Well, it’s Friday the 13th friends, so naturally, the news today is a little effed up.
Cue the story of Allie and Michael.
Allie and Michael are two 18 year olds from Tennessee who fell in love. Allie is White, Michael is Black, and Allie’s parents are having NONE of it. None of it.
Ah, 2017, I love you SO MUCH already.
A year ago, when Allie told her parents she had started dating someone, she wanted to show them a photo she took with her new beau. As she says on her GoFundMe page
“Hoping to share him with my family, I showed my parents his picture, and the conversation was over before it even began”.
Here it is:
Cute pic, though I’d have to say the real star is the angry mom yelling at grandma in the right corner. Hey Allie – is that your mom? It all makes sense now.
Then, some good ol’ fashioned racist madness ensued.
My dad did not give me an option: he told me that I was not allowed to see Michael ever again. Why? Strictly because of skin color. It wasn’t a quiet “no,” either. I’ll never forget the yelling my parents did, when they expressed how disappointed they were in me, that I could do so much better. I did not know what to do. I couldn’t comprehend how someone could be seen as less because of pigment. I still can’t comprehend it, and I never will be able to.
In true rebellious teen fashion, Allie and Michael chose to keep seeing each other in secret. Ooh, I love a good forbidden love story. Alas, it was all fun and games reenacting the Notebook until Allie’s parents responded in the most pro-Jim Crow way possible: they cut her off.
As I am 18, my parents have chosen to no longer support my future, stripping me of all my resources including my personal savings, my car, my phone, and my education and leaving me on my own to pay for college…I’ve applied and received some scholarship money through financial aid, including grants, loans, and work-study, but I still need at least $10,000 to cover the first year of my remaining out of pocket tuition for college by May 1st. I’ve been applying for scholarships and have tried to get a job, but I am still living under my parents’ roof because I have nowhere else to live, and my dad has done everything in his power to make the world difficult for me. I am not able to get a job because I do not have consistent transportation available.
Rather than give up on her hard work as an AP student, with a 4 year 4.0 grade average (you go girl), Allie chose to turn to strangers for help. She bravely shared her story on GoFundMe, asking for $10,000.00 to help with her tuition costs.
In 2 days time, she’s surpassed her goal, by nearly 4500 dollars.
Allie’s Dad spoke with New York Daily News yesterday, going on record saying “it was never about race”, though “his daughter dating a black man may not be his ‘preference’ because of ‘issues’ involved with biracial dating in the South.” Bruh, you racist. What fueled their flames, he maintained, was Allie’s disregard for their wishes, instead choosing dating Michael in secret, as she had with a previous boyfriend they weren’t so fond of. “It became obvious she needed to go out in the world and grow up“.
Way to try to save your a**, Dad, but I don’t buy it.
As with any heart warming story to be found on the internet, the trolls have sunk their teeth in. Guys, this is why we can’t have nice things. Many have been quick to judge her on her white, upper middle class privilege, berating her for her choice to rely on the generosity of strangers, instead of pursuing the old, tired, tapped out, traditional avenues used to support oneself.
Here’s my 2 cents: I don’t agree with the title of her page “Allie’s Tuition- say no to racism”. Paying for another white girl to go to college is, essentially, the antithesis of ending racism, to be frank. Were she to pursue involvement in human rights based awareness groups on campus, and declare a major that dedicates her to sociology/gender and racial studies, then this campaign might not be in vain. She could also use her GoFundMe savviness, and white privilege, to create a scholarship fund for deserving students of color from her high school to do her part to upend the institutionally racist system that is public high school in America. The thing is, with a little outside the box thinking, Allie found an outlet that would allow her to achieve her goal, and attend college. This girl took a really shi**y situation, and used her exceptionally bright mind to find a channel that would allow her come out on top.
Allie, I implore you: please continue using your powers, and privilege, for good. With hearts and minds like yours working to end racial disparity in our country, we may just be able to bring about some positive, lasting change.
p.s – everyone go see Loving.
Fin.
