Growing up as a white girl in a predominantly white suburban town, I heard my fair share of racist discourse and jokes that only made me feel as though I had made the right decision in hiding who I am. Only once, when I was a senior in high school, did I let my secret slip. I immediately regretted it after someone made a joke about saying hello to my family the next time they went to Taco Bell, and I buried my secret even deeper.
Maybe I've been unfair in my assumptions about other people. Maybe, given the current state of affairs in our country, I've been justified. I don't know. But what I do know is that I'm not hiding anymore, and I will no longer keep quiet when I hear. They do, and it's the reason why I've spent close to three decades hiding who I am. Now, I'm doing my best to learn all I can about who I am and how I can best stand up for others like me.