ABSTRACT
There was a campus orientation for new students of color. A black woman slowly approached me and as she hesitated, I knew she was going to ask the inevitable question. After struggling with it for a few seconds, she finally blurted out, “What are you …? I mean, where do you come from?” Then instead of waiting for me to answer, she showed that she already knew and said, “Your mama is Black, right?” I nodded in agreement and then I realized that she had said everything in Spanish.
