It took me a long time to realize that NOT all people were like the stereotypes that my parents and people around me reinforced. I would walk around all day and I would be amongst white people and NEVER see them. I would walk past them, and couldn’t tell one from the other-literally. Growing up in an urban area, white men would come in with a Black woman and my dad would say “He is so nasty and fat. She must be a prostitute.” My dad never told me not to date outside my race, but he made it perfectly clear that people that were not brown were OTHERS. They would only date me because they were nasty and had a sick fetish to have sex with a Black woman. He made it clear that white men could never be healed from racism, and thus could never be compatible or understand what my daily struggles. So, I would never even LOOK at white men. Never. It was like “white men? Eww.” I know so many Black women who feel this same way. Just the mere thought of having “no eligible Black men” and to settle for white men, for many of my Black girl friends is a dreaded thing. It wasn’t until I began to have interracial friendships did I realize how ignorant and mis-informed I was. Even though every “white man” I came in contact with, or “saw” on tv, seemed to reaffirm this. It wasn’t real. IT WAS RACIST. So, I don’t want us to think that all Black people worship the ground that White people walk on-this is far from true. Black women practice endogamy (Black on Black) marriage more than any other group in America. I think it is because of these stereotypes. Black people will be cordial to Whites, but some deep inside look at them with extreme disgust. It is very unfortunate that we all harbor racist ideas. The best thing that we can do is SEE people. Don’t be colorblind, that is condescending. See people for who they are-humans. And you will find beauty in all races.