I 'm Not Buying It

Ten-minute play that takes an intimate look at retail racial profiling.

Synopsis

It’s the first day on the job for a white cashier at a high-end jewelry store. When his first 
customer is a black male, he embarks on a journey of self discover regarding his
assumptions and attitudes on race.
“I’m Not Buying It” was written in response to the race reckoning that is reverberating around
this nation and the globe. As everyone harps on dismantling systemic racism, this play sheds 
light on thefact that this grand goal must start on a granular level: with each individual. It is
individuals who perpetuate racism in all its many forms. Shopping is an everyday
experience for most us, so the play is set in a space that shows how pervasive racism 
and “otherism” are in our everyday lives. The fact that the characters are defined only by their 
race is intentional on two fronts: to indicate how often people are reduced to just 
their skin color andto indicate that racism is blind to other aspects of a person,
including age, level of education and socio-economic status.

July 2023
Produced during the Columbus (Ohio) Black Theatre Festival
Columbus, Ohio

June 2021
Produced as an immersive experience by 7Stages Theater as part of its Human Lights Festival, A Curious Encounter
Atlanta, Georgia

July 2020
Produced as a virtual play for Face Off Theatre Company
Kalamazoo, Michigan