STORIES FROM THE AFRICAN DIASPORA: ON BEING YOUNG, BLACK AND DEVASTATED IN GERMANY

ONE PERSON'S TESTIMONY

"I was born and raised in Germany and literally can't do it anymore.  I grew up in a small town and in kindergarten, school and high school I've always been the only black kid.

I was being physically, psychologically as well as verbally abused by my teachers. I got bullied by them..from hitting me with a stick, calling me the n-word, to dragging me by hair, to literally rippin my earrings out..leaving my ears bleeding... I experienced the same thing outside from school in my everyday life where I also was physically and verbally attacked by grown men in public, feeling helpless because no one bat an eye. 

Anyways...In germany we have a very different school system than the US..after fourth grade, you are either sent to the „Hauptschule,“ „Realschule“ or the „Gymnasium.“ If you graduate from the „Hauptschule/Realschule“ you can NOT attend university.. So at 10 years old almost all children of color or black children are sent to the „Realschule/Hauptschule“ so they can't attend university later in life.

You graduate from the ''Hauptschule/Realschule'' at 14-16 years old and enter the workforce immediately. 

But I somehow still managed to graduate from the Gymnasium so that I could attend University... Let's just say that I didn't have an easy childhood in this small ass white ass conservative town. It's a miracle that I made it to college cause boy white people didn't make it easy for me or my family..my sisters experienced the similiar things....


[M]y parents also experience racism on the daily. Their German is fine, but they do have a little bit of an accent. My mom cleans rich white peoples houses and my dad works at an office and also cleans. They also get treated like sh*t. They have several jobs to make ends meet and they play a big role on what kept me motivated through all of this bullshit... 

Fast forward to today: In April I graduated from the "Gymnasium“ and I moved away for university in a bigger, more ''liberal'' city. I made my parents proud and I was so excited to meet more open minded people..but boy I was so f*cking wrong. University in this city is almost just as bad as school back home. [I don't know] why I was so naive to think that things would get better but I'm just so disappointed and ready to drop out. My professors are so racist and although there are many POC/black people living in this city there are almost none in uni.

I'm just so devastated..

~A.K.