Brown Town

Ahh yes, Richmond, VA AKA "Chocolate City." Well not really. Isn't that supposed to be Washington, D.C.?

It is tough being a person of brown skin. I was travelling with some friends once to Tampa, FL. We were in line to have our bags checked. I didn't know it but one of my friends in front of me had a switchblade in his backpack. Somehow he got through the scanners unscathed. Me, they pulled me out of line and asked me fun questions and checked my bags thoroughly. It may or may not have to do with the fact that I'm brown but considering I'm almost always being pulled aside out of line I'm going to err on the side of the fact that the TSA hates me.

Also growing up brown in VA has been difficult. If you live in Richmond or central VA you know what I'm talking about. The stares when you walk into a room. People assuming you are Indian (dots, not feathers), Filipino, or Mexican.

The worst part is getting a date in Richmond. The unfortunate thing about being brown here is that a lot of women seem to care about skin color. I'm OK with that. You like what you like. But jeez, I would like to have the odds in my favor for once in my life!

Comments

Sopheap said…
hey brown man....you have to glare when they stare. they'll be scared and look away. they're probably assuming you're indian, because they've never heard of chindians.

...just a thought.
March 20, 2008 at 11:08 AM
John K said…
I like the glare idea. And you should always take up a lot of room on the sidewalk so that when people walk by they have to go into the grass or street. They may then mistake you for a light skinned black guy. They then might assume you have a long...
March 21, 2008 at 9:09 AM
Unknown said…
I think the title of your blog entry is misleading.
March 21, 2008 at 2:40 PM
Alissa said…
Could be worse...you could have a jew nose. Then you would be SOL.
March 22, 2008 at 7:38 PM
Unknown said…
you're a CREEP. from the title even down to the picture you posted for this entry...
March 27, 2008 at 10:10 AM
M. said…
Yes, being in "brown town" can be difficult--you can't even make the claim, "black is beautiful" for yourself.

I also share your frustration in being grouped into a single mass of "the other." It's tough being the generic brown man or always being labeled as "Chinese" because people identify you with a fast food option and not a people. I began fighting back in high school, when I stopped distinguishing blondes as separate individuals--they now all look unnaturally the same to me.
March 30, 2008 at 4:56 PM
M. said…
One remedy for your "brown town" woes can be turning white. check out this blog called "Stuff White People Like" as a beginner's primer...

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/
March 30, 2008 at 5:08 PM
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