My African American Identity

An identity marker that is most prominent is my race of being African American. This is something that is seen for anything, it gives everyone a view of an African American that is not tasteful. Which is sad that in society I am categorized, but I am even introduced. Being an African American has made some moments in my life hard. It has showcased to me that I considered a subordinate as Tatum would say. To add, being a subordinate inside and outside of the classroom has also played a huge part in my life. My first revelation of my race and how it defined me and how people perceive me can be at the age of six. Leading up to this point I was the type of child who found joy in things the many black kids would not. For instance, I would read books before I would think about going outside to play with other kids. To accompany this passion for reading I have a proper dialect, or as people in the African American Culture would say, I talked “white.” I did not

This speaking “white” that I carried traveled with me as I grew my speaking “white” only occurred when I was at school and I began to talk like the rest of my family members. As TE 250 processed and our reading of “black” Cultural Capital, Status Positioning, and Schooling Conflicts for Low Income African American Youth, I was able to get an understanding that my dialect was considered code-switching. This moment displayed to me that my identity was my voice, it was not what everyone expected to hear from an African American which is broken English and loud speaking which