Before venturing off to the Middle East, I had a lot of opinions about people from different religious and cultural backgrounds. Growing up a poor, black woman in America helped to shape those beliefs; good or bad. It is said, you don't see the world as it is, you see the world as you are and before coming to Abu Dhabi, I may have believed that most white Americans didn't have respect, understanding or appreciation for many black Americans. My world as it was, was simply black and white, as is everything in America.Having now lived abroad and experienced people from all over the world, literally, I can say that I no longer feel like a black woman, living in a white mans world, but instead, I feel like a human being and while most people here don't believe that there are black people in the US (that's another conversation), I am proud to be referred to as simply, an American.
All my life I have exchanged descriptions related to race, but it feels so empowering to finally exchange descriptions based on lineage. I know that my roots date back farther than my ancestors arrival to North America, but all I know and all I've ever known is America and for that, I am grateful.
It is a great time to be in the UAE. I have been here through some of the greatest revolts of our time across Africa and the Middle East, through the capturing and execution of Osama bin Laden, the 10 year anniversary of 911 and the presidential tenure of Barak Obama. One might think that I have experienced backlash from the Islamic community and while some people may not agree with the U.S.'s politics or policies, they have shown me nothing but love, from my Iraqi doctor to my Pakistani taxi drivers, they all speak highly of Obama and the country I call home.
Indeed, it has been exciting times and trying times, but no matter what, I have always felt safe, respected and sometimes envied by those whom most Americans would think were our enemies. It has been anything but hostile here and for the first time as a black woman, I feel empowered, not as a black woman, but as an American woman. I finally feel as though my ancestors blood, sweat and tears were not in vain and that I am living my American dream; free to be me, free to be free.Until Next Time...Peace & Blessings
Terre
