It's finally here! The season we've all been waiting for. It is officially the end of summer and the beginning of fall. 'Tis the season of pumpkin spice lattes, leggings with tall boots, scarves and cute jackets, and watching the leaves turn a solemn red. This means that the cliché "white girl" jokes will begin and we may or may not feel bad about it.
Fall is an amazing season. The air turns crisp, the humidity of summer dies down, and everything seems calm. Halloween and Thanksgiving are just around the corner, with Christmas not far down the line. It's natural to be excited about this change in the weather and the atmosphere. Fall is all about change, whether it be your wardrobe, choice of drink from Starbucks, or the air around you. It's okay to feel uneasy about it sometimes.
There's also the lingering stereotype of "white girl season." Maybe the stereotype is rightfully so, but that doesn't mean that we have to follow it nor feel bad about it. It's not our fault that pumpkin spice lattes are amazing or that we get to go back to wearing clothes we actually like. It's not our fault that sometimes we find the cooler air more comfortable then sweating through our shirts all summer. White girls, or anyone else who enjoys all of the aspects of the fall season shouldn't have to worry about the jokes they will hear when they are spotted carrying around a pumpkin spice latte while wearing leggings and a knit scarf.
I say, go to that pumpkin patch. Get that pumpkin spice latte. Make all of the pumpkin flavored treats your heart desires. Attempt to make all of those cute fall crafts you find on Pinterest. Embrace the fall. No one should be made fun of for the things they enjoy. So what if fall is "white girl season"? That is all the more reason to take advantage of it.
Stereotypes are simply a part of our social system. They're going to be there no matter how hard we try and break them down. That's just the bitter truth. So, we can go on complaining about the basic fall aesthetic or we can move on and be who we are and have fun while doing it. And, if you don't fit that basic white girl stereotype, that's okay too. It's better to be yourself and be happy than try to fit in with the norm and be miserable. Vice versa, don't try and change who you are because you're afraid of being too normal.
Fall is a season of change, but that doesn't mean we have to change who we are.
