I Am Young

I am young

I am only 14

There goes another black man dead on my tv screen

All eyes are on me

I feel trapped

I’m always code-switching trying to adapt

I don’t even know who I truly am

I am young

I’m just 14

And yet I worry am I too white or am I too black

Why are society’s eyes always glued to my back

I’m just a kid

I am young

I’m literally 14

I worry am I next

Am I the next hashtag

Or is it my brother

Who is the next dead black body we will discover

I am young

14

While my white friends go to movies 

I’m being taught how to avoid getting shot by officers on duty

As my white friends finish up homework

I’m going to protest for my fallen brothers and sisters

Mayne f this system

It’s a privilege to be a normal kid

A foreign concept for me

I’ll never experience this

For my dark skin prevents it