I just completed Jacqueline Jones Royster's piece "When the first Voice You Hear is Not Your Own" for a directed study course I'm taking in the fall, and I love her writing style and the content, but I'm still left with questions. In this piece, the author highlights issues she has had as a person of color, specifically in academia. Jones Royster expresses how many of her peers were (and possibly still are...this piece was published in 1996) surprised when she shared her work at all, but even more surprised when her work was impactful (35). She touches upon the issues that still echo today for people of color, no matter what space they are in: they become the "storyteller," or a person who is heard but not believed. When a person of color has straight up told you or another that they are being racist, what do you typically do? Do you brush it off, believe they are lying, that they are playing "the race card" to benefit them in some way or to make you feel bad? Or do you consciously evaluate what you did in that situation and think how it might be considered racist? This--along with many other reasons--is why Jones Royster calls for a more conscious act of listening, especially listening to people of color and their voices. The goal, as the author states, isn't "you talk, I talk" (38). The goal is to find better practices that allow these voices to emerge from the depths of oppression: of being ignored, of being told they are lying.
I'm all for Jones Royster's ideas, especially in the classroom and in academia. I'm still pondering over what happens when a person of color's voice is continually silenced, especially in spaces outside of the classroom, and how others can help, and who should help, and how we can (or should we) create a space for their voice to be heard. Perhaps these questions are too vague, but I suppose I would love--and need--to hear others' experiences.
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