Read this and dont take it offensive because it is the truth.?

Question

Struggle To Progress

I know we’ve struggled over the years, over centuries past
But what is the progress? Where is the progress?
Is it that years ago our black people made things happened
Yea there it goes that is the progress
Years ago our own people opened doors for us
They invented light bulbs, made it possible for us to sit in front of the bus, gave us permission to dream, made education accessible for us.
That’s the progress they started years ago for us to continue
But yet we take it all for granted
We hop on buses and head straight for the back, we laugh at education and our dreams are
To beat up that girl that is messing with your man
To ridicule our own selves
And say ***** what, ***** who
We sit in classrooms and make fun of each other or rahter should I say hike on each other and say “***** I was only messing with you”
Messing you, we are messing with our own selves
The struggle has been made and see but the progress, the progress is nowhere to be found its invisble
We send ourselves to prison, to the graves, to welfare offices. Yea there it goes that is our progress, it’s the progress I have seen made.
We never ever come together on something positive.
Instead we hate on each other and come together to throw up hand signs, to kill, to jump.
We hike on our people of the same color because they come form another country, countries where we originated from.
West Africa, South Africa, West Indies. But we say “Oh I am Indian” when was the last time they claimed us.
When do we begin to make and tunr struglle into progress?
Because right now as of 2007 progress is when rap stars come together to make a song that degrades our women or when some gets a break to dance with half their body showing
Progress is when we go to jails to watch out for our homies, our ****** and our dudes.
Progress is when an ignorant mother comes to the school to argues with educators on why their school skipping child got a “D” and not an “A” or a “B”
This is our progress this is what we’ve turned the struggle into.
So don’t let NAACP fool you that we’ve made progress because we are not yet there
So where does it begin?
THE STRUGGLE TO PROGRESS
Hey too bad I just wasted my ink because we don’t read!!!
But still where does it begin?
THE STRUGGLE TO PROGRESS!!!

This a poem I worte for my U.S History class and I am 14 in 10th grade. And this is what I think so dont get offened. This the rough draft and when I wrote it I was and still am very angry but its the truth and yes i am black. And someone had to say it.

Answer 1

As a white British man, I can see that the same thing is happening over here, but there is still closet racism (not as bad as it used to be, but still there).

My partner is black (West Indian), as are her girls (aged 14 and 17, both from a previous marriage to a black man). Like you, they are very hard workers at school - they have to be. To be seen at the same level as a white pupil, they have to work that much harder. Girls also have to work harder than boys, to achieve anything in life. Thus, if a black girl and a white boy went for a job, and had similar qualifications, the white boy would be taken 99 times out of 100. Even if the boy had less qualifications, he may be taken over the black girl.

This insitutional racism has come about because black people are perceved by some whites - usually those in a position of power in a company - as lazy. As a black girl, you have to prove yourself, and the only way to do this is by gaining more qualifications than your white counterparts. Prove those racists wrong! God created us equal, and we are equal in his eyes. Why should a bunch of bigots judge on the basis of colour, creed or sex. Only God can judge us, and it is only him that we have to answer to.

I am a Sunday School leader (for the 11 to 13 year olds) in the church I go to. As you are probably aware, this is the start of the "attitude" phase - going into being a teenager - I'm sure if you don't, you have seen others that have attitude. Most of the kids I teach are black, and I see traits of what you describe in your poem. Once you get past that exterior, and befriend them, there is someone who wants to learn, who wants to do well, but also does not want to be seen to be "different" from other black kids. It takes time, but I have seen God work in wonderful ways with these kids - their grades go up - they start saying "please" and "Thank you" instead of "eh" - they WANT to be "different" - but most importantly, they want to do this within their own culture and background

Work hard - get those qualifications - don't "follow the crowd" - keep your faith in God - and the world will be your oyster. It is only people like you, and my two step-daughters, that can change the attitude of others. You WILL find it hard - others will dis you - you will be labelled a swat, a coconut, a traitor to your race - but stick with it - you hold the future in your hands - don't let it slip from your grip.

I wish you all the best in your studies, and everything you do in the future

With Best Wishes

Adrian (East London - but the British one!)