Dear America,
Do you hate me? Do you want me gone? Because it seems like you do. Every day you make me afraid to walk out of my house. Is my existence that bad? Waking up every day to another headline of one of my people being killed is getting exhausting. Imagine how I, a black queer woman, feels living here.
You ridicule me and make me seem like something disgusting. You push me down and oppress my people and me for centuries. When will you change, America? Are you not sick of mistreating us constantly? I don’t even know why I asked that question. Of course, you’re not sick of it.
You thrive off of it. You thrive off of the fear of minorities and any person or nation that stands in the way of your supposed success. Will you ever stop killing us? Why must history continue to repeat itself with you?
Unarmed black people are being killed in front of their friends and family. There are different mass shootings every day that take innocent lives. Not to mention the countless hate crimes of Jewish people, gay people, and disabled people that happen constantly. You don’t care, though. I know you don’t. Sometimes I feel like you never will.
There have been times where you’ve defeated me and made me feel like there’s nothing I can do about how you treat me and treat people like me, but I was wrong.
I can do something to stop you from this vicious cycle of bringing people down. No more will you prevail at keeping us under. Things are changing, and you will change too. My grandchildren won't know you like how I did. They’ll learn a loving and inclusive America that they feel like they can thrive in. Your time's up, America. It’s time for a change.
Sincerely,
Your favorite citizen, Brooklyn Ramey
A Letter to America by Brooklyn Ramey - Michigan, U.S.