It’s needed because our skin was once considered cursed
Because our hair offends unless straightened into submission
It’s needed because people still see our bodies
And assume the capacity of our minds
It’s needed for car doors locked and bags clutched tighter
By those who see us as a threat for breathing
It’s needed for every tear shed as this nation was built
On backs that bore whips and burdens
It’s needed for crosses burned on countless lawns
And historical retellings that reek of denial
It’s needed because respectability doesn’t save lives
And “I don’t see color” isn’t an achievement
It’s needed because academia let us in
But seldom does it say “make yourself at home.”
It’s needed for comments that approximate mockery
And celebrations misconstrued and dismantled
We need it to lament our scars and laud our successes
And we’ll need it until “why” becomes a rhetorical question.
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