i am gods child
Chapter 1 was an introduction to No History Formed Against Us Shall Prosper, addressing what the collection is, who it's for, and why we started it.
Chapter 2 will focus on Black youth: how they've been perceived, and the role Black adults need to play in building a solid foundation for that youth to succeed.
"I Am?" asks two questions, one from the point of view for kids to self-reflect, and another directed from kids to African American adults to seek assurance of who they are and who they can be. The term "I Am" represents being aware of the value you hold as a person, being sure in your existence and the meaning of it. "I Am ____" leaves room for the speaker to define their own life and how they want to be perceived, rather than letting the world assign that value to them.
When I hear "I Am" come from a kid's mouth, I see power. A child consciously aware of who they will show up to be in the world. This statement needs to be taught to every kid on this earth, especially black kids. People in this world will look at them and automatically place them in a category based on their blackness. But with the right mental and spiritual tools, you'll realize their reality only benefits them, just like your reality will benefit you, or trap you, depending on how it's constructed.
Every Black adult needs to understand how precious a child's mind is, and how easily it can be influenced. When I say "child," I mean adolescent all the way through the teen years. I know the law says someone becomes an adult at 18, but science tells us humans keep developing until their late twenties, and if you take care of yourself, you can keep developing for life. So just because a young man turns 18 doesn't mean we step out of his life and send him to the wolves to figure it out alone. Let's still mentor and guide him, just in a way that shows him how to move through a world that will now see him as a "grown man."
The world doesn't even wait for Black girls to turn 18 to see them as grown. It starts as young as 12 or 13. The world sees them as more "mature" and tries to view them through the same lens as older Black women. Why is it that at 17, there are grown men salivating, waiting for the clock to strike 12 midnight to turn her 18, so they can try to devour her innocence? The date may change, but she's still that same girl, physiologically, that she was at 17. The world said it was okay, but that doesn't make it actually okay.
And when young women do turn 18, let's see them as living beings who hold tremendous value, not as property to be owned and exploited. Women, don't forget you were once in those shoes. And even if you made it out, that doesn't mean everyone can. So if you get the chance, share an uplifting word with the young girls you see, so that hopefully, they won't have to go through the same struggle and pain you went through. Have daughters of your own? The wisdom and knowledge you've developed through pain, share it with them through kindness. Don't be a reflection of the person who hurt you.
Don't have any kids? You can still be a positive role model into a kid's life. Stand in front of a mirror and ask yourself "Would I want my son or daughter to see themselves in me?" Because best believe every black kid who looks at you, online or in person, subconsciously decides if they want to "be like you". So please be the best you that you can be, because some young black boy or girl is using you as a measuring stick to see how far they can go in life (hopefully they go further).
Accountability is the lesson.
God is the TEACHER.
