Johnathan, a fifteen-year-old African American from Long Beach,
California, shares his story of being physically and verbally harassed
because of his race, and of overcoming the discrimination to embrace all
cultures, and then to be proud of his own.
Colorblind: A Story of Racism is the third in a series of graphic
novels written by young adults for their peers.
Johnathan Harris is fifteen, and lives in Long Beach, California, where
he loves playing soccer with his friends, and listening to their
favorite rapper, Snoop Dogg, a Long Beach native. His mom, dad, and
three brothers are tight, but one of the most influential family members
for Johnathan is his Uncle Russell, a convict in prison, serving fifteen
years to life . . .
Uncle Russell taught Johnathan from a very young age to see people from
the perspective of their cultures, and not just their skin color. He
imbued a pride of his ancestry and cautioned against letting hatred into
his heart.
But when Johnathan was just eight years old, something happened that
filled him with fear and the very hatred that Uncle Russell had warned
him about. What happened to Johnathan made him see that a dream of a
colorless world was just that. A dream.
That event shook him to his core. Anger grew inside him like a hot coal.
Uncle Russell had told him to "throw it away or you will get burned,"
but Johnathan was young and frightened. He was having a hard time
forgiving, much less forgetting.
Colorblind is Johnathan's story of confronting his own racism and
overcoming it. It is a story of hope and optimism that all, young and
old, should heed.
Zuiker Press is proud to publish stories about important current topics
for kids and adolescents, written by their peers, that will help them
cope with the challenges they face in today's troubled world.
