text)
When Irving realizes that his 4th grade teacher has been criticizing and isolating him because he is dark-skinned, he develops a plan to prove that skin color is not an obstacle for learning.
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Renea reports on a series of studies that show how our brains are hard-wired to categorize people by race. She explains that, although some biases may come naturally, there are easy ways to counteract them and become more open to people who are different from us. (full text)
Kelly explains the historical origins of the idea of race, which has no basis in science. She argues that we should be taught to appreciate our essential sameness as well as our differences, since moving beyond race will make it more possible for people to be judged by their actions. (full text)
Ebony critiques the usefulness of HotGhettoMess.com, a website that seeks to shame blacks and Latinos who "act ghetto" and perpetuate negative stereotypes about people of color. (full text)
Evin interviews Adam Mansbach—author of a novel in which white people spend a day apologizing to black people—and ponders the usefulness of the word "sorry." (full text)
YCteen interviews three experts on race: Rinku Sen, a racial justice activist; Lasana Harris, a neuroscientist who studies how our brains process race; and Dalton Conley, a sociologist and author of the memoir "Honky." (full text)
Jimmy, who is Asian-American, becomes friends with a Puerto Rican classmate and they visit several of the city's Puerto Rican neighborhoods together. Jimmy learns to appreciate another culture and develops a new appreciation for his own Chinese background. (full text)
Evin's parents warn him to avoid certain neighborhoods and he develops a wariness toward anyone from the "ghetto." It's not until he befriends kids from hood that he learns to separate "bad neighborhoods" from the people who live there. (full text)
Margarita introduces the race issue by explaining that, while it may be uncomfortable to speak honestly about race and ethnicity, it's a necessary step toward racial healing. (full text)
Nesshell summarizes the Shirley Sherrod story that arose in the national news during the summer. She concludes that the way media and government figures reacted to Sherrod's message bodes badly for prospects of racial healing. (full text)
The students at Phillippe’s international high school tend to stick with people of their own nationality. But soccer brings them together. (full text)
Erica interviews psychiatrist Alvin Poussiant about why therapy has a bad name, especially among African-Americans. (full text)
Janill, who is Ecuadorian, is bothered when people assume she’s Puerto Rican or Dominican. (full text)
Angelina profiles the strengths and weaknesses of the Prep for Prep program, which places bright, motivated minority students into private schools. (full text)
A $20,000 yearly tuition buys a lot of educational advantages at Angelina's private school. (full text)
Paula Giddings' book describes black women's integral role in both the civil rights and feminist movements. (full text)
Will asks a trusted principal about the lack of black teachers in his school and explains why this lack is problematic. (full text)
Asa tries to ignore a friend’s racist comments and behavior, but it snowballs and soon she must confront not only her “friend” but also the principal. (full text)
How teachers can better support students of color and respond more effectively to racism in their schools. (full text)