The Illusion Of Inclusion

By Mariama Diallo

We are often told if you turn your frown upside down
Put on the the right gown
You will win that crown but when you’re black they shoot down
Strip you of your gown and take your crown
Then tape your lips shut so you cannot make a sound
There was a time period where they didn’t want us to stand for red, white, and blue
We see injustice and we kneel but they had a problem with that too
But let’s get to the roots of the issue
Back when I was young I couldn’t be myself
Walking into stores and seeing images of everyone else on the shelf
Selling us a fantasy knowing that most of us will not live to accumulate that amount of wealth
Because there was a strategic system put in place
Ages ago so my people would never be able to be in “your” spaces.
Yet you have people talking about coming together as a human race
But how can that be the case when the issues pertaining to one race are consistently overlooked
Generations of people being mistreated but that somehow being justified under a holy book
But forgive me for complaining about issues we face in our present day
Because our ancestors went through so much more
And we should instead raise our hands and thank God
That at last we have made it through
But I still feel guilty knowing that while I swim in these oceans of blue
Beneath my feet lie the DNA and decomposed bodies of my ancestors
Would they be proud to see that I am swimming happily in these same bodies of water that transported them from their homes to hell
That transported them from being the kings and queens of the motherland to being treated worse than dogs
Would they be proud to see that I am not fighting as hard for them as they were willing to do for me
Which ultimately were the actions that set all of us free
Would they be proud to claim our lack of loyalty to one another
That we have become so wrapped up in consumerism that we can’t see the true value in each other
We can only blame those in power for so long
Because they’ve trained us to believe we are not strong
Part of the reason we can’t get along
But at the end of the day we must stop our carelessness and it is up to us to create the melody to our own song