#whereareyoureallyfrom?

[whereareyoureallyfromfrom]

[whereareyoureallyfromfrom]

This really upset me. I needed to see the end when they gave the kids candy and hugged them and told them they ARE Danish.

[whereareyoureallyfromfrom]

Harry Belafonte is Jamaican (kinda, like me)

I had an experience a few weeks ago which I meant to blog about and I was reminded yesterday when I realised it was Harry Belafonte's birthday.

I was having a conversation with a middle aged Norwegian woman (completely in Norwegian by the way) and she asked where I was from. I said England as I usually do, then I elaborated that I grew up in the United States (because people usually look confused that my place of origin and my accent don't match). Then she said, "men du har mørk hud" ["but you have dark skin"]... and I realised that what she really wanted to know was why I'm black. Where are my ancestors from? How am I connected to Africa? I appreciated the fact that she just got to the point. When people think I'm American I don't get further questions. I guess, it's fairly common knowledge that African-Americans are descended from people who were forcibly removed from Africa. I have the most common background story of a black person from the UK, but I guess it's not a widely known story. I explained that all four of my grandparents are from Jamaica. "Alle mine besteforeldre er fra Jamaica." And she said, "Å! Akkurat som Harry Belafonte." That was the first time I'd had anyone use Mr Banana Boat himself as a reference point for Jamaica. (He was actually born in America to a Jamaican mother.) I have had many occasions of people looking confused when I explain that my family is Jamaican, but usual "Bob + Marley" are the two magic words that bring recognition to their eyes. I guess it's a generational thing that she identified with a national treasure who is a little older. She asked if he was still alive and I assured her that he is and that my parents had in fact met him at a charity dinner last year. Then we shared a mutual appreciation of how beautiful he was and still is.

[whereareyoureallyfromfrom]

I Hear Music

Even though I'm a total heathen sometimes I randomly hum church songs to myself. My religious upbringing explains as much of where I am from as the geographical history of my family.