​Reflections on Race and Community: Experiences in San Francisco and Peekskill

The faces of San Francisco in a multitude colors, defines a city that is arguably the more diverse than other in America.

The color of a person's skin should never be an issue when it comes to getting along, employment, marriage, or friendship. In my experience, among all the places I've ever lived, San Francisco stands out as a city where color is never an issue. Peekskill comes close, maintaining a similar atmosphere of inclusivity and acceptance.

However, there's an exception within my own race, particularly amongst the older generations—those born in the 1940s and early 50s. This boomer generation seems to engage with race in a way that is more pronounced, sometimes shaping their entertainment choices, their cultural preferences, even their assessments of others. Some of them won’t watch a film unless it features a predominantly Black cast, and they might see you differently if Prada appeals to you more than Tyler Perry.

And this raises a peculiar question: is Heaven segregated?

One has to wonder—do our earthly divisions persist in the afterlife, or is it the great equalizer, washing away the things that separate us? If some within my own community cling so tightly to racial identity as a defining factor, do they imagine that celestial neighborhoods operate by the same invisible social rules we manufacture here on Earth?

I’d like to believe that, in its purest form, Heaven is absent of division, an infinite space where barriers dissolve rather than harden. After all, on a quiet morning walk along the Riverwalk in Peekskill, race seems to fade into the background. We smile, we greet one another, and in these moments, the only thing that matters is the shared experience of simply being.

Maybe Heaven is a little like that.

Peekskill closely resembles a miniature San Francisco, with its hills, its bay, and its diverse population.