I HEARD IT THROUGH THE CEMETERY TREES

Constance Wu photographed by Daria Kobayashi Ritch

Mood

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Beware of how you are being depicted in the media. Don’t be happy just to be included, that you accept whatever is handed to you. You are a STAR. Don’t allow yourself to follow for the sake of following. Don’t allow others to use your darkness to emphasize society’s standards of beauty. Wake up.  Always ask yourself, why am I the background dancer? Why am I not the leading role? Why am I off to the side? Why am I walking behind? Why am I in the corner? Why am I not the one sitting on the throne? Yes you. Dark skinned girl. You are worthy of sitting on the THRONE. You are a QUEEN. Don’t let anyone perpetuate colorism or racism, in order to use you as a prop, so that they can look royal and you can look basic. That is NOT your truth. That is not the standard. You deserve to LEAD. If someone really wants you to shine, they will stand WITH you. Not in front of you. Not centered in the presence of darkness so that they can be the main attraction. Think LONG and hard about who you idolize. Do they surround themselves in a sea of darkness, to appear “special” so that you can look basic? Even when they are saying that they want you to win, do they make sure that they walk in FRONT of you, while a trail of darkness walks behind? Do they make sure that darkness is never on the throne? YOU deserve to be on that throne. It may be hard to tell yourself that, it may even feel WRONG, because your whole life you’ve been told that you are not worthy. Well your whole life, you have been lied to. Colorism is a poison, and some who benefit from it, never want you to find out your true worth. Because if you found out your true worth, you would no longer walk behind them. You would no longer let yourself be used as a prop, so that they can look royal. You would know that you are EQUAL. Don’t be afraid. Tell yourself you are equal. It’s true. If someone is FOR you, they will stand with you.  EQUALLY. They will relinquish their crown of privileges.  Not everyone who says they are for you, is for you. If someone is for you, they will stand with you EQUALLY.  They will give up the privileges that they reap from colorism and racism, so that things can be fair and equal. They will not push you to the back. They will not sit on a throne while you are left without a title. They will acknowledge that you are EQUAL. It’s a matter of power. If someone is FOR you, they will stand WITH you. REMEMBER that. Not in front of you. YOU ARE A STAR. Don’t let anyone push you to the back. STEP to the FRONT.