We Are Not Like Them

 We Are Not Like Them is a contemporary novel co-written by Jo Piazza and Christine Pride. 

At novel's end author's conversation included these answers:

It's hard to have a friend of another race in America.

It was important to us that both Black women and white women be able to relate to our characters. 

We were aware that it risked lending itself to a good guy/bad guy dichotomy, we wanted to avoid that at all costs. 

...we had to be careful that our audience didn't "side" with any one woman over the other.

It was important to us that each character earned and deserved both sympathy and frustration in equal measure.

Sorry ladies, I did "side" with Riley. Jenn had blinders on, self-absorbed, self-centered, making demands on Riley. The only fault I saw with Riley, she did not tell Jenn that her boss forbid her to associate with her friend during the investigation. Jenn should have realized that Riley's job as a journalist could suffer through that association. Whine, "but I need you." "Whose side are you on?" Rather than understanding Riley's need for journalistic integrity. 

I dislike being considered white, but society puts that label upon me. My father was born in Italy. When his father brought him, to the U.S.A. the kids called his brother 'tar baby" due to his dark skin. The white classmates harassed my father which may be why the Negro students befriended him, teaching him English and so on.

My mother's family came from Germany; she was born in the U.S.A. If one traces my Italian heritage back far enough, you will find black Africans. There was a time when Italian and Irish immigrants were not considered white. I look at this Blogger screen ~ my skin is not white like the page. I have only known a few black people. Most Black people are shades of brown. 

I hate the labels. One race, the human race.