Personal Narrative: My Experience As An African In America
MY EXPERIENCE AS AN AFRICAN IN AMERICA
Arriving in the US three months ago I honestly thought it would be easy to introduce myself as African and be understood and accepted. I said to myself "they are black just like you so what is the worse that could happen?" But the experiences I have had so far have made me realize that life in the US is not all that it is made out to be.
I always assumed that black to black racism did not exist but to my utmost shock, it does exist. I realize now that it goes beyond being a part of the same race. It is about your skin tone, accent, culture, education etc. the black people I have encountered so far in the US at Philander Smith College have been nothing short of ignorant and racist.
I remember being at the school's bistro one Wednesday afternoon waiting in line to get food. I was extremely hungry as I had a long day
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And believe it or not some still have the notion that Africa is a country and not a continent, how redundant can things get? They make the assumption that since I am from Africa I shouldn't be able to dress properly, like the time a girl asked how I learned to dress so fashionably being that I am from Africa. It has really been an unpleasant few months here.
The experiences I have had in America have made me see black Americans as ignorant. They should get better educated so that they will not offend other people with their unlearned questions. Questions that obviously stems from their misconceptions about Africa and how Africans there live. Africa is a continent with 54 countries and everyone from those countries are educated and so speak fluent English and dress well just like every other educated person in the world. I have only spent three months here so I sincerely hope it gets better than
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