Who Are You Calling Black?
When racial descriptions go wrong?
Black is beautiful, and it sometimes has distinct advantages, like helping me to stand out in a sea of White. This was reinforced several years ago during a New Year’s trip to Tasmania. After a day of sailing, my travel mate and I ended up in the wrong pick-up spot, where we waited an hour for our ride back to the hotel. When the car finally arrived, the driver told us she was able to find us despite our poor sense of direction only because she’d been given an excellent description.
Even before she confirmed it, I knew what she meant. It was hard to miss the “tall Black guy,” which is what the driver had been told to look for. That was one of many times I’ve been happy to have both distinguishing characteristics. Although I can tell my White friends are sometimes uncomfortable dropping the B-word around me (“African American,” which I loathe, is still considered the safer alternative), I don’t mind being called Black — when it’s relevant. It’s a perfectly legitimate descriptive word and, in some situations, a lot more useful than “tall” or “brown-eyed,” as was the case that day in Tasmania.
