My Skin is Not me: The Violence of Being Black

The Violence of Being Black.

By: Camille Carlington

For some being black in America feels like running a race, non- stop. Every time you think you are close to the finish line, to that victory, someone moves that line. So you keep running, trying to keep up, but you just cant get over it. You find yourself running around in circles trying  to attain liberation, when liberation has become unavailable. 

We have become tired of the never- ending, painful reality that is racial tensions. It has risen and given a platform for hate crimes. These wars of dissolution and cessation of humanistic rights that should be naturally held by each and every individual, should not be a target of interest. It is the distribution of power between someone in a position of authority that has rigged and personalized the rules of decency and standards of morality or responsibility. People in the power of authority are supposed to protect and prevent potential dangerous situations for all of the people, not to dehumanize people based on a preconceived notion on their character and behavior. Police officers are to step into situations if someone is getting hurt, they should not be the ones to do the hurting if it is unnecessary. We have gone to far in our reach for justice for all, that it has now become justice for no one but Mary and her little lamb. 

We should not be afraid to walk down the street. We should not be afraid to go to the store. We should not be afraid of wearing a hood. We should not be afraid that we may never see our family again. We should not be afraid that our children will be taken away or our parents be detained. No one should ever feel afraid to live their own life. But unfortunately that is what our world has become. For me, there are times where I feel ashamed to be black. It is not because I don't like myself or my beautiful chocolate skin, it is because I have live a privileged life. I see how many of my brothers and sisters facing discrimination daily. I hear about it in the news, I read about it, I see it on social media everyday. It hurts. But what hurts the most, is seeing brown children detained and treated like they are animals, what hurts the most is seeing mothers, fathers, siblings, being treated like they are some type of out of space extraterrestrial being. What hurts is that they are not seen as humans. That is what they are, they are humans. Humans who deserve they same amounts of rights. 

The world has become a cage trapped in the pits of hell. In the beginning of being black, for some it was hell and for others not so much. Being black in a world where white lies matter, is a world filled with deceit, alternative facts, fabricated fears filled with consequential tears. I am not going to lie, I do have it easy in life. I guess you could say that I have been living a stereotypical "White Life".  I never cared much about racial discrimination growing up because I never had that problem. It wasn't until I was in the 6th grade and someone called me the "N word". At first I was a bit taken back because before I never really acknowledged my blackness, I had always just seen and identified myself as mixed with white and black. After that incident I began to see myself in a new light and I made it my duty to learn about my people. I mean I cant deny that the word hurt, but what could I do? I decided to lean more into understanding Black History. I felt that if I didn't know about it then it would make me an imposter. The only thing that I did not want to happen in this world, is for me to walk around like Casper the friendly ghost. But this was only the beginning of my self discovery.

In the beginning was Americas racist and segregationist history. That same past is what is harming black people continually in todays world. It has come to the point where being black is basically a hazard to our health. But even considering the vast unpredictable circumstances, we as a community still continue to fight the prejudices and discrimination hand and hand. But with standing up to what you believe in, comes a great price. We can continue to protest all we want but there will always be the opposing team. Throughout history we have protested for equality among races and today we are still protesting. The one end result that has been fluid throughout is violence. Violence has always found a way to seep in thought your most vulnerable moments. Every time we use violence we loose the fight for our rights. We will not be able to stop racism.  In my opinion, the only way to control it is by ignoring it. Once we ignore it and do not give a reaction, we win. We as a community have been silenced for so long, we have faced the consequences, the beatings, and heartbreak for all of our lives, that there is no time to be silent. When you have been put on mute all your lives, you would take any chance and opportunity to speak up. That is what we are doing, speaking up and making our voice heard!

In the end, the fight against prejudice will continue to be an on going match. As long as we fight the good fight with the strength of wisdom and perseverance, we shall prevail in the end!

Thanks For Reading!