The wise doctors in our group of 52 strong talked about the tiny millimeters of skin they have slice through in order to reach the blood, the vessels and the organs. The tinged flesh, this thin part of our humanity, is still what divides many Americans. Skin tone and hair texture evoke such hatred in some that people are murdered, people are destroyed body and soul.

At the Emmett Till Interpretive Center in Sumner, Mississippi we were asked to reflect on this question- when was the first time you became aware of your skin color, or what society has taken to identifying as your race?