Freedom News

The enemy is racism. The enemy is the police. The enemy is capitalism.

I am the black girl that was born in Zimbabwe and stepped into a world of racism. For a long time, I was afraid of writing, speaking or even rocking the boat.  I was afraid of losing friends and of losing opportunities. Afraid of being shut down as the Angry Black woman or the woman who is bitter. But I stare at my color everyday and will go to the grave black, so if there is something to fight for, it’s the fight against white supremacy.

I am the black girl screaming Black Lives Matter, and yet I am not African American. However, African American history and the history of the African continent are inextricably intertwined and will forever be.  Not only because of the grave crime against humanity that was the Trans-Atlantic slave trade but most important because the African American experience in fighting racism gave birth to the Pan Africanism that in turn led to struggles for liberation on the African continent.

A racist story is complicated, but it still is a racist story. When I started writing this I wanted to explain, to educate, to show examples of racism towards me from the system and from individuals. I wanted to educate on the differences between terms such as people of color and black people. I wanted to talk about the oppression of black people, the racism I have faced here but I realize the narrative is already out there if you have been listening.

It’s been a really exceptional week. Meaningful and important and frankly, scary. And I’ve been doing my best to hang out in the discomfort of not-knowing if any of the protests, the written words and the out cry will actually lead to chipping of white supremacy.

I am emotional. I am angry and I am at a loss because we’ve mourned too often, so many families have been devasted by racism, in the U.S.A and here too in the UK. The fake arrests, the lengthy sentences, the Windrush scandal, the deportations, the denial of paperwork to legitimate folk the list is long but these are all concrete examples that we have a problem here as well and this fight is about justice for George and All Black People. I am angry because we can comprehend the scale of the problem and we know its racism and yet nothing changes.

So no, I have no addiction to optimism or hazy visions of leaving anything in God’s hands. But I am thankful, thankful for everyone who has come to stand together with Black People over our fight. Standing together with us even if they do not fully understand their privilege but standing because they know the enemy is white supremacy. The enemy is Racism. The enemy is the police. The enemy is Capitalism. Let’s stand together and fight the enemy because Black Lives Matter.

Mitchelle A

Image by oneslutriot

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