It’s no secret that the United States, at several points in its long history, has gradually cracked the bones of women of color; and as a result, they require a crutch to walk the stones of life. With eyes that widened at a glimpse of difference, and souls that exuded only sanctimonious feelings, the bourgeois American people had created a divided world. American history books found in today’s classrooms never fail to mention the long-winded disgraces placed upon people of color. However, when we have children of our own, their history books will reveal how these long-winded disgraces amounted to centuries of seemingly irreversible damage in our capitalist society. Our children will learn and grimace at stories of our era’s greed and incessant prejudice.
Our lives are dominated by greed, or more specifically, money. The amount of green, pocket-sized, rectangular sheets of paper tied to our names can hoist people up the ladder of acquisitiveness or kick them down several pegs. At the top of the ladder lies opportunity galore. However, at the bottom of the ladder, flames engulf the ground beneath it, and lions extend their long sharp claws and bear their large teeth. As one gets closer and closer to the bottom, the flames warm the soles of their feet, and the heat travels through their bodies, drenching them in sweat. Because their palms are slick of this sweat, they lose their grip, they slip further down the ladder, and the lions’ roars and growls become louder. Reasonably so, people strive to stay as far away as possible from falling through this black hole. Some even reach the top. Good for them.
But, the top is so far away from the bottom that people at the top can’t seem to hear the cries of the people at the bottom. Sure, they might have formed beads of sweat on their foreheads to get to the top, and their feet may have almost missed a peg, but they have never experienced the struggle of constantly slipping or the fear that rushes through their blood when they hear a lion roar.
And the disgraced people we read about in our history textbooks and people with whom they share commonalities? They start their journey at the bottom.