My Biases
acquiring knowledge and enlightening myself on the issues of race, sexuality, ability, and much
more. While I like to believe I am the perfect person who does not have bias, I know this is not
the case. The only thing I can do is work on my bias and become less oppressive with my
actions and words. In taking the association test, it revealed to me that though I used to have
preferences towards dominant groups, I have now found a solid middle ground of preferences
Prior to taking the test to expose my racial bias, I recall my original test score from over
4 years ago that revealed I have a strong automatic preference for European Americans over
African Americans. I was quite proud to find that when I retook the test, the results were
drastically different and showed that I now have a moderate automatic preference African
Americans over European Americans. When I first took the test, I felt a strong sense of betrayal
towards myself because I identity as an Afro-Latina. Yet the results revealed to me that I had a
lot of internalized racism that I never fully addressed. The rest motivated me to concern myself
with issues of race and delve deeper in to my sociological studies and efforts to understand
systematic racism and how I could dismantle such an oppressive system both in society and
within myself.
While most people might see my results as having a slight bias towards black people, I
know that this has been an improvement to where I was all those years ago. Part of the reason
why I have been able to balance my bias is because I dedicated myself to learning in my
Sociology courses and understanding systems and language of oppression. I still strive to learn
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more about how racism exists and how I cannot perpetuate it with my own actions and
behavior.
I did not always embrace my African roots. In a society that idolizes White-European
features, I grew up with a disdain for my skin color. One of the most vivid memories I have as a
child is asking my white passing Latina mother why I could not have skin as light as hers. My
mother chastised me for asking the question and reminded me that I was beautiful. Despite her
efforts to build my confidence, by the age of 10 I decided I wanted to perm my wildly curly hair.
Only then did I receive genuine acknowledgement from teachers and boys telling me that I
looked pretty with my hair pin straight. Unlike my hair, I could not do much to change my skin
color but stay out of the sun. I corresponded being black and Latina with being unwanted, so I
did my best to maintain a white washed version of myself. However, after many years and a
long journey to Latina self-love, I finally learned to love my brown skin and thick curly hair. Now
when I look in the mirror I feel empowered knowing that I am defying the definition of typical
beauty and am proud to call myself an Afro-Latina. Overall, I have grown closer with other
minorities throughout this journey of enlightenment which is also why I have become more
aware of other minorities like disabled people and the LGBTQ community.
One result that I was shocked to discovered is that I have a moderate preference for Gay
people over Straight people. I always thought I was very privileged in the fact that I am a
heterosexual and I know there have been instances where I have been biased against gay
people. For example, I remember saying that I was okay with gay people being affectionate so
long as I did not have to witness it. That was a strong example of my prejudice against the
LBGTQ community and oppressing gay people from being able to have public displays of
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affection with their partners without judgement from the public. I know now that
However, when I do interact with gay people, I do feel more comfortable with them
because I know they are a minority as well and face oppression in their everyday life as well. I
have also gone out of my way to interact more with gay people or people who identify as a
member of the LGBTQIA+ community. I knew that an area I was uncomfortable with talking
about was issues of sexuality and all of the umbrella terms associated with gender and
sexuality. Once I began hearing the stories of the people within this group and building
relationships with them, I realized they face the same adversity as I do in terms of my race. At
this point in my life and career, I can only continue to educate myself on the LGBTQIA+
Finally, my results also showed that I have a strong automatic preference for Disabled
Persons over Abled Persons. This data did not shock me as I used to be temporarily disabled.
During my second year of college, I was diagnosed with a rare inflammatory myopathy called
Dermatomyositis which caused my skin to break out in severe rashes and caused my muscles to
stop working. In a matter of weeks, I was barely able to walk without the aid of a walker and
could not eat without a feeding tube. Being diagnosed with the disease introduced me to the
world of ableism. The most difficult part about having an invisible disease is that not many
people realized how their health and functioning body was a privilege. An instance where I
recognized that I was temporarily disabled was when I was called “lazy” by a woman on an
elevator. She scolded me for not taking the stairs to the second floor even though I could barely
stand straight without the help of holding onto something. I knew from that point that I had the
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privilege of appearing healthy but the disadvantage of having an invisible disease. I recognize
that I am very privileged in the fact that my physical disability was only temporary and aim to
be as inclusive as possible. I am comfortable with disabled people, whether visibly or not visibly
disabled because I can connect with them on a personal level. This is one identity that I
consider to be a salient part of my identity because I know one day I might be disabled again
and may not even be able to walk. Possessing this identity, I try my best to educate others and
to correct them whenever they are being exclusive with their behavior or language. All in all,
bias will exists in this world and the best I can do is educate myself and others when I can about
the issues of oppression different marginalized groups experience every day in their lives.