“ANDREA”

This piece is based upon a racially mixed African American and Caucasian girl, age 14

Her main quote: Sometimes I dress sexy—depends on who I’m trying to impress.

Some of her other quotes:

• Boys are the hardest thing about being a teenage girl.  They bring a lot 'a stress upon my life, like, dating em... I think when I have boyfriends, I get more worried about the way I look and then I just start sinking down to, like, nothing really because some guys tell me I’m a bitch or things like that.

• Girls do practically always feel pressured by their boyfriends to have sex, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that we do what they want to do. 

• I know a lot 'a people that lived on the streets, but when they went to a regular school, everybody liked em, so you don't have to be rich to be popular.

• I wish the world knew that we teenage girls are very smart.  We can do whatever we really put our minds to.  And even though we're small people,  one day we’ll grow up to be a very big and important person.

• I don’t really "get" older people.

• I used to eat celery all the time, but I stopped doing that cause I just don’t wanna be that skinny because you go around seeing people that—they hardly have any skin on their body and that’s disgusting.  They think it’ll make people like 'em better. 

• People can say the meanest things to me like, "you’re ugly, you’re fat, you don’t dress right."   I still wouldn’t care. 

• What makes me angry is having to shave my legs. I hate it, but I do it anyways because that’s what they want us look like.  I wouldn't like to go out for a date without with my leg hair shaved, because I'd be  lookin'' like a guy and I don’t wanna look like a guy.

• I have lots 'a people that tell me that I’m beautiful and a lot 'a people don’t always have that happen to them—but it’s not just that, I care for myself. 

• Being sexually active makes a girl less popular because a nobody wants to date anybody that’s like, like, had sex with a lotta people.  Most guys, like, they’re looking for girls that are virgins 'cause there all these diseases going around. 

• Pop stars dress too sexy 'cause ya get more money, people pay for that kinda stuff. 

• I wear dark colors because sometimes its the way I feel, like I feel kinda sad now.  I’m more often sad than happy.