I am half black, half white and people, no – men – in South Africa often give me strange looks. I live in Czech Republic, where people do that just because I have a dark skin, but they don’t approach me out of nowhere and chat.
My aunt took my older sister and me to the hairdresser’s. I was sitting in a chair while the hairdresser was straightening my hair. Three men were sitting next to me, staring at me occasionally. I got used to it a little bit over time, people do that there. But when we were leaving the place, me stepping out last, one of the men grabbed my arm, making me turn around. He let my arm go, smiled at me, waved and said ‘hi’. I froze, then almost-waved back with a stoic expression, my eyes widened in panic, mumbled ‘hi’ and ran away to the safety of my family. We laughed about it, when I told them. But wow, was I scared. It wasn’t because of my clothes, it was cold outside, but I look older than I am. Some people even mistake me for my mom’s (married) friend. But excuse me, Mr. Stranger? I’m fifteen!
– C
Location: South Africa
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