How To Be Black

“I distinctly remember going to sleep and thinking that I wanted to be White when I woke up”

In answer to the Day 3 Question “Have You Ever Wanted To Not Be Black or ___?

There was a time that I thought wanted to be White. From the ages of about 7 to about 16 I went to a YMCA summer camp in Connecticut with a lot of kids (Black and White) who had wealthy parents and I distinctly remember going to sleep and thinking that I wanted to be White when I woke up. Eventually I learned through observation and experience that being White isn’t the answer to life’s slings and arrows.

February 3 - Have You Ever Wanted To Not Be Black?

Throughout Black History Month (and beyond), we’ll be focusing on questions of identity. For day three, we’re asking a question also asked in How To Be Black: have you ever wanted to not be black or _____? If you’re not black, we still want to hear your story!

Submit your story (especially in video), and check out what The Black Panel said in the book.

Here’s how:

  • Pick a question to answer from this list or make your own
  • Click here or the “Submit” button on the top of the page
  • Choose how you’d like to submit. We appreciate video submissions (upload to Vimeo/Youtube then embed) but you can submit in other formats.
  • Indicate the question you’re answering in the title or post section! This will help us a ton when organizing the submissions.