By: Amelia-Rose Williams
We’re taught that beauty is on the inside, and that is all that matters. How shallow that is. Being black is realizing that we will always have to fight to be seen for what we possess inside of us, rather than the surface level that everyone sees. It’s realizing that through appearances alone, we are feared, and we have no way of shifting the narrative to put others’ minds at ease.
We have to live in a reality where we have to teach our kids important parts of our history that aren’t taught in schools. Reason being the embarrassment that our country feels from its past. We have to teach our kids how to interact with law enforcement to prevent them from coming back in a body bag.
We have to teach ourselves how to love ourselves because we may spend our entire lives chasing a reality that just isn’t ours to live. To be young, gifted, and black, we have to realize how impactful and innovative we truly are.
We create trends, we inspire, we uplift, and we fight. Not only for our equality, but equality for all. We fight to be seen, heard, and respected. More importantly, we love. We are more than our skin, our hair, our lips, our body. We are beautiful, influential, trendy, and the future.
If I’ve learned anything about being black, it would be that I wish I were born black in every lifetime. I’m proud of my skin, my heritage, and myself for persevering through every obstacle the world sends my way. While there may be individuals who can’t look past my skin, my message to you would be that unity comes at the expense of sacrifice, and to truly heal would be to sacrifice what you can’t let go of.