Why do you act so white?

A question i’ve heard many times before

Is it because I speak well?

Is it because I get good grades?

 

Maybe its because I read a lot

does that make a person

whiter?

 

I used to question myself all the time

Was i supposed to be a certain way?

 

Was i making a mockery of my race because of my

white behavior?

 

Maybe it’s because I went to a mainly white school

I justify.

 

Making excuse after excuse for being called the whitest

black girl around

 

but I no longer make excuses

 

As I got older,

and learned more of the world,

I grew to realize

I’m not acting white.

 

In a society where the color of your skin

A meaningless sack

determines who you are

what you say

what you believe

who you marry

how many kids you have

what language you speak

how smart you are

how impoverished you are

How motivated you are

and

How you act.

 

I’ve learned that the acts of a few have been broadcasted

over many.

Putting them in a small black box

with no room for change.

 

I’m not acting white. I’m not acting black.

Or chinese

Or mexican

Or korean

Or guatemalan

Or indian

 

I’m acting like a human being.

 

I refuse to be stuck into a box,

a cage formed by society.

 

The pigment of my skin does not determine who I am.

 

I do.