Daijah Abram
I am Black and proud because I come from courage. Because people
like Harriet Tubman and Nat Turner fought back against slavery. Because people
like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X fought for the rights of African
Americans. Because people like The Little Rock Nine and Dorothy Counts braved
the integrated school systems.
I am Black and proud because I come from beauty. Because in
1949, Dorothea Towles became the first top Black model. Because Black
supermodel Mounia was the muse to designer Yves Saint Laurent. Because Black
women look good with dreads, weaves, natural hair, and pretty much every
hairstyle including no hair at all. Because despite being Black, my people come
in all different beautiful shades of brown.
I am Black and proud because I come from achievement. Because
Oprah Winfrey is the richest self-made Black woman in America. Because Aretha
Franklin was the first female artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame. Because the highest paid golf player, Tiger Woods, basketball player,
Kobe Bryant, and boxer, Floyd Mayweather, are all Black males. Because the
current President of the United States, Barack Obama, is Black.
I am Black and proud because I come from culture. Because Black
Americans have created their own language and set of beliefs. Because global
trends such as the Harlem Shake originated from Black subculture. Because music
genres like rock and roll, jazz, and R&B originated from Black subculture.
Because Butterfly, from Digable Planets, said it best “we be to rap what key be
to lock.” Because we are often imitated but never duplicated.
Sure
being Black is hard, my people are still struggling in this modern world, but I
wouldn’t want to be anything else.
YASSSSSS!!!
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