Thierno Diallo- Week 2

The text I decided to write about is Trevor Noah’s “Born A Crime”. In this autobiography Trevor explained his own upbringing in South Africa and the way he was treated different because of the color of his skin despite being born there. He was viewed as an outcast in his own family because he was grew up in a community full of black people whilst being the only light skinned person in his community. The central ideas that are brought up in the text is fitting in and proving that you belong where you are. Trevor spoke the language of his native tribe, but that still wasn’t enough for the people in his community. All they paid attention to was the color of his skin. This issue that Trevor endured resonates with everything black people have to prove today. In most cases blacks can’t live the life they want to live because we are looked upon differently than everyone else. The same way Trevor had to prove his worth to other people is the same fight we are fighting to this day. “I soon learned that the quickest way to bridge the race gap was through language…I became a chameleon. My color didn’t change, but I could change your perception of my color.” Those lines in the text brought about the driving factor to what changed the way Trevor was perceived in his community. He may not have looked like the rest, but he certainly spoke like the rest. The ability of speaking any language that is spoken to you can bring about a way of connecting with others. I chose this text because of the way it resonates with issues that are being faced in America today. Social injustice starts off with others not knowing your worth and thinking you don’t belong and that is the connection this text. Trevor raised many points in his writing that can be used for kids today because others still face the problem of not fitting in within their community. It’s time to start looking at others internally and stop judging based off external factors.