Before the trip commenced, it set in that I was the only African American in the South/Central Asia Pre-Departure Orientation for Fulbright, and I realized that I was already in a whole new world even before I reached India. I will say that it was refreshing to be around people from different cultures – all of whom had a desire to see the world and to make it better place whether it is through teaching or conducting research. I was beyond excited to become a part of the Fulbright family. For the sake of complete disclosure and at the risk of being vulnerable, I must admit though that I was a bit apprehensive about how I would be perceived as a black woman - not only in India, but I was also concerned about how my fellow India ETAs would interact with me. Luckily, I have had nothing but good experiences with each person that I’ve come in contact with; furthermore, I trust that I will remain lifelong friends with some of those with whom I am taking this journey. Now that I am here, I hope that more African Americans will consider and ultimately take advantage of the many opportunities out there to explore different parts of the world because the global community is becoming smaller and smaller with each passing day.
On this journey, I’m not only learning about India, I am also learning about another part of America. Having been in predominantly African American settings (i.e. Detroit, Spelman College and Howard Law) has indeed been a wonderful and foundation building experience for me; but now I am discovering the white and multicultural part of America through the other members of my cohort of English Teaching Assistants (ETAs) in India. Even something as simple as reminiscing about childhood over lunch in the USIEF office was an eye opener for me because we didn’t sing all the same songs on the playground, but we did know variations of the songs others sang. There are so many different parts of America – each valid and worth getting to know. I am blessed to have the opportunity to learn about it with such a diverse and kind set of people.
With all this being said - I’m simply looking forward to continuing to learn, grow, and make cross-cultural connections.
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