Hey, guys. Welcome back to the channel.
Today I have a really special video for you guys.
So, as you guys can see, I'm here with my mom today.
And we're here to kind of talk-- not kind of,
but we are going to talk about race and identity,
especially since we are people of color.
We are black women who grew up in this society.
And what it's like for us to vote in the 2020 election.
Just share some anecdotes with you today.
Share some stories and things that we have gone through,
and not only us, but a lot of people of color have gone through.
So that we can keep this conversation going
about how much still needs to change
and needs to be done in this country.
I mean, obviously to world, but specifically this country right now, you know.
It doesn't end with just the election.
We have to keep on talking about this
so that something can actually happen
and that change can happen and make better lives for people,
- so, Mom, say hello. - Hello.
Yeah, so I hope you guys enjoy this video,
and make sure you like and subscribe.
Also, Bear Witness did a video like this earlier in the year,
and I am so happy to be partnering with them
on this video today because it is so important
and it's something that I'm really passionate about
and my mom's really passionate about,
and I think it's something that I want to encourage
more people to really stand up and talk about it
because things really do need to shift.
So, yeah, thank you to Bear Witness
for helping me with this video today, and let's get started.
Coming from going to a private school
where I was, like, the only black girl,
and then I went to a dance studio
where I happened to be one of the only black girls at the studio.
There were a few others, but on the competition team,
I was the only black girl on the show for a majority of the show.
And I feel like a lot of people didn't really know that about me.
Pittsburgh is very-- it's not very diverse.
Let's just say that. It's not very diverse.
I've been at Jack and Jill since I was, like, two years old.
And I loved getting to interact with a bunch of other black students
and kids just growing up, so I have that connection.
But yeah, I guess that's kinda like how I grew up.
Well, I think just to kinda flesh it out as a mom,
to explain Pittsburgh is-- of course there's diversity.
There are black families in Pittsburgh.
But where you see the greatest issue,
and there have been studies done by the University of Pittsburgh
and other institutions as well.
The black experience in Pittsburgh is not the best.
I say that 'cause even though Nia has, you know,
many years in between Nia and I, we have similarities as far as
often being the only person in a room that looks like us.
Whether it's being a black person or a black woman.
Feeling isolated or alone or not seeing someone reflected of you,
so, you know, I would-- would have hoped by the time
that I had a little girl, her experience would have been different than mine.
But that just goes to show the world hasn't changed that much.
That she's still experiencing the same things I experienced as a little girl.
And that just shows you we have so much more work to do.
I don't know. I think when you were talking about being the only black girl in dance,
that's important, too. Talk a little bit more about that.
Yeah. It's a privilege to be able to dance
and especially dance competitively.
And another thing about competitive dance,
you don't see a lot of black girls in competitive dance,
yet alone winning competition dance. Like, you just--
Which is shocking because there's so many talented--
Oh, there are so many talented black girls out there. Like, even--
- There's a disconnect somewhere. - There's a disconnect.
Because I, online, you know me,
I don't dance that much anymore. Like, I still dance.
Not that much anymore. But I will still look online and I'm like, "Wow,
this girl is so good. Like, why isn't she winning dance co--
why isn't she winning dance competitions?"
I have watched other black dancers
be labeled often as they're athletic. They're strong.
Very rarely do I hear them described as beautiful, graceful.
But I don't see them showcased the same way.
- Yeah. - I also don't here in the description of black dancers
they're not described the same way as their white peers as a whole.
They're not. They're not. They're all-- I can't tell you the amount of times
where been somewhere and a teacher has told me,
"Oh, well, like, you're athletic and you're strong."
I'm like, "Okay. And you just told that other girl over there
that she's beautiful and is light as a feather
and, you know, is, like, breathtaking."
And those types of ways of describing other's adjectives
are somehow absent for so many of the black dancers
I have seen and experienced.
With that being said, I was frustrated in the way that you were not seen.
It's almost in some ways that you become invisible.
And that you're almost like a backdrop for everyone else.
Or you're not-- your strengths are not recognized.
Or you're like, "Oh, you're good for a black dancer."
Kind of a footnote type of thing.
It was really hard growing up, especially in the public eye,
and see online in tweets and posts and it's like,
"Oh, Nia's okay." You know, like, "She's not that great."
But like, "She's okay. She can dance."
I don't think people realize, like, how hurtful that was
because I was capable of so much more
than I did on that show.
After the show-- not even after, but, like,
even during it, I would go to conventions
or have privates with different teachers outside of my dance studio.
And they would tell me, "Oh, I didn't realize how good you were."
And I was like, "Yeah, like, I can-- I can dance, guys.
Yeah. Even though you might not think it."
Because it was portrayed that way on television.
I actually-- I can-- I can dance, guys.
You know? And I feel like that it's always hard
because I've always felt like I had to prove myself as a dancer yet again.
Always working twice as hard to get half as far.
That's just how-- how it works.
You are now a young woman and in college
and doing other things as well, which is pretty cool.
- Voted for the first time... - I did vote for the first time.
- ...in the presidential election. - Yep.
This year and getting involved in voting
and encouraging people to vote, I've learned--
first of all, I've learned so much.
I've learned people's true colors.
I've also learned a lot about myself
and things that I'm passionate about and what I stand for.
Humanity is non-negotiable.
There's some things that are just in our world
and the way that we were raised. It's a non-negotiable issue.
It has nothing to do with this is my opinion.
There's noth-- there's no opinion to me
that relates to humanity.
That's just a defining moment. That is just a foundation of facts.
If you're supporting someone who doesn't support human basic rights,
I don't care. I'm gonna call you out. I don't care who you are.
This election just-- it opened my eyes.
And I learned who really loved me and who didn't.
I can encourage them to think and do more research.
And that's honestly what I'm trying to do.
Obviously we have, I feel like, a lot of minority groups,
especially the black community right now.
Yes, we have allies right now.
But what we need for those allies and people who are not of color
to do now is to use their knowledge
to their critical thinking skills to actually make a difference.
Because it's hard. We need other people besides people like us speaking up.
We need people who are not minorities speaking up for us as well.
Both: Holding other people accountable.
People, friends, family, businesses, organizations.
And I'm seeing more of that now, especially with Gen Z.
- I'm very proud of you guys. - I am proud of Gen Z, too.
I would like to not have to worry about living my life.
- Mm-hmm. - Or losing my life because of somebody else's prejudices
and their racist attitude. That's something I would prefer to not to have to live with.
What do you see-- what do you hope for the future?
I mean, so many things, honestly. So many things.
But I feel like as the younger generation is getting older,
that parents teach their children to love everyone.
Because people aren't born racist. It's taught, you know?
Everyone is the same. We are all human.
It doesn't matter if you're black, white, Latina, Asian, South Asian.
Literally, like literally any-- it doesn't-- it doesn't matter.
We're all the same, you know?
And until people can really understand and teach their kids
that not to treat anyone different because of their skin
'cause it's all coming from hatred.
The less hate we have, the better, you know, the world is.
And I know that's so broad. It's so broad.
But there's just so much. I want to see more people like me,
who look like me, doing extraordinary things
'cause they already are. They're just no highlighted.
Okay, so concluding this video, I-- I mean,
we've been challenging you the whole video.
But I want to challenge you guys and figure out what
you guys are gonna do to make change.
What I'm doing right now, I'm getting involved in, you know,
a bunch of clubs at school, but not only that, I'm using my platform.
Since I have a large platform on social media,
I'm using that to amplify voices that aren't heard
to encourage people to use their voice,
to encourage people to educate themselves,
and encouraging people to love one another.
My goal is to help as many people as possible.
So whether that's help promoting an organization
that raises awareness or money for a group of people,
I'm gonna do that. I'm gonna do everything that I can to help.
There's so much in this world, and I want people to realize
that it's a big world, but you need to understand the world.
I don't know if that makes sense.
- I don't know if that makes sense, but... - No, it makes perfect sense.
When you have a larger world view,
you recognize that you're just one person in a much larger...
- Yeah, like, that's what I'm trying to say. - I'm trying to tell you.
- That's it. - You're just one person in a huge world.
There's so many different ways that you can make a difference that you have no idea.
There's-- you can start a club in school to get people involved.
And you guys can do charity work, you can--
you can raise money and you can-- you can have fundraisers
to raise money for different projects for-- for other people.
And I just-- I want people to realize that there's more to this world
than just yourself and just your life.
Well, guys, that was a lot, so take it in.
- Take a breath. - Take a breath, but yeah,
just thank you again to Bear Witness for helping us with this video.
I'm so happy that we're able to share this video with you guys
and give you guys our take on things
and again, like we've said and we literally reiterated
this so many times, but, like, literally just go out there
and just do something. Do-- do good in the world, you know?
- Leave the world a better place. - Yeah, yeah.
- You really can leave the world a better place. - Yeah.
Like, leave the world a better place.
Yeah, okay. Well, that was a lot, guys, but I hope you guys enjoyed.
I'm really happy and blessed to have a platform where we can talk about this,
that we can share our experiences on to you guys,
and also that I'm at a place and an age in my life
where I feel comfortable talking about this kind of stuff, you know.
It's really hard and it's hard putting yourself out there,
and I hope that-- I hope you get a lot out of this video,
and, yeah, so I love you guys so much.
And I will see you guys next time. Peace.