Black in Vermont: Have "Friends" and be Fake or have less Friends and be "Real"

Disclaimer: This series is a reflection of what it was like to be a black woman in Vermont. I learned a lot from my time in Vermont as well. This is in NO WAY stating that everyone in Vermont is racist or holds the same views. This post explores how it was like for me to live in a "liberal" homogenous state. This series is not only about heavy and sad topics but will also discuss fun topics as well. Lastly, if I mention an incident DO NOT assume that the person I am talking about is a Vermont native etc. Again, the title of this series is "Black in Vermont" because I am a black woman who was living in Vermont at the time. This series was started because many people I did not know were asking me about my experience in Vermont. These people were young black people who wanted to know how life would be in a liberal state with virtually no diversity. DO NOT READ TO DEEPLY INTO THE TITLE...IT IS JUST A TITLE LOL!


Disclaimer: Please pay attention to the links sprinkled throughout this post, they are there to educate you. 


While living in Vermont I met ALOT OF COOL PEOPLE! Some of these cool people were Vermont natives and then some of these people were new to Vermont like me. However, I also meet ALOT of problematic people, to say the least. These people were problematic because they practically sprayed microaggressions around like they were spraying perfume, were blatantly racist, or thought they were "so liberal and progressive" when they really HAD A LOT OF WORK TO DO. 

When I was living in a small town and going to a small school I felt like I had to keep the peace and be professional. In addition, since I am a black woman (especially one from an area like Metro-Detroit) living in a predominantly white area, I did not want to come across as being an "angry black woman" or the "ghetto black girl from Detroit." Despite these fears, I just never did the fake (thank you Detroit for teaching me to keep it real). Instead, I would talk in class if someone said something ignorant, only hung out with people that I genuinely liked, and did not let people disrespect me. However, I did have to pick and choose my battles ( I had to protect my mental health). This meant that I did not scream at the guy who asked me, "how are black woman able to drop dat ass" or  growl at the guys that referred to me as a "hot black girl." 

I encourage anyone who is going to be in a similar situation as myself to keep it real. Do not make problematic people feel comfortable ... they never make you feel comfortable!  Instead, keep it real and say #byeFelicia to the losers who will only like you of you are a docile black person. I mean ... who needs that negativity anyway.