Beautifully Black

By Joshua Lefort

Black is a colour unable to reflect light.

Unable to feel pain, to rejoice, or to cry.

Unable to breathe, to move, or to be alive.

For so long, I have been defined as a foreign substance,

An outsider, an undesirable fruit:

Too bitter, too acidic, too sour, too tart—too Black.

I have been born prey in a predator’s game.

I have been born Black in a White world.

My freedom, locked away by the colour of my skin.

I am a modern slave; I am a pawn in a game of chess.

But I’ve learned that a pawn can succeed,

Transcend its label and become queen,

Defeat the undefeated, conquer the unconquerable.

When we all act as one,

Standing alongside our brother Trayvon Martin,

Who shouldn’t have walked out so late,

Or Rodney King, who shouldn’t have driven away.

It spells out Martin King,

A man who once spoke of a dream.

Let this generation be the one 

Where that dream is finally seen.

I am not a mere colour designed to absorb

My oppressor’s misplaced hatred.

I am not the stepping stone

To a White man’s throne.

I am a ruby, 

Forged by the stifling pressures of racism,

Tainted red by the blood of my people

That has long been spilled.

The White man,

Unbothered by the red bloody sea,

Seems to only lash out 

When it washes ashore.

Unlike the White man’s pristine yellow brick road,

The Black man’s path has been left unfinished.

Yet they expect people with no past 

To determine their future.

In Africa, they disestablished existing kingdoms,

Depopulated rich states, enslaved promising minds,

Yet question its underdevelopment.

I shall rewrite my own story.

I’m no longer merely Black but beautifully Black.

I’m beautiful because I’m Black.

My skin does not define my intelligence, 

My criminal history, or my worth.

My darkened skin serves as my impenetrable armour.

My curly hair recounts a winding and turbulent past,

A past that has strengthened my bones

And polished my skin to a glistening shine.

My voluptuous lips taste of the sweetest berry,

And my flaring nostrils speak to my 

Bold and unapologetic character.

I will no longer question my validity,

Nor will I question my humanity.

I will no longer hide behind my skin

But rather live through it.

Because I’m beautifully Black,

And Black is beautiful.

By Joshua Lefort