auriga

This isn't going to be a sexy blog.

If you are a critic of Black History Month this blog may offend or upset you.

I live in fear that my baby brother will grow up in a world where people will see him as the smart, polite black kid. That's not a bad thing, per se. Nor is it, necessarily, a bad thing that Obama is noted for being the first black president. It's a great thing to be proud of who you are, it's another to be defined by it.

I could not handle the constant fear of being sprayed with hoses or potentially lynched or burned in a bus. I can't imagine being told I couldn't sit somewhere or read a certain book or love a certain person because of my skin color.There are still people being discriminated against for who they love. I don't want to take the focus away from that horrible injustice. That would be unfair. But this is about a different realization/fight/reality.

This generation as a whole bothers and angers me. Put down the guns and pick up a fucking book. Don't blame failure on being ________. Only in rare cases is that the case. Or am I blinded by my upbringing? I was raised in predominantly middle-to-upper white areas until I moved to Brooklyn. I'm not even ready to go into what a culture shock that was for me just yet.

Back to the point.

The idea of a post-racial America completely outrageous. I wish people would only judge by the content of others' character. I wish we didn't need Affirmative Action. I wish I didn't have to worry about my little brother, as much as I do, growing up being automatically discriminated against just because he has brown skin.

The fact that most of my fears were once LAWS in AMERICA less than a fucking century ago makes my skin crawl and I just want to cry. The fact that I can read a brand new astronomy book while drinking some overpriced smoothie or coffee beverage in the front of a city bus with friends of any color and not worry about being arrested or my family's house being bombed or my step father being lynched is a blessing. Too bad in some countries, that's still just a dream.

Bottom line, there is GLOBAL PROGRESS going on. There are STILL changes to be made. Inequality and racism and prejudice are alive and well and we should remember this EVERYDAY. But, Black History Month is the time when more people will realize this and listen because they almost have no choice. The truth is everywhere on a daily basis, but commemorative days/weeks/months just spoon-feed the truth to you.

It's kind of sad that this is the best time America has seen. The safest. We have so much left to do. So many minds to change.

I'm a bisexual, science-loving misanthrope at heart with the propensity to be naturally altruistic. I hate or love all people equally. I have a wonderful boyfriend who wants to be a musician and I am going to college this fall. My skin is two colors and my family is diverse as can be. That's okay. I accept that I am judged harshly. But so are you.

Stop feeling sorry for yourself, though. We have it a lot easier than our ancestors or our global counterparts still facing genocide. Then again, we have racism and hatred and race killings here. It's all a work in progress. Let's hope and work for change.