Despite being academically gifted and attending well-funded and resourced public schools, Smith, as a shy child, did not escape humiliating experiences of racism. Although her family rarely spoke about segregation or economic disparities, Smith recalled instances of racial discrimination: believing that she was "ugly" because she grew up not seeing anyone "who faintly looked like [her] being looked at as a beautiful person,"[8] along with experiencing the racial hostility of a French instructor who believed Smith did not belong in her summer French seminar.[9]