Look at my face
Look at it right now
What do you see?
You know what, no I’m going to tell you what you see.
You see black.
Look at my hands
What do you see?
You see black.
Do you even need to look at my nose before you assume that it’s large?
Are my lips the same?
Do you even try to get to know me before you assume that I play by the rules of the stereotypical
“black” game?
When will people realize, when will people realize that we are not the stereotype that has been forced
upon us.
So many of us spend so much time trying to break through these minds of the people who see us for one thing. Black.
Now don’t get me wrong.
Black is important
Black is strong
Black is independent
Black is beautiful
I don’t need you to tell me that you’re surprised that I don’t speak “ghetto”
I don’t need you to tell me that you expect me to be a **** and walk around in stilettos
And I don’t need you to tell me that I’m inferior to you because my skin color doesn't fit your regimen.
No. I will not, I will not be defined by my melanin.
But I will let it push me to be the person that you so clearly doubt I can be.
I will let it excel me to levels of understanding and acceptance that you will never see.
I am more than my stereotype.
You expect me to stand here and pull a gun?
You expect me to stand here and say that I don’t know who my father is?
Or do you want to hear that I’m pregnant?
And all those questions are okay, right?
Because my feelings obviously come second
No.
I refuse to be reduced to how much melanin is in my skin
I refuse to stand here and listen to people tell me that it is a sin
To be proud of my race.
To be proud of my ethnicity.
And to not keep it bottled in.
Look at my face
Look at it right now
And tell me what you see
Dec 16, 2012
Dec 16, 2012 at 11:53 PM UTC
Look at my face
Look at it right now
What do you see?
You know what, no I’m going to tell you what you see.
You see black.
Look at my hands
What do you see?
You see black.
Do you even need to look at my nose before you assume that it’s large?
Are my lips the same?
Do you even try to get to know me before you assume that I play by the rules of the stereotypical
“black” game?
When will people realize, when will people realize that we are not the stereotype that has been forced
upon us.
So many of us spend so much time trying to break through these minds of the people who see us for one thing. Black.
Now don’t get me wrong.
Black is important
Black is strong
Black is independent
Black is beautiful
I don’t need you to tell me that you’re surprised that I don’t speak “ghetto”
I don’t need you to tell me that you expect me to be a **** and walk around in stilettos
And I don’t need you to tell me that I’m inferior to you because my skin color doesn't fit your regimen.
No. I will not, I will not be defined by my melanin.
But I will let it push me to be the person that you so clearly doubt I can be.
I will let it excel me to levels of understanding and acceptance that you will never see.
I am more than my stereotype.
You expect me to stand here and pull a gun?
You expect me to stand here and say that I don’t know who my father is?
Or do you want to hear that I’m pregnant?
And all those questions are okay, right?
Because my feelings obviously come second
No.
I refuse to be reduced to how much melanin is in my skin
I refuse to stand here and listen to people tell me that it is a sin
To be proud of my race.
To be proud of my ethnicity.
And to not keep it bottled in.
Look at my face
Look at it right now
And tell me what you see
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