Lift Their Voice
Be weary of the ways of the world -Solange.
407 years ago was the first documentation of slavery in America.
161 years ago, it ended.
158 years ago, African Americans gained citizenship in America.
In this country, African Americans' reward for centuries of degradation and endurance has been the gain of basic Human rights.
They say, our Unalienable rights: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Yet the violence, restrictions, prejudice, and past verdicts tell us that, instead, we are somehow the cause of a system that has been prematurely flawed.
Generation by generation. From great-grandchildren, to grandparents' children, to our parents, to ourselves, and to our children. There is a weariness, a cautionary tale we were all told. We soon discover the triumphs of being Black in America.
It's the loss of a child.
The grief of the mother.
The anger of the Father.
The frustration of the community.
For none of them were ever given a fair chance.
They never say the fault is in the vileness of history that stains this nation.
Instead, they say the fault :
is our skin.
our ambitions.
our peace.
our mistakes.
our clothes.
our driving.
our children.
our humanity.
Take a look at Stanford University's Green Library Exhibit.
I bring you to this exhibit not only out of emotion, but also because of the importance of documenting what the media is willing to show us. When Ida. B Wells decided to write and report on lynchings in America; she took a risk in hopes of lifting this veil of ignorance that America is willing to shield us with.
To know the truths of the times, the media has put missing or dead African Americans on your screen, with a simple headline, a quick report, and then they move on. The list in this exhibit doesn't even break the ice to reveal all that has been lost, but ensures those names are remembered.
The history of our grief should not make you comfortable moving on.
The angels, although at peace, were taken because of hate.
A hate that this country profits from and builds on.
African Americans, Black Angels living and in heaven, deserve more. We continue our fight for more, because we are human too, our existence in this world is not solely in our survival, an added name to the list, and it is not solely in a percentage we add to the system, it is in the legacy we continue to lead.
We are a vibrant light, unwavering in our commitment, and strong.
So strong that they would do anything to see us fall.
"I am proud of these people not because of their color but because of their intelligence and their spiritual force and their beauty. The country should be proud of them, too, but, alas, not many people in this country even know their existence. And the reason for this is that knowledge of the role these people played- and play- in American life would reveal more about America to Americans than Americans wish to know" - James Baldwin.
To all of the Black Angels, the ones whose wings feel broken, may the love you brought and bring into the world carry you home.
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