From the Eyes of a Person Of Color: January 6th, 2021

January 6th, 2021 was the day a coup was executed but not accomplished by a terrorist group supporting Donald Trump. It left millions baffled by the white privilege that was clearly shown as the police met this violence towards the Capitol with open arms, holding the gates open while earlier in the year, the same justice system met BLM peaceful protests with rubber bullets, tear gas, and jail sentences. Here is a snippet of what I felt during this time of reflection towards the clear appearance of white supremacy and disregard of others, specifically people of color. 

The World is cruel and

it will not apologize for the people who destroy it.   

It is filled with the vilest of sneers and the ugliest curls of the tongue, 

the distaste that grows like a weed, rapid fire into the mind and branches out, 

Pulling everyone and everything it can reach into the corrupted soil.

Dry soil is the color of my skin, my mothers skin, my fathers skin,

planted in our soil are the seeds of a better future and equality,

change, budding, building

Growing through the sweat of hard work and perseverance

Everyday a new seed Hope plants to grow the garden that Life can give us. 

It was the audacity that made the sweat turn to tears as I listened to the news.

January 6th, 2021

The steps were loud, 

violence is loud 

elephants trashing a room they should not be in,

when you try to silence the mouths that are hungry for justice 

the same people who shot at my brothers and sisters for speaking their truth 

and yell over them the half-truths and lies that have perverted the soil you come from.

Were the ones holding their hands.

The World is cruel

And it will not apologize for the people who destroy themselves. 

who step on soil the color of my skin and say it is theirs

unapologetic, unjust, unlawful 

the only thing we are able to do is continue planting seeds with Hope,

advocating for the garden that Life can give us if only we don’t ruin it. 

As a writer, I felt the need to say something about the traumatizing events on January 6th. As a person, the emotions I was feeling shook me to my core in a way I could only express through the intricate words that poetry is.  With the right mindset and determination, a better future is possible for people of color, but we first have to address the main problems of our society in America. Injustice, white supremacy, and racism tie into the foundations that America was built upon and continue to grow, unless we continue to fight for all of their opposites that support opportunity for everyone.

• 2021
• inequality
• injustice
• poc
• poetry
• white supremacy