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Content warning: this post includes mention of slavery, physical, and sexual violence in the context of racist systems.

As a young, Black woman, I have been through my share of struggles to reach a place of self-awareness. A shy girl that never quite fit in, I was always looking for myself. Our society does not make it easy for Black and Brown girls to thrive, but there is something inside of us that speaks quietly to our souls, even if we are hiding in the shadows, waiting for someone to tell us who we are and to show us the way. At times, there does not seem to be anywhere to turn, and the images that we are bombarded with on a regular basis are not ones to which we can relate. We tend to internalize others’ perceptions of what we should be… but it never quite feels right. We apologize for our uneasiness, but somewhere deep down inside, we know there has to be more.

As a young, Black woman, I was a shy girl that never quite fit in, always looking for myself. Society does not make it easy for Black and Brown girls to thrive, but there is something inside us that speaks quietly to our souls. Click To Tweet

It took years of fighting myself, of witnessing injustices and inequities in education and in the world around me, for me to listen to that small voice. Years of remaining quiet because no one else was saying a word. Years for me to realize that the one that I had been waiting for was me. If no one else was willing to speak out, there were Black and Brown people that needed me to use my voice. 

Historically, Black and Brown people have been silenced. Black and Brown women have been asked to sit down and quietly accept what is being done to us. When we dare to speak up, we are labeled as angry and aggressive. In other words, we earn the mark of undesirable because we refuse to remain silent. Never mind that silence was the badge that we were forced to wear when we were being raped and brutalized at the hands of enslavers. Silence kept us from turning our men in when they beat us during Jim Crow because they were frustrated and could not take it out on their oppressors. Silence was years of taking care of other people’s homes and children while being forced to neglect our own. Silence was sitting in rooms with men who refused to pay us what we were worth yet expecting us to do more than both they and our white counterparts were willing to do. The time for passive participation in our own demise is over. The time for silence has come to an end and if we seem angry it should be understandable, considering. Our voices are necessary and desirable – because silence is no longer an option.

Historically, Black and Brown people have been silenced. Black and Brown women asked to sit down and quietly accept what is being done to us. When we dare to speak up, we are labeled as angry and aggressive. Click To Tweet

Despite the perceptions of others, we can no longer be satisfied with sitting on the sidelines watching when we are changemakers. A space to breathe and grow and thrive is worth fighting for. We understand that this work is not easy. It comes with anger and resentment and yes, sometimes hate. However, we as women can no longer subscribe to the belief that we have to wait for someone else to generate the kind of change that we want to see. That is a trick to keep us silent. We are the change that we want to see, but it takes courage on a level that some of us may not be prepared for.  

On this journey, I have been forced to acknowledge some truths about myself. I was a wallflower, waiting for someone else to speak for me, always making myself small so that others could feel big. I allowed fear and other people to silence me for the first 30 years of my life. Eventually, the silence became deafening, and when I opened my mouth to scream, I realized just how loud my voice could be. I realized that I did not need anyone to speak for me because I could speak for myself. Over the years I came to realize that speaking for myself was not enough. I wanted to speak for all those that could not speak, wanted to provide a voice for the voiceless. That is where this work began and that is my motivation to keep going. I found my voice, and no one can ever take it from me.  

I realized that I did not need anyone to speak for me because I could speak for myself. I found my voice, and no one can ever take it from me. Click To Tweet

The hard reality of this work is that there are those who don’t know how to use their voice or who don’t yet realize that they have one. For them, we are champions. For them, our voices needed to ring loud. For the girl that hid in the shadows always thinking that something wasn’t quite right for those 30 years, the woman that I have become will always use her voice so that other little girls feel empowered. We as women must use our voices so that little Black and Brown girls will not have to wait 30 years to understand the power behind their words. So that they can live and thrive in spaces that encourage them to SPEAK! This is our calling, our purpose, the charge that we have taken up in the tradition of all the strong, Black women that have gone before. Our voices hold power, they change situations, they carry wisdom, and shape the future. We are the ones that we have been waiting for.

We as women must use our voices so that little Black and Brown girls will not have to wait 30 years to understand the power behind their words. Click To Tweet Our voices hold power, they change situations, they carry wisdom and shape the future. We are the ones that we have been waiting for. Click To Tweet