Deliberate Oppression

I am reminded of my past because of the present

And fear for our children's future...

I was a white kid reaping the benefits of a white South Africa

I don't mean to make a division,

Apartheid was the standard provision;

Beautiful homes to feel safe in

Neighborhoods to blend in

Schools flowing with white education

White beaches only

no sign of segregation

Out of sight out of mind- complete disassociation

Conformed to my reality,

which I unconsciously

lapped up what was served to me

A silver spoon heaped with white privilege

fed to me with no wonder of pillage

No care in the world for spillage

Because my needs were nourished.

As a white kid I could thrive

Who knew what it meant to barely survive?

To be judged by the color of my outer layer

To learn the hard way and become a player

To imagine that I know is offensive

For a kid who lived every day on the defensive

Left for months by their mothers

Who cleaned up after the likes of me and others.

So indoctrinated by the system

I was a pawn moving through a prism

Of deliberate oppression

By a government who hid their undesired

So well that I simply never inquired.

Ashamed now of the actuality

That my eyes were closed to reality

My mind washed by popularity

My ears deaf to the inequality

I grew up in a deliberately quarantined society.

Now I live in the United States of America  

“the land of the free"

so long as you profit economically

The history is the same

just different geography.

A black kid can dream, fight hard and achieve

The home of the brave is their legacy!

Because they take pains to be free

despite poverty, brutality and Lack of opportunity

Not to mention our current presidency!

And his stance on juvenile judiciary

My question is, When will the white race become sane?

See racism running through our own veins

And treat people of all color the same

We need change

Eradicating racism

Is not clemency, it is an absolute necessity

A human right to be free

To live a life with dignity

With equal starts

Creating a society of equal hearts

Contributing to humanity in equal parts