Personal Reflective Essay: I Am Racist

Some of the common themes that I have identified in my life about racism are being too afraid to admit that I am racist, ignorance, and the fear of offending someone. It is hard to admit that I am racist because it is not an appealing quality. A recent event that validates that I am racist was when I went on a plane. I told my friend that if I saw someone who was from the Middle East I would freak out inside. I felt bad saying this, but this is how I truly feel. I would never say anything to the person, but I would be genuinely afraid of them if they got onto the plane. This shows that I am racist. It may not be just towards African American people it is towards Muslims too. I feel horrible for feeling this way, but I am very terrified of planes

I do believe that I am ignorant and me being white has hid me from the reality of life. I have grown in my thoughts about different cultures. What I strive most to overcome is ignorance. I want to travel the world helping people when I get out of college. I recently went to China and I grew more in their culture which helped me to better understand the world around me. I try and take different perspectives, like stepping in another’s shoes. How would they feel if I did this? What would occur if I did this action? I find that some people cannot take another’s perspective. Could it be that they just have not experienced the world like I have? Is it possible that I am overthinking everything? An example of this took place in China. My friend and I were going out to dinner with high executives in the company we were working with. I wore a dress and she wore shorts and a crop top. I explained to her that I wanted to make a good impression on them. She did not care because her father was the CEO and they could do nothing to her. I never stepped in her shoes to see how she feels on the subject, but she never understood why I cared about impressions. This shows me that she could not step into my shoes to understand where I was coming from. Ignorance is a characteristic that many people have. It will one day go away as we get older and have new