by Donshea Brown
“Where were you born?”
“Where were you raised?”
“Where is your home?”
All these questions have been asked of me
And I have answered them all the same
“Beaufort, South Carolina”
“Bluffton, South Carolina”
“South Carolina”
Without hesitation, I will always tell you where I am from
I will show you the resplendent scenery
I will smother you with the southern hospitality known nationwide and seen throughout my actions
I will apprise you of the rich culture heard within my thick southern accent
I will also alert you of the scolding hot sun
Whose rays can be replaced with fun-filled beach days
My whole childhood, no,
My whole life
Has been lived obediently in this apparently gorgeous tourist trap
But it still does not seem to suffice
Maybe if I looked a little different
Maybe if some parts were changed then more things would be given
Or maybe if my home were to alter its ways
Despite the already blinding sun, everyone that looks like me
Would see even brighter days
In my ideal home
I would not have lost a friend because my skin color, she was told,
Is grounds to end a kindergarten companionship
In an unfeasible but impeccable world
I would not have tried to be a completely different person to feel like I belonged
From the time that these fifty states were a mere thirteen colonies,
Black people have been the backbone of this country
My ancestors being bought and sold
In a place that I currently refer to as my “home”
My people being counted as three-fifths of one
And still being treated the same every rising sun
My color fighting for rights that we already owned
As proven by the theory that John Locke told
The belief that white is better than Black
Is rooted deep within the seeds that my hometown continues to plant
How can the likes of a young Black girl speaking truth compete with that?
Many think that slavery is no longer an issue
But the lives of my racial group continue to be abused
Whether physically or emotionally
“Those people” who identify as Black are continuing to bleed
Men like George Floyd who lost their lives
Due to police brutality seen in broad daylight
Women like Sonya Massey who apparently “did not comply”
Killed due to the fear of a white police officer pulling the plug on their lifeline
Athletes like Serena Williams getting stereotyped by the masses
All because the only emotion you have is anger if you are Black
Mothers losing their children because when it is all said and done
Black women’s pain is not taken seriously in the eyes of a white physician
For years upon years, we have been oppressed
So much so that it has leaked into our own culture and caused a significant mess
If only Black people were loved as much as Black culture
Instead, the looks of our lives are feasted upon by colonizing vultures
“Slavery is over” the song continued to be sung
But if that is so, why do Confederate flags in my hometown continue to fly?
How should we improve the state of South Carolina?
I hope that my ideas are not too much to ask
Because all I want is the basic treatment that the majority of the people in this state have
I am not asking for the whole state of South Carolina to change
I am simply asking for changes that benefit people who look like me to be made
This looks like not being the only Black person in most of my honors classes
It looks like implementing more support groups and clubs for Black people in the masses
If we want to improve South Carolina for all people as a whole
We need to realize that racism is taking an extreme toll
Those uncomfortable topics that are largely played down in just about every school
Need to be learned about by the Black kids whose culture it is, and the white ones too
To make the minority feel more than valued
The history of our culture needs to be taught and the present one viewed
To ensure that we all are living in harmony
We need to begin to pass down torches of equality
The problems do not only lie outside of our community
So, we need to band together and start to create some unity
Protesting for our rights and collectively speaking up
Makes changes so big we leave those old times in the muck
When we are all separate, we can expect no change
So let us all stand together and make South Carolina illuminate
About Donshea Brown
Donshea Brown is a junior at May River High School in Bluffton, where Mrs. Alicia Weaver is her English teacher. The daughter of Danielle Tennison and Jamiyl Brown, Donshea is a member of the National Honor Society and the varsity basketball, track, and cheer teams. She would like to study sociology at Howard University and become a civil rights attorney and published poet.