2.1. My family and I were coming through the city of Moulton late one night, when we drove up on a KKK rally. I recall my father telling us to be quiet and lay down. My dad turned off his head lights and slowly went the other way. When we got home my parents explained to my brother and I that some people disliked others because of their race and because they had been taught that they felt they were right.
3. Today
4. Let's be friends Age18
4.1. While mentoring at local middle school, I had the privilege to meet a young boy that spoke Arabic. The young boy had been adopted and had only been in the states for 2 months. Inspite of the cultural change he appeared to be confident and eager to learn. Even though, we were unable to communicate verbally, he would often refer to pictures in his picture dictionary to communicate. We began to build a friendship over eating Doritos together for snack. He would try to teach the other students and I how to write in Arabic.
5. You don't belong Age 8
5.1. During home room meeting, we were introduced to our first non-English speaking student. She was very distance and kept her head down most of the time. A group of kids began to pick on her and call her names. After constant nagging, she began to scream and speak in her native language. Even though, we could not understand what she was saying we all felt her pain.
6. Disowned by her family Age 17
6.1. My white friend had just found out she was pregnant by a black boy and was afraid to tell her family. As support I went with her believing her family would be disappointed but would support her the process. To my surprise the family began to rant about how "you weren't suppose to sleep with the help" and other degrading remarks about the African American race. I can recall hearing her mother say "What will everyone at church think of us?" As I began to walk away, her mother called my name and said, "Please, don't take that personal , your not like those kind of people."
