You dress like me,

You talk like me,

You rap like me,

You sing like me,

You dance like me,

You swag like me.

You cut yourself to look like me:

Big lips, big booties.

But you don’t like me,

or my people.

But iMatter!!

 

You despise our gradated shades

of browns, bronzes, coppers, high yellows,

redbones, and blue blacks

that grace us

from the crowns of our nappy heads

to the bottoms of our ashy toes.

But you risk cancer trying

to darken your pasty-white skin.

Did you forget to

“Love the skin you’re in?”

I didn’t,

because iMatter!!

 

On any given day,

You see right through me;

transparent I’m not.

But in a clothing store,

I’m the first one you spot.

You try to be slick about

following me around.

sniffing me up like

some kind of bloodhound. 

But iMatter!!

 

You stop me if I’m cruisin’ in my Beemer or my Benz.

Can’t believe that I got Benjamins to spend.

But iMatter!!

 

I’m not good enough to greet

your customer or your client.

‘Cause you see me as a thug, not a gent.

I’m not good enough to count

your money at your bank.

For that you’ll hire white boy Hank.

You say I’m unqualified, but you really

think my dreads make me look like the robber,

not the teller.

And it doesn’t matter if I can speak standard English

just as eloquently as the CEO.

You think, “He’s not too bright, he’s just

a regular Joe.”

But iMatter!!

 

You butcher my Black-sounding name:

Taniqua, Shakwanza, and DeTreyvon.

You think they all sound as one.

They don’t slide off your tongue

as smooth as silk like

John, Mary, Frank, and Wilt.

But iMatter!!

 

You may not like what you see,

But you’re still trying to be me.

You can’t see why I resent

your curiosity of me.

Like I’m some sort of novelty,

You treat me like a freak of nature,

not royalty.

But iMatter!!

 

I was born of great ancestors.

The ones who helped to shape this land;

these states that are un-united;

Instead divided.

My people invented a lot of commonly used items

for you Americans:

From Garrett Morgan, inventor of the traffic signal;

to Thomas Jennings, inventor of a dry-cleaning process;

to Patricia Bath, inventor of a medical device to treat cataracts,

So iMatter!!

 

My people contributed

to your everyday conveniences,

making your life hassle free.

But you’re so busy acting privileged

with your digital-age toys,

You never thought about how your toys came to be.

 

And just like you, I got into Harvard and Yale;

yeah, this thug-looking black male.

Earned my entrance as an intellect,

not as a token.

So sorry your heart is broken that I’m

as smart as you;

maybe even a genius IQ.

‘cause iMatter!!

 

Yes, i AM black,

Yes, i AM American,

Born and raised

in the land of the free, home

of the brave.

So see me exist,

See me be,

See my relevance,

See me succeed.

‘cause iMatter!!

 

i AM not invisible,

to be looked through,

to be looked past,

to be overlooked.

I am NOT a product of evolution.

‘Cause I’m here,

as a human just like you.

I may not have your hair

and I may not have your hue,

but just like you,

iMatter!!

 

So treat me with dignity,

Treat me with respect,

Treat me like I AM somebody,

Because I AM somebody,

that matters.