As I stood looking at one of my fellow classmates, I would never have imagined that this tall, outgoing, bi-racial melting pot of humor, with a smooth smile and quaint dark eyes grew up in one of America's most infamous cities, was a national champion cheerleader or had a diverse family makeup. "I really wish people would break the ignorant stereotypes of my hometown. Compton is not that bad of a place at all. It all depends on the day and the situation. ", Atiyyah Bradford clarified. Bradford is in two of my classes and I was intrigued to profile her life and first love: cheerleading. Bradford continued performing difficult jumps and stunts as I watched from the sidelines of our school's football field. Now I fast forward a few days as we sit in Jazzman's café enjoying a last minute "coffee date", consisting of toasty donuts and assorted juices. As I enjoy my vanilla latte, Bradford discloses that she has ADHD. According to Bradford, the caffeine in coffee makes her drowsy and incoherent. Her continuous humor is enlightening this somewhat gloomy day. As raindrops continued to fall, she tells me never ending anecdotes as she patiently dispelled multiple myths I question about her hometown. "Compton is what you make it to be. If you are a weak person, you will not survive. It truly takes a lot of heart." Bradford explains to me that it films like John Singleton's cult-classic Boyz N the Hood and shows like Spike TV's Gangland that associates the city with violence and oppression.
".....Compton is not that bad of a place at all. It all depends on the day and the situation. "
Born to a African American mother, and a Afro-Hispanic father, Atiyyah Bradford has rich lines of Spanish and African running through her veins. "My father never really acknowledged that side of his family." , as she described her heritage. For the few weeks that I have been socializing with Bradford, many of our peers often mistake her for that of another race. "People think that I am half-Ethiopian, or from Trinidad. I don't get it!", she laughed. I can see why she is often mistaken as being that of another race. Bradford has the facial and hair features that mimic one of my high school classmates who is from the Dominican Republic. Bradford has creamy dark skin, accented by radiant curly hair that matches her skin complexion. Her hair may often be stereotyped by other African American's as "good hair". "That whole belief about 'Good Hair' versus 'Bad hair' is ignorant.",Bradford explained, "It's just something else for us [Black women] to talk about."
As we sip our juices and the hour delightfully passes by, we begin to talk about her experiences in cheerleading and her passion for the arduous sport. "I have been cheering since I have known how to walk." From multiple back hand springs, to performing stellar jumps in mid-air, cheerleading is truly a demanding sport, that requires hours of various practices and techniques. Whenever we are walking to classes, Bradford occasionally will randomly kick her leg straight up at a near perfect 180 degree angle. "The most I love about cheerleading is stunting. It makes me feel really relaxed and focused." Bradford has a passion about cheerleading that I have never seen before. She notes her list of cheerleading accomplishments, including winning the Jamz Back-to-Back National Championship, USA National Championship and Sharps National Champion. Besides winning several national titles, Bradford was also captain of her high school's cheerleading squad, which was named as a All-Star team. Learning her first stunt at the tender age of seven, she has nearly mastered all her cheer stunts and moves. Aside from long practices and working hard to perfect routines and dances, she admires and respects the bond that she has with her teammates, who she calls her "Cheer Sisters". "We don't always get along, but we still love and support each other to the fullest." Bradford and her teammates had often been regulars on the AUC social scene, but due to practices and a heavy classwork load, she has begun to shy away. "Atlanta parties okay, but in Los Angeles, the parties there? Wild." She explained, "Atlanta parties are cool. It is just the music that is played, and played repeatedly, that I cannot connect with like I can back in L.A."