I’m Ashamed To Be Black
My Community Embarrasses Me
Now that I have your attention, let me start by saying I love being black.
I love that I come from strong ancestors and I love that I come from a resilient race of people.
What I do not love is what we have become, and I do not love how far we have fallen.
I do not love that I have to be cautious of my own people.
I do not love that I fear black men and women.
I hate that I do not trust my own kind. I do not love seeing black faces in news headlines for murder and burglary.
I am cautious because of shows like The First 48 where it is more common to see black murder suspects.
I hate that I have to be mindful of how I look, dress, and behave because so many black men have committed crimes that ultimately result in me being racially profiled.
I take my hands out of my pockets while shopping and I take my hood off while entering a store.
I feel embarrassed when blacks act out in public and I hate that everyone who witnesses them acting uncouth assumes that we all behave this way.
I feel embarrassed when black women have nasty attitudes while on the job and I hate that they willingly perpetuate the angry black woman stereotype.
I feel embarrassed when black men are pulled over by police with narcotics in their vehicles.
I feel embarrassed when I see black youth skipping school or disrupting a classroom.
I hate that black men are constantly crying racism but they willingly perpetuate the criminal black male stereotype.
I hate that black youth willingly participate in the school-to-prison pipeline.
I am ashamed to be black when Black Lives Matter protesters block traffic demanding justice when these same individuals never protest black-on-black violence.
It is embarrassing to see blacks riot and loot when a police officer kills a black person, but these same individuals will not riot when blacks kill other blacks.
It is embarrassing to see our people harm each other at alarming rates and we do absolutely nothing about it.
What is more embarrassing is how we can only come together when a white person kills us. We only become enraged when a cop kills us.
How do our lives matter when we prove every day that they don’t?
The genre of rap really embarrassed me because it is viewed as black music. Rap has become so toxic, so vile, so disgusting, and so degenerate.
It embarrasses me to see black women wearing barely anything and rapping about what they have between their legs. These black women can only sell sex.
What does that say about black women? What picture does that paint to the world?
It embarrasses me to see black men rapping about gun violence, drugs, and money. These men can only sell materialism.
What does that say about black men? What picture does that paint to the world?
We are talented enough to make hit records and best-selling albums, yet we only create low-vibrational music.
This embarrasses me greatly.
The movies we produce cause me great shame.
You can go to Hulu, Netflix, and Tubi to see us depicted in negative ways. Under the “black stories” category are nothing but films about drugs, gangs, hip-hop, and other stereotypical tropes.
We make films that paint us to be one-dimensional people.
If we are not portraying a maid, we are portraying a slave.
If we are not portraying a slave, we are portraying a stripper.
If we are not portraying a stripper we are portraying a drug dealer.
If we are not portraying a drug dealer, we are portraying a gangster. You get the picture.
Thank you for reading!
