Is It Because I'm Black

Some work came up where I had to go out of the office to some schools in the New Orleans area that our company services. I went with one of the field service technicians, who we'll call Bobby. Bobby's a 28 year old white guy with the voice of a 15 year old. It has this funny way of cracking and jumping when he gets excited or nervous. We ended up going to 4 schools in the Orleans/Jefferson Parish area.

First, we went to Ellender Middle School on the Westbank to complete work we started late Friday. I had been to Ellender once previously on Friday, so I was still relatively new to the school. I saw it was predominantly Caucasian (if it wasn't, it sure put up a good front). I was very professional. I had the walk, the stance, the talk, everything. I was on my P's and Q's like for REAL. Maybe it was also because there were some sales big wigs from the company who were there at the same time as Bobby and I, but for whatever reason, I was prim and proper. Bobby did most of the talking, as I was new and still in training. He had this very structured way of speaking and got right down to it. We got our business taken care of reasonably quick and the teacher let us sneak out the back door.

Next, we headed to Karr Magnet High School, which was also on the Westbank. However, unlike Ellender, Karr is predominantly African-American. Bobby took some bumpy backroad to find the shrouded high school. Once we got there and parked, I swung out of his grey Mustang, as opposed to stepping out. As soon as I made my way into the wide outside, I was greeted by a passing motorist bumping Jay-Z's "Dirt Off Your Shoulder." All of a sudden, I developed a swagger. My walk became bouncier and my look a little more relaxed. I seemed as if I were leading him into "our world" and he was the green horn on the block. We walked up to the entrance, where my presence was greeted with chucked deuces from the school's atendees. We stopped by the office to check in and went right to the room. Now, Bobby's voice had a little more crack to it, and I stood there, listening intently. In my position and posture and lack of investive speech, I inadvertently looked like the black bodyguard showing the white boy around town. When we concluded business there, I walked out as smoothly as I had entered and awaited the next school.

Almost as if Mother Nature wanted another take, it happened again. This time, we went to De La Salle, which I had visited once before. Predominantly Caucasian, same deal. We tried to fix a problem with one of their computers, but weren't able to fix the problem. Again, I stood and intently observed the goings-on of the on-site issue for the most part. We left as unceremoniously as we had come and were off to the final school.

Our last stop was the MAX high school. Due to the hurricane, St. Mary's Academy (all girls), St. Augustine High School (all boys), and Xavier Prep High School (all girls) have merged into one high school on Xavier Prep's campus. All three of these schools were predominantly African-American as well. I had never been to XUP's campus, so it was an experience for me. Still, the demeanor was unphased by the changed in the walk, etc. Almost as if I went through the same metamorphosis I went through that morning, I was more relaxed on this campus.

Now, I'm back at work, wondering if it was coincidence that this subtle change in behavior happened when it did, or are we inherently bred to be more comfortable around our own race? It's not anything to spark a race war by any means, but it's just one of those things that make you go "hmm."

-B