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Your English Degree Is Going to Be Insufficient

In this clip, listen as a Black immigrant woman describes her frustrations and fears living in the U.S. as a black woman. Despite being a well-travelled, successful Black woman, George Floyd’s murder is still a stark reminder that she still faces dangers and threats by simply existing. It takes a lot of mental energy to show up to work knowing that these dangers weigh heavily on her mind and body. As an immigrant she reflects on how she has only dealt with this for 30 years and can’t possibly imagine what 400 years of generations living in the U.S. have experienced. Regardless, all her success and knowledge and intelligence is insufficient if she gets pulled over.

This is like a psychological disaster for me because one is not winning… It doesn’t matter that I drive whichever car it is or I go to Redmond. The minute I leave my building in Redmond, I am in complete danger. I don’t know who will stop me for whatever reason…


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