We are Not a Monolith

We are Black, Brown, Yellow & White

We are Light as well as the Night

We are Fat, Skinny, Muscled and Everything In Between

We are Jazz, Rock n Roll, Soul & Blues

We are Hip-Hop, R&B and we are Clypso Too

We are the Sounds of the Caribbean Night

We are Drums and the Cymbals of good old fashion drumline

I am You, You are me

We are the Jehovah witness knockn at your door

We Are Christians, We Are Vodun, We are Muslim, We are so much more

We are Pan African, Kemetic, and Atheist, Don’t be Fooled

We are even Buddhist, Divine Mother God and Hindu, I must include

We are the servers in your banquet halls, managers providing leadership to the staff that abound and owners of banks near city hall.

We are the Rare Air and the common street filth in the gutter

We are High on the Hog as well as a good Low Country boil in the coastlines that have sank.

I am You, You are me

We are billionaires, soldiers, lawyers, like good respectful folks should be

Don’t get twist though cuz we also hood, and my ghetto is down the street.

We are the bitches workn the district you see, and the momma that weeps herself to sleep

We are Mother Africa and the cradle of life

We are the Father of the Mysteries and Creatives that have painted our own destiny

We are the Rosetta Stone , Meroitic language, and the Adinkra Symbols

We are the children of the enslaved, colonized and those who have always been free

I am You, You are me

We are Latinx, Asian, American, and Caribbean my Friend

We are French, Portuguese and European; Hell, we have even been the Queen

We are Fine Dining, Vegan and Barbeque, and Vegetarian

We are Coast to Coast, Urban, Suburban and Rural farmlands.

We are the Sword, We are the Shield

We are the Guns, and We are the ship that provide passage to the Motherland

I am You, You are me

We are Masculine and Femininity energies, Some choose to be both at one time

We are that Good Vibration, you feel deep down in your soul

We are anger that rages on, We are pain that numbs, We are the joy that is divine

We are Poor, We are Rich, We are Strong and The weak.

We are the PHD and the un-degreed

We are Shrimp and Grits, Red beans and Rice as well as the Oysters on the half Shell

Unfortunately, we can also be the crabs in the barrel

We are blue, we are purple, yeah, we are red too

We are booty shaking, break dance making, Gospel Praising

We Are African, But Guess What So Are You.

© 2022 Shante Nixon. All rights reserved

WHY I WROTE THIS POEM:

I wrote this poem (Opens in a new window) last year about African Diaspora not being a monolith. I wrote that poem due to respectability politics in our community, because of the level of harm it cause to all of us, the upper crust, lower crust and all that fall in between.

These Are My Thoughts,

Shanté (Opens in a new window)

© 2023 Shanté Nixon (Opens in a new window). All rights reserved