Isolation From an Aspect of Identity

Nina Simone,
Some may find it rather peculiar that in the midst of your growing but mentally tolling career, you abruptly found bliss in the country of Liberia; as an citizen born in North Carolina, it seems you should feel most at home in the United States of America. However, upon deeper analysis, it is clear that your seemingly-random move to Africa was not just an impulsive getaway.
In fact, it is not unsurprising that you turned to Liberia during your times of isolation and strife, greatly caused by the unfortunate state of civil rights at the time. The adversity you faced as a woman of color, an activist of color, and an entertainer of color (all of your roles were undoubtedly racialized) was exhausting- both mentally and physically. The isolation you felt from the country that treated you with racism, disrespect, and disregard as a citizen is what rendered you with a sense of lost identity- a feeling of alienation from the “American” in you. Perhaps your self-identification with Africa- the origin of your people- came as an attempt to fill a void in identity caused by your frustration with a country that wouldn’t accept your brilliancy at its truest.

-Sarah Guller

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