By Raechel Shaw
There was a time I thought that it would never be me; could never be me. I have, after all, navigated this unfair world, unscathed by the horrors of racism. That is to say that I have never been pulled over (I rarely drive), followed while shopping (that I can recall) or called the n-word (to my face). That white lie, no pun intended, that I told myself — that it would never be me — ensured my survival. I have flourished in white spaces (be it the prestigious K-12 or Ivy League undergraduate institutions that I attended or the large companies I have worked for), amassed white friends, and succeeded in colluding so as not to give any of them a reason to feel threatened by me.…