Cultural Shock and Awareness

The speaker reflects on the cultural shocks experienced after moving from New Jersey to North Florida in 1983. Living within a predominantly white community while attending a school in a mostly Black neighborhood highlighted stark socio-economic disparities. The experiences of racial disparity became clearer through interactions with peers, where the differences in household wealth were evident despite the collective hard work of parents. This early awareness was further amplified by the influence of conscious hip-hop music, particularly the works of Public Enemy, which resonated with the injustices observed in the speaker's own life.