Purple Heart💜
Written by Rosie Basquin
To Our Fallen Black Soldiers,
Your lives were taken in vain by selfish acts of mankind, gone but never forgotten; your impact stands. Your death has caused uproars, began difficult conversations, and sparked the call for revolutionary action and change that we so desperately need.
The oppressors have had us in a chokehold for centuries. Feeding our minds with complacency and inadequacy, forever regarding us as less than. Our forefathers fought for our rights to be included, to not just be seen, but also heard! Their efforts shattered glass ceilings and forced the change we wanted, but that was only the beginning. Our color was seen, we had a voice, but our community misunderstood. Our demands for equality and progression were deemed a threat to their society, a society we were never meant to be apart of.
What is white privilege? Take a moment. Ponder these real-life experiences:
I am a woman, I am black. I am bold, outspoken, and passionate when I speak. My demeanor is often taken as angry, aggressive, unable to conform to authority. However, other white women who are just as bold and outspoken are not seen as aggressive, there is no hidden agenda. Their demeanor will allow them to climb high on the corporate ladder, they will progress. As a black woman, I will have to be “taught a lesson”, learn to control my tongue and adjust my speech so I can not be seen as a threat.
My blackness is what they fear.
Why can my white peers huddle in a group of 3 or more but my black friends and I get ridiculed and searched? Why does our loud laughter and childish banter invoke apprehension and unease?
Our blackness is what they fear.
Why can my white friends admire a nice expensive item, get up close and personal to admire the framework, yet when my black friends decide to join the admiration, cops are called?
Our blackness is what they fear.
I am too angry. I am too outraged. I am hurt to see this is the world we live in, the world where we have to prove ourselves worthy just to live in every day. We have to assimilate just to be accepted in a world that was never designed for us; and even that isn’t enough.
Our Fallen Soldiers, your death will not go unnoticed. We will continue to push the agenda to come together and not divide. Until they hear us, see us. We will not tiptoe around the issue. I am who I am, and we are who we are; strong, black, fearless, resilient. We are more than just a stereotype, we are humans, regardless of the color of our skin. When our soul vanishes we are all nothing but a mere corpse, colorless, features undefined, what matters most is the core. Who you were as an individual, your morals, values.
Our Fallen Soldiers, your presence still stands. Your cries were heard, your death brought uproars, your fate brought outrage. We will continue to disrupt the normal, topple stores, raid cities, and burn homes. The heavens will rain down and God’s Army of Angels will fight on our behalf. The bells will ring and we as a people will stand. Enough is enough, you will hear us roar! We will shout from the hilltops until you hear us, see us, understand us. We will make you LISTEN.
We stand in assembly as once did our forefathers and we will continue the fight. In the end, we will rise.
To our Fallen BLACK Soldiers, you merit the Purple Heart. A medallion of victory, a martyr for the cause; they stripped your voice but your legacy will continue to sing. May our hearts forever remember your names.
#OscarGrant #Terrence Crutcher
Just to name a few Fallen Soldiers, but it is unfortunate there are many more names to this list. Read, educate yourselves, and continue doing your part. Now more than ever our efforts combine can insist change! Be the raindrop that keeps the ripples going.