.
- THEIR SKIN COLOR: My child will be black. That in and of itself is a crime in America. It’s a sentence to work twice as hard to get half as far in life. It’s a sentence to be judged by her/his name, the kind of car they drive, what kind of work they do. In everything that they do, they will be required to have an air of excellence or run the risk of not being taken seriously.
- HOW SOCIETY VIEWS WOMEN: My child by default will be a feminist. Not the kind you see on Tumblr or Twitter, but the kind that corrects their friend’s misogynist comments. My children will respect women just as much as they respect men. My tiny women and their brothers will embrace their feminine figure, despite the way that the media perceives women. This fact alone will isolate them from their peers.
- BLACK PEOPLE’S SOCIETAL BURDEN: My child will believe that BLACK is beautiful. It took me until the age of 18 to understand the real power of my melanin. We as a people, have an obligation to the betterment of our people. No amount of black-on-black violence will ever be a factor in how much we love our people. & not just the black men or black children, but BLACK WOMEN especially.
- THE GOVERNMENT: When children in America are born, it is basically a contract with the government that they will pay taxes & be a productive member of society (why such pressure)? The government does not realistically represent the people, as much as it represents those in power and those privileged enough to win. Where is the candidate worried about the institutionalized representation of my people or at least the systematic genocide of my people? Why must I or any other black women, be forced to vote for the candidate who wants to better black people or the candidate who wants to better women…. And is it really too much to ask that the well-being of the American people be the first priority instead of profit?
- SCHOOL SYSTEMS: When choosing a system to educate my children, I will be forced to choose between them being around people like them and lacking resources or people who don’t appreciate them and erase their history but have better food, teachers, and resources. Is this really how I want them to be socialized?
- RELIGION: Religion and politics are things you don’t talk about at family gatherings. Why? Refer to number four about the politics. But religion is another demon. You are judged based on your religious preferences but the “first settlers” came over here trying to escape religious persecution. Just think about this & the way Islamic and Hindu people are treated in America’s airports and schools.
- ENVIRONMENTAL DESTRUCTION: we are destroying the environment and raising climates and seeing the environmental consequences and are not acknowledging them. Why would I want to bring offspring into a society that still thinks climate change is imaginary?
- FOOD: Cheap food has the perks of being cheap. Real food, which does not have the perk of being subsidized by the government, is expensive. Running to McDonalds because you have no time and only a little money, should not be the answer. All this processed food and hormonal meat cannot be good for our society let alone our bodies. Americans fail to realize that the better the food you put in your body, the better you feel. Water, rest and something green can cure an infection just as well as $60 antibiotics that also destroy the good bacteria in your body.
- LACK OF OVERALL SELF-AWARENESS: As a society we aim for profit because we have lost touch with ourselves. Instead of acknowledging and understanding the problem, we tend to throw money at the problem. We know longer care why we were angry or why something hurts our feelings or why we act the way we do because we can drown our sorrows in retail therapy, food binging, alcohol and Netflix.
- LACK OF COMPASSION: I guess this one kind of pairs with number 9, but it obviously needs to be addressed. VSU’s shuttles never fail to give me evidence. Just the other day on my way to my 2 o’clock the shuttle was filled to capacity, except this one girl who thought it was her God-given right to take up 2 seats. There were 8 people standing up and she still felt no need to move over. It’s just common courtesy! If I can’t experience southern hospitality in the South, it really makes me wonder how the rest of America is out here dealing.
