none of them were mentioning any of the nuggets I learned over the weekend. I actually decided I would say feminist because I was so insecure about what I really wanted to say.
“I am a womanist,” came out of my mouth with absolute certainty when the girl next to me nudged my arm.
“What did you say?” Dr. Burgess-Jackson inquired.
“I am a womanist,” I said again just as leveled as I responded the first time.
“Please explain yourself,” he urged.
“Well, as a black woman, I am not privy to the advantages of a woman who is not of color. So, it would be a miscalculated call for me to identify as a feminist. However, because I believe in my power as a woman, and I definitely believe in my power as a black person, I identify as a womanist.”
Now my voice was leveled but my hands were shaking so bad on the table that I grabbed my pen and placed them in my lap.
The professor stared at me from the head of the conference table and asked “What is your source?”
“My what?”I asked in confusion.
“Your source? Where did you find that information?”
“ ‘In Search of My Mother’s Garden’ by Alice Walker.” I responded.
“Hmmm, that’s good. Okay, next,” and he proceeded to the next student.
While there were whispers around the table, I was so pleased with myself because I did not listen to the knot in my gut. Instead I listened to my heart and my mind. After that, I never hesitated to say what I was thinking leading to a phenomenal range of growth in the course.
Where in your body do you feel insecurity?