Being Black in America

  As much as I want to comment on the Ferguson shooting, I feel as if this is still a fresh wound for the family of Michael Brown and those who are involved. So for the sake of respect, I am going to hold my opinion and release a post specifically about it at a later time.
  What I do want to talk about is a little bit about what it is to be black in America.
  So the first thing I want to say is that I identify as Nigerian, not African American. However, this is the kind of response I often times receive when I try to tell people this:
  -Person: So since you're Black, do you...(insert any African-American stereotype here)?
  -Me: Well, actually, I've never done that before, because I'm actually Nigerian.
  -Person: ...that's what I said.
  The point I want to present here is that in America, ethnicity doesn't matter (and I want to make a brief note that ethnicity and race are two distinctly different groupings). As far as Americans are concerned, all of us are to be identified solely by the color of our skin, or the way we look. You are either White, Black, or Asian. There's nothing else to it.
  So although I do not like this system, I am aware of it and do acknowledge that that is just how the society is.
  I also am aware of and acknowledge the racism and prejudice that people who are categorized as 'Black' receive. I know that we are all placed into one category, and most of the time people apply negative stereotypes to people who look like me. So even though I might be from Nigeria, and the girl in front of me might be from Trinidad (which both of these nations have distinctly different traditions and cultures from that of African Americans), when we both walk into the same building, all someone is going to see is our skin color, and automatically see us in the same light that they see the women who cause commotion on Jerry Springer.
  All of this being considered, I know that I am already held at a disadvantage, solely because of my skin color. This being said, I know that I have to go above and beyond to not only keep myself as far away as possible from the center of their radar and from the stereotypes that they have drilled in their minds about females that look like me, but also to shove them that what they make think about people who look like me is not applicable to all of us.
  That is the sincere way of saying it. Here is me being a little more blunt:
  "Racism is real in America, and as awful as it is, I have to be careful because even though they don't know me, I am already considered loud, rude, unruly and barbaric, and other Americans, especially those of the 'White' race, will not stop at any means if they see me to pose a greater threat to them than I already do because of my skin color."
  Here's my thing: this information that I have just stated isn't exclusive. I'm not at such a high level of thinking that what I've just said is something that I came to after deep contemplation. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE ALL KNOW, AND IF WE DON'T WE SHOULD. Let's not be so politically-correct that we won't acknowledge the state of race relations that exist in our society.
  My point is that being a black male or female in America means that YOU NEED TO BE CAREFUL. Yes, it is an unfortunate thing that we have to tiptoe around like this, despite being citizens of the United States of America, but it is simply also the truth.
  My advice: If you're a black male or female, don't get caught by the police with drugs. Don't be seen doing any suspicious things, don't be an instigator for any problems, and for heaven sakes, DON'T DRAW ANY NEGATIVE ATTENTION TO YOURSELF. Of course, we are all human, we all do bad things, and we all slip up sometimes. But my point of saying this is because if you get in trouble, whether with another civilian or with the law enforcement, YOU WILL BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, BECAUSE OF YOUR SKIN COLOR.
  It's not your fault. You just need to understand race relations, acknowledge where people of our skin color stand on the totem pole, and do everything in your control to not give anyone any more of a reason to suspect/accuse you of anything, or do any harm to you.
  Thanks for reading. Look forward to more posts by this title; I feel as if this is a good, relevant topic, and one that needs to be discussed across all races and generations.