Who We Are-- Breaking Stereotypes

After spending some time thinking about how we characterize ourselves and what we identify with and as (some of mine were learner/thinker, working mom), we came up with ways in which we were sometimes stereotyped because of those characteristics but that aren't consistent with who we are. Below is a pretty powerful list from this year's group. We did it in Quaker Read form, so it was a neat experience to sit in silence and hear these sentences spoken by different voices.

I am a skateboarder, but I am not lazy.
I am black, but I am not ghetto.
I am a friend, but I am not a therapist.
I am a kind person, but I am not an everlasting fuse.
I am a shy person, but I am not antisocial.
I am really awkward, but I am not remotely shy.
I am Mexican, but I am not illegal.
I am a member of the hip-hop culture, but I am not a keeper of the beliefs and ideas.
I am Catholic, but I am not a statue worshiper.
I am a gamer, but I am not a lazy person.
I am a Northerner, but I am not pushy, rude, self-centered.
I am a CrossFitter, but I am not a cocky person.
I am a hippie, but I am not a pot head.
I am outgoing, but I am not loud.
I am shy, but I am not awkward.
I am a Southern bell, but I am not a hillbilly.
I am a Christian, but I am not judgmental.
I am a sensitive person, but I am not a cry baby.
I am compassionate, but I am not weak.
I am open-minded, but I am not naive.
I am funny, but I am not mean.
I am a shopper, but I am not materialistic.
I am an athlete, but I am not a dumb jock.


To be clear, the point was not to list stereotypes or even to identify them, but for them to think of stereotypes that they personally have confronted associated with their own identifying traits.