As I recount stories from my own personal history, I realize how deeply affected I have been by the social construct that Whiteness is the Standard. Even though I actively fight against the idea, I am not sure it ever dawned on my consciousness that I was operating within this space, and thus "the standard" had always felt uncomfortable to me. I never identified it as a shared societal standard. I just saw it as the ignorant, uneducated, and sheltered not fully embracing the beauty and value of cultural differences. This gives me an entirely new perspective in which to approach the topics of issues that hit close to home - natural hair, appropriated styles, perceived threatening behaviors, and more. More closely examining what is deemed "proper" and challenging those "standards" from a different set of expectations will now be a part of my awareness and discourse.
