By Angela Wills Keith Powell, actor, director and writer, explains his encounters when auditioning for acting roles when he first started out. He describes them as a social experiment in which he would enter the audition with an standard upper-class British accent to introduce himself and converse with the audition panel. Once he transitioned into character, he would begin to use his regular...
Great article. We learn our modes of communication from our environment & the people in them, meaning our dialects & tones are a result of where we come from-- not necessarily representative of who we ARE. I myself struggle with this issue, code switching between formal English & my Ebonic-filled vernacular. As a black man, I am instantly percieved to be a target or threat to the people around me. Even as I try to change perspectives and break down false stereotypes & perceptions of my fellow black man, I am the one reprimanded. I am the one forced to change my behavior. I am the one that "needs fixing". "How do whites talk?” “How do you think Black people are supposed to talk?” These are the questions I ask of myself. These are the questions we need to ask ourselves whenever we try to place expectations on others of who they should & shouldn't be. Reflection on them forces us to realize we are putting people in a box that shouldn't be there in the first place. My identity is MY IDENTITY ,and the person who formulates it (me) is the only one who can dictate it. Judge not with your eyes or your ears. Only with your mind & heart can you relate to others.