"You White girl!"  "You are nothing but a stuck up, techno-colored Black girl!"

The above statements are examples of what I, Liz Dawson, Founder & Chairperson of Mistaken Identity have endured throughout most of my life.

As a child growing up in a single parent home, life was very uncomplicated.  I went to school, did my chores, and played with my friends, who happened to live next door and across the street.

I was raised in a predominately Black neighborhood.

At the age of nine, my life was made complete. My mother married the most wonderful man in the world, my stepfather, who sadly has passed on.

Ironically, though, as my "new self" continued to emerge, I lost most of my so-called friends. As long as I was mildly disruptive and remained the class comedian, I was extremely popular, but as soon as I began to settle down and take an interest in something other than "having fun" I wasn't very cool anymore.

At any rate, one day as I made my way down the hall, I was confronted by 8 or 9 young Black girls who didn't like the way in which I carried myself.

It was at that point I realized I was no longer "one of them." These girls were prepared to assault me, to beat me up, simply because "I acted like a stuck up White girl." We argued, I stood my ground, and at my first opportunity, transferred to another school, which unfortunately did not take place until the following year.

Throughout the rest of my high school career, and most of the time thereafter, I have had difficulty in cultivating and maintaining relationships with other African American women. so much so that I began seeking out friendships with women from every other race, except my own.

"If they didn't like me, I wasn't going to like them."

When I moved to Atlanta, I assumed that establishing Black friendships would be easy, considering I was now living in the 1990s "Black Mecca."
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I don't think I have to tell you, but I will, "I was wrong!"

To my dismay, while a member of one or two organizations, I came across the same old, too-familiar remarks regarding my character and behavior. <>

It was as if I hadn't relocated at all.

Rather than trying to find my place within someone else's organization, I decided to take the initiative, and create an organization of my own - - Mistaken Identity. Mistaken Identity was created to provide a Comfort Zone for young Black women like myself, who have and will continue to face this hypocrisy.

I may not be able to change the behavior of others, but what I can do is establish a place where African American women of today can come together to support one another, instead of destroying ourselves, and the legacy of our ancestors.

That's my story, and the foundation on which Mistaken Identity is based.