Lost in my skin

Wonderin

Where do I start ?

Where do you begin ?

Generations of stories told without any actual faces to show proof or tangible memories to hold

I hear I’m pure gold

But my worth was once sold

Deemed as a token only a profit for someone else’s pocket

Years of lost ancestral ties, divided by interracial breeding

and religious

lies.

You, me, her and even him, we all have different hues of colored skin, but who is to justifiably say mine

is a sin.

We are one in the same, entangled threads weaved into the same rope

just pulled apart and vastly scattered upon myriad lands

So here I stand

Brown skinned,

Beautiful And Grand

A child of immigrants from a distant, island.

Claimed as American by birth,

Tied to an immigrant state of mind

& Treated w/ the same worth.

I am Diaspora

You are Diaspora

America is Diaspora

*The opinions and ideas expressed are solely those of the author, and may not reflect the opinions of The Bronx Brand*

Yolanda Stewart is from the Bedford Park neighborhood of The Bronx. The cultural mixture of her neighborhood brought so much vibrance to the community.  The Bronx has influenced her to engage with people from various walks of life, rather than judging them based on stereotypes or things she’s heard. The BX influences her to strive for more out of life and not be afraid to share experiences.

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