One of my biggest blessings in this lifetime is to come from a mixed descent. Irish bagpipers, Native flutes and African drums for me all carry the sounds of home. Because of this I feel I hold a gift of perspective that has allowed me to bridge peace in racially charged environments. However, if you ask me directly what I am, after being evasive with an answer about stardust and faerie realms, my answer must always quite simply be “I’m black”
I must rise as a black woman because for us so many choose to sit down and turn a blind eye.
To be black in this world comes with weight both spoken and unspoken that only an individual born under this cover of divine darkness can truly understand. To be black is to be naturally gifted with rhythm and the flow of music coursing through your veins but to black is also bear the weight disapproval and side eyed glances when you are the only pepper flake in a sea of salt. To be black is to ooze the essence of “cool” naturally, effortlessly but to be black is to also watch your culture appropriated on a daily basis by the same individuals who ridicule your natural mannerisms. To be black is to be a dreamer of equity in a world that claims proudly “all lives matter”
I believe that on a soul level all beings are one. There is a huge difference between oneness and sameness and in my eyes we must recognize our differences until all beings are able to stand in authentic freedom without the glare of prejudice.
When I got dressed this morning and found myself adorned in red and my African Muses I knew instantly what today’s Alien Aesthetic would be about. I am a proud Black woman and this is a dedication to my blackness. To be born both woman and black is a blessing that requires an incredible amount of strength in the face of tidal waves of adversity. To be a black woman is to be essence of goddess, the feminine closest to the heartbeat of the the Earth for the rhythm is born in her veins. To be a black woman is to be born a soldier. To be a black woman is to be touched by the sun.
