Submitted by Hannah Kirby on the 2022 spring semester program in Athens, Greece…
My experience in Greece is going to change me for the better. After six painfully long days in quarantine and a negative COVD-19 test result, I am finally free to explore the streets of Agia Paraskevi, a suburb of Athens. My seven roommates and I spend the morning getting ready for our first big adventure – a meal that won’t be served in a delivery box. As we march up the streets, it is obvious we do not fit it. Our fashion is different, our mannerisms are different, our looks are different. We are Americans, and everyone stares (a few even point). In this moment, I got a glimpse of what it was like to be on the outside looking in. As a white woman, I will never truly understand what it is like to be in the minority, but in this moment, I felt small.
This is not a piece to talk about the Greek behaviors towards us, because almost everyone we have met has been more than welcoming and kind. I want this to be a reflection of my sliver of understanding of what people of color and minority groups face every day in their lives.
In America, I am privileged to be in the majority. I am privileged to be in the middle-class where I can live comfortably. I am privileged to be receiving a higher education. In only a few days in this tiny area of Greece, I have learned how to better respect and acknowledge that privilege. The only question left is how will I utilize my privilege for the better?
