Isn't it funny? Until Middle school, we don't see color? We understand that everyone has a different tone but don't pay attention to it. A magic spell gets cast over the whole student body and everyone falls into a category.
Especially depending on the community you live in. Middle school was a sea of Brown and White. Black students became minorities. The melanin girls fell short of the boys. Which in some cases doesn't sound bad, but when the boys crave attention from other groups and ethnicities black girls and their pain became a big run-on joke. Every day I would watch adultification become a prior source of issues to the black girls. Causing the small batch of us to divide and torment each other.
Constantly judged on our curls, body type, and complexion. You suddenly became gross and unknown to people you have known for years because of group mentality.
I remember every so often, I would catch a girl a little lighter or darker than me, looking at themself in the mirror. Which is all good and fine until you can see that their eyes were glossy like they were going blind. When really they were wondering what was wrong with them.
I remember girls constantly having fingers in their hair like they were an animal at a petting zoo. Oblivious girls would constantly ask them the same questions about their hair and then mock it behind their back. Boys that they might have had an interest in would gawk at their shade because it wasn't something they've seen on their internet feed. You could tell by the girl's stance and menacing walk that they weren't being the "angry black woman" they had to have a shield of protection to get by.
Knowing that I obviously wasn't among the "popular". I became a clown for those to watch every day not more so because of my skin color but for my hair. Which I knew was coming but my hair wasn't changing not for them anytime soon. I went from blue to rainbow, to pink to anything that caught my eye.
I was walking upstairs to one of my classes one day when a wind kicked up and bright colored cloth flew past me. I turn to see three kids wearing what seemed to be flags made into capes. My eyes widened when I saw the colors of each cape. Pink, yellow, blue. Pink, purple, blue, and Rainbow. Are those pride flags? They are walking around in the most closed-minded school with the symbolism of their sexuality?? They pranced around the halls until they were completely out of my sight.
While I walked to my next class I pondered the thought of their actions. Not that there was anything wrong with it. I was just confused on why they did so.
Walking into my class the lights were more than bright, theatrical imagery consumed the room. I quickly walked out thinking I was in the wrong class. I bumped into a lady just below my height. She had orange-tinted brown braids with puffs at the end. A torso long brown cardigan, forest green bell bottoms, and black heeled boots.
" Where do you think you're going, Missy?"
She cheerfully shouted, while tapping her foot and adjusting her glasses.
"I- have English and-"
She stopped me mid-sentence and shoved me into the classroom.
"Dear! You're here!"
She made her way to the front of the class.
I felt a tap where my shoulder meets my armpit.
"Yo- of course, we got the crazy old black lady!"
I turned my head quickly to see Purple. I whispered back to her.
"I should have known your ass got this class!"