As a Black Woman, I deserve an Oscar

For all the times I’ve been hurt but didn’t let it show

For all the times I’ve been the only Black person in the room

For all the times I’ve been asked to speak on behalf of all Black people

For all the times I’ve been interrupted

For all the times I’ve been told I was overreacting

For all the times I’ve been objectified

For all the times I’ve been humiliated

For all the times I’ve had to watch my loved ones be humiliated

For all the thousand cuts little and big I can’t recall

I was raised to hold my head up high, just like my ancestors did on the plantation and in the Jim Crow South

But, I can no longer be silent

A river of rage is flowing through me and the dam can no longer hold.