The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

One memory that I have in my mind involving prejudice and bias would be when President Obama won the Presidential Election in November.  I remember posting how happy I was that our President was elected once again, and how this was indeed another historical moment in time.  What I stated was indeed a fact.  President Obama being the first African American president was definitely history.  I was actually posting on my Facebook status and one of my former co-workers decided that she needed to voice her opinion about MY post on MY page.  This particular individual proceeded to state that you can not give a black person power because they are not used to power and would not know what to do with it.  I, of course am African American, and she is Caucasian.  I could not believe that she had the audacity to say those words, but more than that, post it on my page as a comment.  She stated that she likes some black people, but we as blacks should not have money and power.  Needless to say, she was ripped inside out by others that read her comment.  I chose not to entertain her ignorance, and deleted her as a friend.  I was very surprised to learn that she felt this way and it really helped me put some things into perspective.  You never really know a person, that's for sure!

This individual made it very clear that there was no equity when it came to people of color having the same level of wealth and power as Caucasians.  Well, this was her sick opinion.  I was embarrassed for this woman, and also embarrassed that I ever learned of her true feelings about African Americans.  She sent me a message later apologizing for how she voiced her opinion, but not "what" she said.  She said this is how she really feels and she couldn't apologize for that.  I never responded because I had no idea what to say to her. I was baffled!  It was very clear that there was no changing for this person, she is who she is!