The Inevitable Conversation on Race

“Why Do We Have to Talk About Race So Much?” 

After reading this article, I began to reflect on ways people see race. Teaching in a district that consists of predominantly white and black students with a low percentage of immigrant families, it is not surprising that race is not a topic of conversation. Part of the reason race is not easily spoken about could be due to the account of the conversation being awkward or uncomfortable. I realize that uncomfortable feelings are inevitable when talking about such an important topic with so many  different notions tied to race. In any case, people must talk about these injustices and their discomfort in order to provide a stance for action to take place. Looking back through my life, I started to see how race meant something different for everyone. Some view race as a way of life that is tied to a deeper rooted culture. Some view race as something they are proud of and are held accountable to, while others view race as something everyone has but can be looked past. These differing notions of race lead me to ask myself: What happens when these ideas of race contradict? When looking for my answer, I looked at the title of this article. Contradicting ideas on race leads to a conversation. Hopefully these conversations lead to a better understanding that race is not an easily defined concept and has deeper implications for different groups of people. We all have a race or multiple races, so why not talk about it?