Simyeon Gillespie

Interviewee: Simyeon Gillespie

1. What are some of your earliest memories registering race/racism?

For Simyeon, this was as early as Elementary days, where he experienced tauntings from other students about the darkness of his skin, his name, his speech. The older he’d gotten, the more he was isolated- as he often felt “too black for white groups”, “too white for black groups.” 

2. How have your experiences with racism affected the way you view the Black community as a whole?

He became detached from the Black community, and also the Black struggle. Growing up in a suburban neighborhood, Simyeon subconsciously started to identify some Black people as “ghetto”, as he believed that “whiteness was the norm and goal to reach.” 

3. What was the catalyst for your current activism and pride in your Blackness?

Like many others, it was in his college years that Simyeon was introduced to spaces that intentionally created spaces for his Blackness. In this, the journey to the moment of Black pride and a larger understanding of systematic racism began to build. 

Then, the story of Tamar Rice, a young Black boy shot dead in a park because his toy gun resembled too much a real one. This deeply unsettling news evoked the conversations of racism between Simyeon and his then, white partner. And though, at the time, it seemed she agreed with him about the mission of BLM, he slowly realized the prejudiced tendencies and ideals she still held. And ultimately they ended their relationship.

During that season, Simeon was able to reflect on his past experiences as a Black person, awakening to the reality that he never noticed the casual moments of racism ingrained in his interactions and connections with people. He’d casually been called, “n*****r”, referred to as “monkey.”  

4. What do we need?

“People still paint us as the problem in these stories” Simeyon says with exasperation clear in his voice. He emphasizes our need for change, because “change is not here.” That these are not the moments for subtly, that he has taken to being “upfront about [his] feelings” concerning BLM and the heart of the movement. He speaks of giving back, of moving away “from the thought of individualism” and instead to “how can I help give back?” Because it is only in this selflessness, and caring of neighbor can real work be done.

5. How have you practiced self-care in these times?

The honest answer to this question is none. Simyeon admits to not having invested into his mental health the way he’d hoped. But that on good days, he does enjoy being lost in music, or in Binge-watching familiar films.

6. Is there anything you wish you would have known earlier, as a black person living in America?

“Is knowing how much your skin color affects everything.” He wishes that he’d been warned of the battles he’d face as a growing Black male. He believes that if he would have been educated on Black history in a substantial way, he wouldn’t have been so quick to detach from the Black community and form a fraudulent identity around Whiteness.

Simyeon, you are light and strength. Thank you for your story- in it, you teach us the importance of pursuing self. May we follow in your footsteps. May we learn to shed the skins of societal lies, and rather allow our core truths to shine.