I am a man of two constant states of being. The first is Black. The second is angry. Black by default, black is my experience, my race, my birthright, my attitude, my talk, my skin, my hair, Black is me. I am also angry, constantly, with my country. Angry at our racism, misogyny, bigotry. I am angry at those who refuse to acknowledge it and angry at those who endorse it. I see this all the time so I am always in some sort of state of frustration. Some may confuse my anger for hate but I do not hate my country. I hate that my country elected a man who ran a campaign on racist and bigoted undertones and failed to condemn any of his supporters who felt emboldened by his campaign to commit acts of racism. I hate that my country had him elected, but I am not surprised it has done so. This is the America we’ve always been, we didn’t change drastically within 24 hours we’ve always been this polarized. So I am no angrier than I was a week ago.

It is important to understand why people are frustrated, why they grieve. It isn’t because Hillary lost, in fact, it isn’t about who won or lost at all but rather what each candidate represented. For me, I was born a n*gger. It was decided a long time ago when they freed black people from bondage and encapsulated our “freedom” under “Colored Only” signs, grandfather clauses and Jim Crow laws. They kept me a n*gger with counterintelligence programs, drug wars, and fire hoses. I’ve been a n*gger since they’ve elected Obama, since they killed Tamir and got away with it, and since they’ve been wearing “Make America Great Again Hats.” When I see people burning flags in the street I don’t see it as an act if disrespect or an act of violence I see it as an act of retaliation. Too many of us have been born n*ggers, bitches, faggots, spics, chinks, and whores, marginalized by our identities, many of us were born into a bed of hatred, and judged not for what we've done but for what we might do. "She's dressed like a slut," "He looks like a thug," "He might have a bomb." Too many of us don’t feel protected. What’s happening in the streets is a reaction to danger, its retaliation to an act of violence.

You may not consider the upcoming presidency to be a threat or an act of violence, but other people do, and who's right or wrong isn't as important as the fact that there is a real fear in the hearts of the people around you. So instead of going on Facebook and trying to convince everyone that your vote doesn’t make you a racist, go out and prove it. Try understanding the fear people have, because it isn’t dramatic, people don’t like being this way, but fear is the most powerful emotion, so if you want to make the country great, regardless if it ever was, reach out to someone, because you won, this is the America you asked for, so take responsibility and make it great.