This is My Face
An average face it is indeed
Asymmetrical
Nothing outstanding or striking
Neither pretty nor hideous
Just a face
My face
This is my skin
Scarred golden goodness
To some, too light
To others, too dark
To me, it’s just as shell… except that it’s not
Not in this world
In this country
It’s a sign
A flag
A lightening rod for
snap judgements and discrimination
These are my lips
Luscious and full
A nod to my heritage
Holding back screams
As I helplessly witness
The agony of my people
MY people
My fellow blacks
My fellow women
My fellow Muslims
These are my eyes
Heavy-lidded and tired
Oh the tears these eyes have cried
Over so many things
Both great and small
Feeling the pain of others as if it were my own
Feeling my own sufferings
This is my mind
That worries day and night
Knowing
That my brothers could literally have been John Crawford III
That they still can be…
Carelessly taken out by the Boys in Blue
This is my heart
That races
Skips beats
Stops
With the fear and anxiety
That my nephews
My baby boys
Could have literally been
Tamir Rice
Could still be…
A bright young light snuffed out far too soon
By those who vowed to protect and serve us
This is my soul
That aches and trembles
Knowing that my mother
My sisters
My nieces
Are harassed
Assaulted
Set on fire
Because of the way they dress
This is my faith
That has never abused nor oppressed me
That has never stifled nor restricted me
Because I am blessed to know the difference
Between culture and religion
The only oppression I have ever felt is at the hands of the very country I call my home
America
This is my home
My country
And while they, in their ignorance,
might like to deport me
Jeer at me to “go home”
They are too blinded by my covered body
And their own hate to realize
I am home
The blood, sweat and tears of my slave and indigenous ancestors have irrigated the very soil they walk upon
This is my life
I don’t know where I am
Or where I’m going
But I’m am not lost
In a world filled
with confusion
Fear
Hate
Anger
And sadness
I shall rise
Fight
And overcome
This is my life
This is my face
