I Stand.

Too often, we're seen in terms of black or white.
Religion, politics, and race.
But I am living in the grey area,
with a simple look at my face.

Often mistaken for so many things,
the color confusion my appearance brings.
Beauty should not be defined by color,
yet it's the very divide by which we judge one another.

Too white for some, not Black enough for others,
my bronze skin far from grey.
Persecutions of the past, hidden,
but still very much alive today.

This beautiful amalgam of my heritage
has allowed me a rare perspective.
One in the middle,
too often neglected.

A mixture. A meeting.
A fusion. A collaboration.
It's something that we could stand to have
in this nation.

Constantly furthering the divide
is no way to survive.
I am not more of one half
than I am the other.

But all sides would have you pick a side.
You can't have the best of both worlds.
Here is where they lied.

Our world is too diverse
to be confined within the rules of a few.
Our outlook needs rebirth,
to become anew.

Somewhere, we lost sight
of simply being good to one another.
Good humans hidden in the shadows
of accusations, brutality, and murder.

To live and let live
for those doing no harm.
To lay down stereotypes
and disarm our walls.

Making decisions
so a side can be right,
while our brothers and sisters
are being lost to the night.

I have felt the war within
when my own cultures clashed.
Lost at sea, with no clear navigation.
Adrift in the chasm
so many are eager to widen.

Amidst it all,
I found my own destination.

I am no longer in the grey,
but the whole color spectrum.
Shooting through the cracks,
an explosion of light.

Gathering those like-minded,
gaining momentum.
Here to rattle the system,
not to be polite.

A new way of thinking
is being born.
Where your notions of black and white,
not skin tone, are what we'll mourn.

My race. My face.

Though they might cause you confusion,
they are the source of my power,
and I'll let you draw no conclusions.

You might think black and white
draws a line in the sand.

But I've come from the grey.

And for all colors,

I STAND.