subtlecluster:

exhibitnumber1:

I’ve been here two weeks, and in this span of time, I’ve seen and experienced:

– A white older MIT professor (or at least, a man with MIT professor business cards) who offered to buy me dinner and pay me to play with my “pretty little feet”

– A considerable number of people who refuse to take seats next to black men, especially if they’re dressed in anything but suits.  I once saw a pregnant SE Asian woman sneer at a young black man when he moved his stuff over for her to sit down, and turn her back to him.  The man could barely be called such— he looked maybe 18-years-old.

– An unfortunate number of times where people DON’T get up to allow pregnant people, elderly people, and people with canes to sit down.

– Children as young as 6 or so riding alone with their backpacks, obviously coming from school.

– An older white woman who saw two Latino kids (ages 7 and 11, it seemed) with cell-phones, and began loudly complaining about how children don’t need phones, how wasteful it was, “don’t your parents have to worry about putting food on the table first?!”  A few of minutes later, at an above-ground stop, the older kid, a little girl, called her mother and said, “Yes, Mami, I’m almost home”— all the while giving the old white woman the greatest stank eye I’ve ever seen.

– A white woman who sat next to me, and nosy as Hell, began peering at the book I was reading.  It’s a book about race, sex, reproduction, and U.S. imperialism in Puerto Rico, and I made a note on the margin that said “WHITENESS” — the paragraph was talking about the construction of racial difference and situating whiteness within that.  The woman next to me obviously took offense to that, because she exclaimed “What is THAT supposed to mean?!”  I heard her through my headphones but didn’t acknowledge her, so she decided to place a hand on my arm and pull my earbuds from my ear.  I very calmly said, “Don’t you touch me again,” and replaced my earbuds.  I continued reading.  She minded her own business after that.

– Three drunk WOC who staged a short musical dance in the half-filled cart.  Their made-up was bright and beautiful and wrecked, and their skirts were tiny.  One of them had beautiful curly hair that reminded me why I paid for a perm in the first place.

– A whole lot of people with no spacial awareness at all.  YOUR HUGE FUCKING BACKPACK TAKES UP SPACE.  SO DO YOUR GROCERIES.  PAY ATTENTION.  

– People tend to be kind when treated with kindness, or when they witness kindness between strangers— but if I don’t take that first step, no one gives any fucks and will go about being angry and rude as Hell to everyone around them.  

what the flying FUCK to that lady who got all up in your business. WTF.