Everyday Racism in America and the Power of Forgiveness
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The residual emotions and the remembrance of the humiliation I felt as a young girl, even as I write this account, bring back feelings of resentment and sadness, and heaviness of spirit. Then my heart takes me right back to what I was taught by my mother and my Christian faith, that we should love one another. I never learned to love one group of people and hate the other, and so I let the hurt go—most of the time. I am, however, always aware that I am Black in America, a place where there is a history of discrimination and treating people badly simply because they are Black or poor or both... 'Would I change my blackness to be accepted by you? I am as God intended and so are you. And I can love you... I do love you—just the way you are.’
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About the Book
This autoethnographic study examines my experiences as an African American born and raised in the United States of America, who—from the time I realized I was Black at age ten until the present day, more than fifty years later—experiences racism either overtly or covertly on a daily basis. I first explore my days as a high school student involved in a court desegregation case and the trauma I experienced in the hostile environment where White students openly showed their racial hatred for the Black students who would dare to enroll in “their school.” I examine my life as a college student in Alabama at the height of the Civil Rights Movement and my participation in nonviolent protests, especially the famous Selma to Montgomery march led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
About the Author
Dr. Wilma J. Turner has been an elementary school teacher, central office administrator, consultant and instructional coach with over thirty years of experience as an educator. She has worked with new and veteran teachers and administrators, instructing them in the use of research-based teaching and learning strategies for improved academic achievement. She has received the Sister Thea Bowman Humanitarian Award for her work with the church and recognition for outstanding dedication and service in the field of education from the Kohl Education Foundation. Because of her love for music and singing since the age of three, she has a passion for the implementation of the arts into classroom instruction. She retired after twenty-seven years in the classroom, and seven in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) central office as a professional development facilitator. She continues her quest of being a life-long learner with her most recent achievement of graduating summa cum laude in her Biblical Studies program at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. She gives the glory to God for all of her achievements and believes her mission now is to share her experiences with everyday racism in America, and how they have taught her that love and forgiveness can give you added strength for living your best life.