Wake-Up Call
Let’s be honest. White people do not have to deal with racism on the same level as people of color. Everyone can acknowledge that racism exists, but you don’t fully realize how prevalent it is if you look a certain way. Being in an interracial relationship is a big wake-up call for some white people.
This storyteller explains that dating her partner has made her more conscious of things she had never noticed. Her boyfriend, who is not white, immediately picks up on microaggressions and uncomfortable situations because he’s had to experience them his whole life. He will subtly tell our storyteller the subtext of what is going on in a given situation. As a white person, she has the privilege of not being aware of this subtext.