The Lights
"I'm Not Racist,"
She says.
"I'm Not Racist because
My best friend is Black."
"My best friend is so fly
She's my home girl
My squeeze,
I love her so much because she's got
That Ghetto Vibe.
But I would never wear what she wears
Because I'm not Black.
It would be weird 'cause I'm white
And white girls don't wear that stuff."
"I'm Not Racist,"
He says.
"I'm Not Racist because
My best friend is Black."
"My best friend is the best
He knows all the gangs
And all the slang,
He can slam dunk like nobody's business,
And with his saggy pants
And backwards cap
He's the coolest dude in the
Downtown metro.
But I don't live there,
Because that's where all the Black people live.
It would be weird 'cause I'm white
And white people don't live in those areas."
"I'm Not Racist,"
They say.
"I'm Not Racist because
Our friends
Our colleagues
Our companions are different from us.
We can't be racist because of the people we know.
We can't be racist because we don't see color.
We can't be racist because THERE'S NO SUCH THING."
You are racist.
We are racist.
In our terminology, our theology
Our philosophy, our ideology
We just refuse to see it.
If we turned out the lights
And nobody saw anybody,
Not their skin,
Not their size,
Not their clothing,
Not even their eyes.
What would we see about each other's insides?
If I could change anything
I would turn out the lights.