Although I currently live in a town known as "Hicksville," I had never actually encountered any real-life hicks until yesterday.
WARNING: This is one of those posts where if you comment "cool post!" I'll know for damn sure you didn't read it. Just sayin'. Lol.
Before you go thinking the worst - let me explain. I'm the kind of person who likes to believe racism doesn't exist because it's nice living in a fantasy world sometimes, even if life experience and months of thesis research has taught me otherwise. I've never really witness blatant racism in front of my face (I don't feel like TV shows with those "moral lessons" at the end count) but let me tell you, it's not pretty on TV and it's not pretty in reality.
In fact, the "it" I'm talking about was about 5'4, with one leg visibly shorter than the other and various missing teeth.
I was sitting down outside of one of my favorite low-cost (sort of) eating establishments, Panera Bread, waiting for my ride when "it" happened. I hate being alone in public places when I'm waiting for something, so I kept busy by texting random people on my phone. I hear some who without looking I could tell were black, and yes, they were being a bit loud. I even thought this to myself. They were all wearing their respective mall-store uniform and talking about everything, loudly. Things that they probably could have kept to themselves, to be honest, but it was their conversation nonetheless. And that's when I hear it.
"F*cking n*ggers."
I stop sipping my lemonade. Maybe I had heard wrong? Maybe they were joking themselves and trying to imitate someone? Either way it wasn't funny and it was even less funny when I heard it again, only this time much louder.
Enter aforementioned 5'4 white woman, with one leg visibly shorter than the other and various missing teeth. The group of people are still talking, and laughing now because they finally heard her. I was sure that something was about to go down and I needed to get out of there asap. Where was this woman from thinking she could talk like this? I must be naive because I thought this sort of thing only happened in the Deep South.
The woman makes her way closer to me.
Ahh, f*ck me, right?
But she doesn't stop at me. She goes up to this random elderly couple who are minding their damn business but just as uncomfortable as I am and starts complaining about how blacks don't pay taxes and are bringing down our country. I have never witness such bigotry before in my life. The couple gets up and walks away from her, and she takes their spot in the table next to mine.
"Ma'am"?
Oh so, now I'm 'maam'?
"Excuse me, ma'am"?
I turn to look at her because at this point I was avoiding eye contact. I didn't know if I wanted to cry or fight.
"Are you Spanish"?
Here we go . . .
"I'm black," I snap back, matter-of-factly. Anytime someone asks me what I am I try to mention both my ethnicities. I'm not sure why but this time I was just black and she was pissing me off. I'm not a fighter by any means and I know she probably has no concept of how much of an ignorant racist she is but I was getting so angry with her being there and that's not like me.
"Hmph. You don't look it." (I did look it, fyi) "I'm sorry, but people like them make it bad for you."
At that moment my ride honks for me and not a second too soon. Did this woman honestly think that we're the reason for racism against ourselves??? YOU ARE THE PROBLEM.
There are so many hateful things I wanted to say at that moment that I know I wouldn't mean. I wanted to talk about her missing teeth, or her walking with a limp, or her nasty-ass hair but I'm sure she would have fired back with the well-thought out comeback of "at least I'm not black."
So instead I got in the car and left and said a little prayer for her.
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SIDENOTE: This isn't about a black vs. white thing. This is about a dumb-ass old woman. I promise a happier post coming soon, lol. This just reeeeeeeally ticked me off. Shout out to my new followers though! :D And of course, I still love my old ones.
