Y’all, this is one of those times where you feel like you just have to vent and I hope y’all can bear with me for a moment.
You’ve all seen the news recently I assume, correct? You’ve seen how many lives have been lost to unnecessary violence and how often folks preach hate and mask it as a religion or as a cultural ideology? Growing up a Chicano in the United States, it never really occurred to me how often this really does happen. How anything can be blamed on a minority group just to keep the majority sane and happy when all it really does is show things one-sided.
We are fed one side of the story every single time and even then it isn’t given honestly.
The emotions and feelings I continue to hold back every single day as a person of color are that of anger, sadness, hopelessness, and fear. As a man of color, I could literally be taken into custody, if I am that lucky, or shot for “allegedly” doing something.
The media has shown us uncensored footage of about three different men dying just this weekend alone and I cannot even imagine how the families of those people are feeling seeing their loved one die every single day. I understand the reason to share and repost these images, but do we ever stop and think about the people it is affecting? Do we advise about trigger warnings and take note of how gruesome it is to just share the loss of a life on social media as if it was just another cute cat video?
They call my generation a “desensitized” one. I wonder why? Could it be because these things are being so often shared via social media? Or because our families instill in us very young the harsh realities of what life can be. Whether it is “be afraid of this POC because they do ______” or “don’t ever talk back to a white person because it can lead to ________.”
Now I know some of you at this point think that I am demonizing white folks, and that’s a lie.
People often hear me say that I am tired and they think it is because of all of the things that I am involved in, and I don’t blame them. Being a full-time student working a job on campus while serving my community and doing my best to make my parents proud is a daunting task to take on while 20.
But that is not why I am tired.
I am tired of being silenced every time I defend my undocu-siblings because some ignorant turd-face thinks that we (Latinx folks undocumented or not) are leeches to this country while we do the best we can to provide for our families.
I am tired of the #AllLivesMatter folks that try to justify their reasons for believing so because no matter how you phrase it, you are still saying that black lives are not important enough to acknowledge the fact that they are being taken from us too soon.
I am tired of my feelings and emotions, and those of folks in underrepresented communities, not being validated enough by people in government, local authorities, administrations, fellow students and colleagues, and even our own families.
There is a poem that was presented to me by several of my closest friends that really taught me the meaning of solidarity, love, and kinship. It goes like this;
In Lak’ech
Tu eres mi otro yo // You are my other me
Si te hago daño a mi // If I do harm to you
Me hago daño a mí mismo // I do harm to myself
Si te amo y respeto // If I love and respect you
Me amo y respeto yo // I love and respect myself.
“Pensamiento Serpentino,” -Luis Valdez (1971)
So to those of you who are out there doing the same work that I am doing and putting yourselves on the line for the advancement of our people, I say to you, continue on for I know it is tiring work and I know we never really finish the job- but so long as we continue to push on, we will persevere.
For those of you who are not validated frequently, I tell you your experiences, your narratives, your LIFE is valid and it matters. Do not give anyone power over you to say otherwise. Continue to live on and make yourself proud above all else.
