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I was “taught” I was racist in 6th grade
I was fortunate to grow up in the melting pot that is the greater Los Angeles area. I had friends of every ethnicity you can think of. Hispanic, African American, Korean, Polish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Native American, and others.
I never thought about race growing up. I recognized we all looked different and our parents made us different food for lunch, but that was about the extent of my recognition of differences.
My parents didn’t teach me racism, so I never had negative thoughts or feelings about people based on their race. Some kids were bullies, some kids were nice, others were quiet, etc. However, I never associated certain traits with certain races. I say I was lucky to grow up in the area I did because I know not every part of the country is like this.
It wasn’t until I was in middle school that I learned about “my racism”. I’ll never forget the moment when teachers started trying to brainwash me into thinking I was someone I was not.
We were on a field trip to the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. We were in the building, about to start the tour, standing in front of two closed doors.
The teacher said “Anyone who is not a racist, walk through the door on the left. Anyone who is a racist, walk through the door on the right.”
