I have been trying for some time to write something poignant about the Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson ever since they began. I tried to watch but I was immediately triggered in a negative way, so I decided against it. I must say that after watching a few soundbites that I admire her ability to remain resolute with all she had to endure. If anything, the nation has borne witness yet again to the struggles of the Black woman. In my work, I’ve experienced people not wanting to talk to me or my Black colleagues just because we are Black. Is this a surprise to me? Not by a longshot. We mitigate this by working with our Caucasian colleagues to achieve the intended results. Yes, in the Year of Our Lord 2022, this is still an issue.
A few years ago, I was leaving a lunch spot and in walked a Caucasion man with whom I was more than familiar, and had even exchanged hugs in my time of knowing him. That day, I noticed that he reached out his hand for a handshake. I quickly picked up on the sudden change. What was the difference? The man’s father was behind him and now that I think about it, looking at me disapprovingly. It is worth noting that in the times since I saw this man without his father, he went back to greeting me with the hugs that I thought were the norm. My mother had this phrase, “stick a pin in it,” that meant that you should remember anything from a certain thing in conversation to how a person treats you. Ever since that interaction, whenever I’ve seen him, I remember that phrase.
Do I think that this man is racist? I wouldn’t go that far. Could it have been that the man didn’t want his father to see him hugging another woman, regardless of race? Meh, I kinda doubt that. Do I think he cared that his father would have seen him hugging a Black woman? Absolutely. If I want to be real with myself, I have probably experienced this without me even realizing it. I’m willing to bet that this man’s father grew up with housekeepers who looked like me. I liken his father’s glance at me to those conducting Judge Brown Jackson’s hearings. How could such a qualified person be wrapped in such packaging?
My mom worked as a housekeeper and literally worked her fingers to the bone so I didn’t have to, and for that I am eternally grateful. My siblings and I had the best that she and my dad could provide. Due to their sacrifices, we had an opportunity. Lots of Black women are responsible for raising children in affluent neighborhoods and made and continue to make a respectable living doing it as housekeepers, and I have the utmost respect for the profession.
I said all of that to say this: people of color are fit to be more than housekeepers and thought of as lesser than. As a Black woman, it is exhausting to go through life with society persistently second-guessing your accomplishments. I’m not expecting to change any minds with this writing, but please understand that at some point, everyone, meaning all genders, races, colors, or any descriptors I can’t think to include here, needs an opportunity. Please stop thinking that only one group is fit to serve in prestigious positions! In fact, to do so is unfair to little girls (of all hues) who grow up to be women who feel like they shouldn’t even try because women who are rock stars in their respective fields are dragged through the proverbial mud. We are fit to lead. We are fit to judge.
#ksmithsays
ksmithsays 