LETTER TO THE EDITOR: WOC taking up space

I’m sorry, white people. I’m sorry that you’re afraid of the space I take up. I’m sorry that my confidence and the things I say with my chest make you think about who you are and what your place is. I’m sorry that your decision to objectify my person has made my image so apparent that you cannot ignore me even if you tried. I’m sorry that the jokes I make to push against the walls of whatever box you try to put me in have made you uncomfortable. That was never the intention. 

I do the things I do for no one but myself. The space I take up is to make sure I never feel small again. I’m sure you’ve felt small before. It’s different for people like me. You will never feel the same kind of small I’ve felt when I’ve been threatened with violent assault, just because the porn they watch made them think that Asian girls can be subjected to anything without picking a fight. You will never feel the type of small I’ve felt when people have threatened to kill me because of what I look like and where my family has come from. You’ve never had anyone tell you that they wished that the US dropping their bombs had killed your grandparents because fewer people like me means more space for people like them. I hope you never feel that small. Don’t you ever think that any oppression you’ve faced is the same as mine. We are not equals. But you don’t want to acknowledge that. 

I will continue taking up as much space as possible. I will keep screaming and laughing as loud as I possibly can because that’s all I have. And I’m sorry if you’re uncomfortable with that. But I have no obligation to baby you through your discomfort. Do you want me to be quieter? To make you feel better about being white and being afraid of your superiority getting challenged? Grow up. If you want me to shut up, use your privilege to make this world safer for me and everyone like me. I’m sorry that you’re not doing enough. I’m not mad; I’m disappointed. Is that still too much for you? 

—An anonymous student