A Day in the Life of Your Only Black Peer
In the following poem I address what my everyday struggles are like as PBA’s sole black female student. I felt this format was the best suited to convey my experiences with the proper amount of emotional depth.
Wake up
Wash my face brush my teeth
Take off my bonnet unravel my bantu knots
Brush out my big beautiful afro
Get in the car get to school early walk to seven eleven
Hood down hands up
Walk back turn right
Wonder if the lady in her car is staring because I’m black or just because
Get back to school smile
Thank the nice ones who tell me my hair is pretty
Sigh at the ones who ask me how I had long hair yesterday and short hair today
Go to class sit down
Educate my classmates as much as my teacher does
Wonder if they choose to be offensive or if ignorance is just a sickness they cannot beat
Go to lunch wait for the microwave try to detox
Answer questions about racial issues as my food gets cold
Go to another class watch a video
Remember that not everyone can see the small offenses it holds
Remember that my peers are either blind or removed from the oppression of my people
Finish school get on the bus get called the n word
Watch as people would rather stand on an unstable platform than sit next to me
Look for another black face
Look for solidarity
Get off the bus cross the street into my all white suburbs
Return their wary smiles with a fake one
Find solace in my house of all black women
See whose daytime community proved to be the most racist
Subtle or not
Eat dinner take a shower