“I would break it down to love and culture. Because even though I do identify as [being] black, I do recognize that culturally, there are different types of black. And so when I say I love being black, I recognize that’s more or less coming mostly from my culture and how I see it there. I love my culture and I love my people and I love the blackness that I grew up in, which then makes me proud to be it because it’s something that I love. But at the same time, when you come across other black cultures, like here [Andrews University], you know, [you come to realize that] what they do is pretty too, and what they do is pretty cool. Then because we all technically come from the same type of ancestors, you realize that even though what they do might be a little different, that’s still connected to you, which I feel is pretty cool. So it’s almost like love for your own culture but also love for the other black cultures as you experience them; which I guess coming to Andrews, is something because you get all the Africans, African Americans, and everybody else that may be Caribbean, Caribbean American and all of the different intersections. Then you just keep learning about their cultures and by extension you are learning about your own culture just on a different [level].”
— Keith, Bahamian, 21
