Vicious Cycle
We all have problems
different though they may be.
But if you tell someone their problems
don't matter—
that they were sheltered so
they didn't have to deal
with the same things,
and they know nothing of oppression
just because of the color of their skin—
then maybe
you should take a step back and realize
something in their lives
might have given them equal amounts of oppression.
Maybe their parents heaped
criticism on them and expected them
to be perfect.
Maybe they were told
they were worthless because of their gender.
Maybe they realized who they really were
in eighth grade
when a girl kissed them and they didn't enjoy it,
or they did.
And this oppression has brought them so much fear,
so much anger and hatred,
that it keeps them up at night with worry.
But they can't tell their parents because they don't want
to be thrown out. And maybe you had it bad,
but maybe they did too,
and for you to presume that you know them
or what they went through because of their race
is ridiculous.
You're turning around
and inflicting the same oppression on another
by telling them their problems mean nothing
because of the fucking color of their skin.
It's a vicious cycle,
and you're just making it worse.