What it’s Like to Be a Black Woman in a Non-Black City

And by ‘non black city’ I mean that there are fewer black people in it than any other race.

There’s a running commentary in the community where I live, about how few black people there are in this city.

It’s not imagination. There are very few black people where I live.

Especially black women.

I joke with friends about how I’m one of maybe 5 black women in the city, and we don’t know each other.

I live in Vancouver, BC (Canada). And everyone knows (everyone who lives here anyway) that there are far fewer black people in this province than there are anywhere else in the country.

When black women who’re visiting the city come to where I used to work, we were like long lost friendS, getting into long conversations in which they inevitably asked me who does my hair (it’s a thing for us).

One time, a visiting mother and daughter in the city on a cruise stopover even leaned in and said, “We’re not trying to be rude, but…where are all the black people here? We got off the ship and we’re like ‘where the hell are we?’”

We all laughed hard over that one.

You could see that they felt awkward asking, but answering that question doesn’t phase me anymore.