Feeling like fearful eyes are always on you. Bias judgments are being made about you. There’s nothing in the world that you’re wanted for, so you begin to doubt “you”. On your block you can think, act, move, be who you want to be, when you step into a new city you step into a different you, a you that “they” can tolerate, someone “they” would accept, a “person” they would call on. Maybe that’s why we leave home, to find acceptance outside of our comfort zone. That is what it to used be for me. I’ve grown out of that foolish scared mental state thanks to the countless others who never gave up. They changed the narrative.
Now, we’re people who have supporting eyes on us. Questions being asked to uncover our strengths. We’re able to walk into a room with a chin held high and they take notes to be like us. Being black means you can bring about change in people and the world. It’s a culture of power, endurance, determination, and an unbending will to be your best. We may not be the most respected culture out there and that comes from the lack of love that people find within themselves, one that we also have to find in order to bring each other up. It may sound weird to you, but to me being black is one of the biggest advantages you can have in this world today, you may not get to top within 24 hours. You have to work for it, and that work you deal with ends up creating a much stronger and supportive person within you. I wouldn’t trade my skin for happiness, because happiness lives within my skin.
- Christian Mandani-Moriah