January 5, 2011 | 5:45 PM | By

“Get used to things like racism, hot sauce.”

FILED UNDER: Media, Privilege, Racial Divide

DCentric

Local hot sauce-goodness from Uncle Brotha.

Now reading: “How to be Black“, from Thought Catalog (thanks, PostBourgie):

Really love or really hate Tyler Perry movies.

Get asked every summer if black people tan.

Get laughed at in elementary, junior, and high school by all your black friends because you “talk white.” Philosophize for years about what it means to “talk white.” Have an identity crisis. Go away to college or boarding school and have your new white friends swear up and down you’re nothing like the way black people are “supposed” to be. What happened to you?  Go home with your new white friends during holidays, play the role of Model Black.

Seamlessly slip in and out of Ebonics. Talk to your friends in one voice but as soon as a family member or another black calls, thass when you be done’ took the Ebonics out.

Get used to not seeing other black people on the covers of magazines, in any of the advertisements, or in any of the movies. Cringe when Your Local News shows racist images of black people, such as mug shots, jail shots, and videos of robberies. Get used to people assuming you like rap. Get used to things like racism, hot sauce.

About the author

DCentric was created to examine the ways race and class interact in Washington, D.C., a city with a vibrant mix of cultures and neighborhoods. Your guides to the changing district are reporters Anna John and Elahe Izadi. View all posts by Anna →

  • DCR

    Your journey to self esteem, huh? Interesting, but I don’t know what it has to do with hot sauce. On that note, Uncle Brutha’s hot sauce is delicious, and local.

  • Anonymous

    Not quite my journey, but possibly the journey of the piece’s author. :) And yes, Uncle Brutha’s #10 was delightfully hot and tasty. Yum!