Skip to main content

"I'm so sorry"- Reflection of Citizen

How many times have people apologized for their stereotypes and bias against groups of people? In Citizen, Claudia Rankine uses direct conversation to the audience to personalize microaggressions of marginalized groups. In the imagination of the therapist's response to a black person, it is easy to see how deeply rooted these stereotypical identities of black people are in the common white community. The therapist responds with " I'm so, so sorry". But what is she really sorry for? Her rude behavior or her stereotypes for black people? Nowadays, we often hear "I'm sorry". "I'm sorry for accidentally shooting black people", "I'm sorry for violently dragging an Asian American doctor from a United Airline airplane because of overbooking". People tend to apologize for their actions, not for the mentality behind the actions conducted. There are always those who fail to empathize, consciously or unconsciously. Now the question is not about apologies, but about recognition of discriminations and changing them. All citizens need to engage and to push the country toward love and equality.