I didn't see this until 2016. I knew the racism was there but I thought it was a bug, not a feature. I was a blue-collar white girl, intent on pulling my self up by my own boots straps, all about the hustle, doing odd jobs under the table for cash, gig work. All through high school, all through college, into medical school. It should be …
I didn't see this until 2016. I knew the racism was there but I thought it was a bug, not a feature.
I was a blue-collar white girl, intent on pulling my self up by my own boots straps, all about the hustle, doing odd jobs under the table for cash, gig work. All through high school, all through college, into medical school. It should be no surprise, many of my coworkers where first generation immigrants (or their kids) or Black. I went to a HBCU for summer classes, and met a lot of kids who were dealing with the same challenges (plus some big extra ones) as me. Work/school combo. How to get places without a car. Where to sleep over the summer. How to minimize student loan debt.
I was a Republican voter based on my values (hard work! Succeed!) and then in 2016, it became obvious to me that the Republican party had turned on the people actually living conservative values. I identified more with my Mexican co-workers and Black classmates more than I ever could with the likes of Trump, I was utterly disgusted and bewildered because this vehemently racist talk was coming from my family. And they were hating on the people who lived life the same way I did and it absolutely crushed me, and I've never gotten over it.
I didn't see this until 2016. I knew the racism was there but I thought it was a bug, not a feature.
I was a blue-collar white girl, intent on pulling my self up by my own boots straps, all about the hustle, doing odd jobs under the table for cash, gig work. All through high school, all through college, into medical school. It should be no surprise, many of my coworkers where first generation immigrants (or their kids) or Black. I went to a HBCU for summer classes, and met a lot of kids who were dealing with the same challenges (plus some big extra ones) as me. Work/school combo. How to get places without a car. Where to sleep over the summer. How to minimize student loan debt.
I was a Republican voter based on my values (hard work! Succeed!) and then in 2016, it became obvious to me that the Republican party had turned on the people actually living conservative values. I identified more with my Mexican co-workers and Black classmates more than I ever could with the likes of Trump, I was utterly disgusted and bewildered because this vehemently racist talk was coming from my family. And they were hating on the people who lived life the same way I did and it absolutely crushed me, and I've never gotten over it.