Put simply, I’m insignificant
You’ve made that clear enough
I’m not worthy of your praise
I’m not worth your love
You ignore my cries
Bottle up my screams
Inhibit any growth
Shatter all my dreams
Limit my potential
Disregard my pain
Marginalize the struggle
Overlooked by any means
I could dominate at every level
But you’ll just call it greed.
You fear my ambition
You fear that I’ll succeed
Or maybe it’s just luck
It can’t be that I’m blessed
It can’t be my insatiable need
To be better than the rest
It can’t be that despite the odds
I thrive. I progress
I’ll outwork any individual you pit against me
It’s like I’m borderline obsessed
Yet, still…
You remind me that I’m brown
That I’m fat…
That I’m black…
You highlight that I’m a woman…
With no plan
I’m just a man
You can’t ignore my eyes are blue…
My lips are big…
Nostrils flare
Blond of hair
My eyes slant
Accent is strong
I’m not from here
I don’t belong
I don’t look like you…
Put simply—I’m no good
Why try?
What’s the use?
It’s these thoughts, I bet,
From birth to death
That they drill—instill
Into our hearts, our heads
They want to control us
Keep us boxed-in
Chained down, I guess
They watch us closely, and still neglect
But the truth, I suspect…
Is that envy, fear, and unhappiness
Fuel their disrespect
Take heed—they succeed if we forget
That we’re deserving, divine, worthy
These truths, we must protect
