To be black is to carry a burden
To be black is to carry the world on your shoulders
To be black is to be so magical they can't fathom the fact that you're real
That your feelings are valid and you deserve all the love

Everything & everyone is saying you don't matter
They push your pain & suffering to the side
You got your 40 acres & mule
You're no longer allowed to cry

We will take your brothers and sister one by one
You do it yourselves or by the hands of the officer's gun
There is no way to escape this pain
You can't avoid this suffering is here to stay

To be black is to look up and ask why
Why does god want us to feel this pain
What did we do to deserve this
This injustice in a system not for us but against us
Why does god want us to feel this pain

To be black is to have incredible optimism
It is to wake up & hope the cycle has ended
To be black is to wish for a better tomorrow