Experiencing Race for the First Time

Coming from a small farming community in rural Minnesota, I had not been extremely exposed to races, other than my own, growing up.  Sure there were a handful of Hispanics and Somalians living in Windom, but I never really had much interaction with these people of a different race.  All I had to go off of on how these people lived and behaved was stereotypes and generalizations I had heard from the news or from others within my own race.

My college search eventually led me to Hamline, a place that prides itself on diversity in all walks of life, race included.  Here I was given first hand experience into meeting and interacting with those who looked "just a little bit different" than myself or those I had become accustomed to.  At first, I was hesitant to begin building bonds with those who looked different than be, basing my decision off of the mainly negative stereotypes I had myself generated through my lifetime.  But being in a place like Hamline has really provided me with a great opportunity to see what these people really have to offer.

I have been forming bonds with those of other races and ethnicities more often now that I have been accepted as a New Student Mentor.  The New Student Mentor group prides itself on being a diverse group, and I feel safe to say that we definitely fit the bill.  We have people from different backgrounds, religions, political parties, races, you name it we probably got it!  Throwing away my negative stereotypes of other races from my previous years, I have developed good friendships with people of other races.

In this development of new friendships, I have been given an opportunity to see how people of races other than my own live their lives.  Many of them have shared personal stories with me about the obstacles they have overcame and the criticism and suffering they've endured just because they are of a color other than the predominant white. Looking back, I have now gained a great understanding for the difficulties being of a different race.  I can't say I'm an expert; however, because I haven't yet been placed in a situation where I am the minority race.  But I do have a feeling for what my new friends have been through in their struggle in our racist, stereotypical society.  We as a society have the ability to overlook race and color, as well as many other topics separating us from one another, but we just need to do it.  I have overlooked race and am super glad I did because I have formed friendships and learned that I am no different than my friends of a different race. Yes, they have been exposed to different situations due to the fact that they are not the majority, but all of us are the same.  Inside we are all the same color; we all bleed red.