For Marginalized People: Why Do We Carry So Much Shame?

We've all found ourselves dancing around the stereotypes others project onto us, but the emotional toll this takes can be enormous.

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As a Black kid in America, I understood at a strikingly young age that I was never going to be a “good” Black person - the one white people, whether consciously or subconsciously, wanted me to be. 

Anyone who is a part of a marginalized group knows this dance well, the balancing act of being who you are as a human being while trying not to (or sometimes, trying to) align with the stereotypes being projected onto you. It’s a slippery slope of staying true to yourself and avoiding harmful stereotypes, while also not judging those from your community who do fulfill whatever the stereotype is.

I’ll give an example.