We are the meld
Of the melting pot
That they fear,
The unification of contradictions,
That makes it possible to think,
And not be compelled to remain within party lines,
We are the ones they fear,
They know they cannot control,
Because we know the story,
Know the game,
Know the values,
And are ready to play,
We are the ones told to “go back” from whence we came,
For attempting to be in,
and to fix a broken system,
And know there is silence when our less pigmented brethren do the same,
I am at once proud and ashamed,
And trying my best to be colored beneath a Star spangled banner,
A country that was never designed for me,
Or you, or you,
The oligarchy keeps the barriers in place,
And erects new ones,
Barbed wire fences,
To keep masses divided,
I am not your enemy,
Though I will be villainized for speaking my truth,
For not averting my eyes,
My identity will be used when convenient,
To make a xenophobic point,
Or alternatively for one to save face and prove they are not
Racist,
They fear not just vengeance for centuries of Injustice,
But passing, successes, rewritten social castes,
They fear reality,
That we have no place else to go,
Because this is,
as much for us,
as it is for them,
Home.
Tag: Privilege
Tears of Privilege and Oppression
I am sometimes stunned
By the blind privilege
Of the most well meaning,
I will cry for you that you have been wronged,
But I will not do myself and others literal harm,
To make your unease go away,
I will not do so simply because you weep,
For here I am weeping because of your attack,
You are privileged from where you cry,
But you expect me give away more,
Because you speak,
Your platform is your privilege,
Your class, your skin, your gender, your orientation,
And you say this is your first time
Feeling oppressed,
As you maintain your right to do the very thing,
Of which you do complain.
Privileges
Some can say
“I don’t
Want to
hear it,
See it,
be reminded,
Think about things outside
Of my control”,
“I am comfortable here”,
In ignorant complacency,
Not thinking from another’s point of view,
“This is my space”,
Of chosen apathy,
“I can sugar coat,
Pick and choose
what I subject my mind to”,
Some can forget,
Can remain ignorant,
Can be the fish that swim
Never aware that there is water,
That is their privilege at play,
But I cannot
Remain blind,
My multiple identities remind me every day,
And being aware is my burden,
And I know
I have privileges too,
But I count being awake
As one of them
Rooming with Racism
November 2006
I’ve come here
To save the world
To learn the ways
From this false sense of liberty
Juxtaposed with this
Colorblind class disparity
Education breeding freedoms
But also fastening bonds
Of angst
The copper taste
Of pride
Crushed between my teeth
Fight or flight
Nevertheless
Limbs of lead
Lips sown shut
By the privileged power
That silences me
On pins and needles
Explosions of rage
Die
In the pit of my throat
Blank stare
Recognizing the futility of the fight
Despite what I know
I’m financially lacking
And I’m not white.
She of Letters 