Still Dream

“The function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do. Somebody says your head isn’t shaped properly so you have scientists working on the fact that it is. Somebody says you have no art, so you dredge that up. Somebody says you have no kingdoms, so you dredge that up. None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”

- Toni Morrison, 

I thought right now was as good a time as any to bring this profound quote back to the forefront of our consciousness.

Black lives have been consistently under threat and this means, black health and black creativity is also challenged. When you put someone in a state of survival, you throttle their ability to perform at their highest potential. And this is why systemic racism is so profoundly dangerous. Many black people grow up believing that there is a glass ceiling capping their development, their accomplishments, their success and perhaps their joy. 

When we perpetually exist in survival mode, numbing one trauma after the other, your life starts weighing heavy. You stop shining as bright. You stop believing in what is possible for you or worse, stop believing you are worthy. I want to take this opportunity not only to affirm you, black child, but I also want to remind you of who you are. 

You are exactly who you want to be. You are who you dream you can be. You are what you are scared to achieve. You are the summation of hopes and dreams and fears and joys. You are exactly who the system doesn’t want you to be: beautiful & growing aware of it; trend setting & growing aware of it; intelligent & growing aware of it; uncapped & growing aware of it. 

Your light can never be stolen because it’s so inherent to your being and it can only be dimmed by you but it’s not all on you. There is alot you still have to face, too much you still need to fight but most importantly, so much you still have to heal. And heal you much so you can love. 

Our nature is to rise, not because we are stronger and we need not to be, not because we are defined by our struggles and we need not to be, but because we deserve it. We deserve to breathe clean air and wear beautiful garments and drink clean water and work dignified jobs. We are entitled to the space we take up. We are people, beautiful people, impactful people, determined people, deserving people. 

We can only rise to the level of our perception of self.  What we believe about ourselves will always be the turning point of our lives. What we believe will always trump what we think. It is in our core beliefs that we establish a positive framework for who we are.

James Baldwin was once asked if he was a pessimist or an optimist. This was his response:

"I can't be a pessimist because I'm alive. To be a pessimist means that you have agreed that human life is an academic matter, so I'm forced to be an optimist. I'm forced to believe that we can survive whatever we must survive."

This is why we must dream. We must dream of more than we see. We must raise our beliefs about what we deserve especially when it's not what we have right now. Our lives are more than our struggles. Our pain is not the defining factor of our humanity and we still have so much magic buried in our bellies. 

So, rise. Rise above their negativity and the distractions. Rise above the low standards that we imposed upon us. Rise above your fears and cement yourself into your being. Become everything you want to be because ultimately, black joy is the ultimate form of resistance.

Written by Phemi Segoe