black and white

As the only white people for miles, Matt and I have developed a new appreciation for what it means to be a minority and stand out in a crowd. You're always being watched. Everyone notices everything you do. You can't blend in.
Kenyans have a word in Swahili for white people: wazungu (the Maasai say mazungu). Maasai have a word for white people: olashumpai/enkashumpai (fem.).
But when our friend Celmali came to visit, the Maasai were confused. Celmali is from New York City, so English is her first language. She's learning Kiswahili, but definitely can't speak Maa. What confused everyone here? She's black. The Maasai couldn't believe that there are black people in the US. Now their word for us, olashumpai, doesn't work, because it meant white people, but now it needed to mean non-Maasai. So they started calling her enkashumpai narok (the black-white person).
All the color confusion was an opportunity to engage Celmali about race here and in the US. Celmali loves being able to blend in here. If she doesn't talk, no one knows that she's not from Kenya. I get frustrated when people I don't know shout "mazungu!" or "how are yous?" just because I'm white. Because I'm white, people assume I'm rich, so they can charge me higher prices for everything. And yet, at least here, being the minority is a good thing. In general, people respect me, just because I'm white. But at home in the US, it's not that way at all. I know that I can't possibly begin to understand the challenges that minorities go through, but I'm struck by how difficult it must be to walk into a room and be the only person of color. Or Celmali was sharing how you go into a store and people watch you like a hawk, because they think you'll steal, just because of your skin color.
When Matt and I are back in the States, I want to be a lot more intentional about overcoming racism, recognizing my own white privilege and more purposefull building relationships with non-whites. I think I have a lot to learn, but I know that God calls us to walk in unity as His Body. I hope that I can bring home the new understanding I've gained here and work to fight the racism so inherent in our society.