Melanin Wars

This your insecurity is like a sticky thumb you keep sticking in my sore eye Keep on elbowing me away and I'll soon learn how to be away from you Never will I lie down and catch death at your command Won't fade into the back cos you feel unhappy with how you look either Talk about your worth and leave my name out of your mouth Go ahead, lay claim on your lost crown, take along your so called king, as you ride away and regain your bliss sis But please kindly let me be! Just let me be me in this skin I was born in and never chose let me live out here while you do your own living over there Can I be exactly how I was meant to be without you crying fowl? I won't let you shame me just for being me cos I never shamed you for being who you are In fact I stood up in defence of your ebony shine while you tore me down and claimed I was less than bonny less shine to my hue been your wish and daily mantra since day one Stuck between locked horns in this melanin war I can't win, can't breathe, the air heaving with the heat of your self hate and the ill will we both receive cos of the skin we live in First my mother and now me, when will it end I ask of you Must you continue to spread this seed of hate I am who I am. African red ochre caramel swirl just like my mama but still my daddy and my uncles stay chocolate gods to this day And we all are grains of the African soil too So miss me with your ish cos I see you itching to play pass the blame This your insecurity is not of my making as you well know Claiming it is still doesn't make it so sis Step up and elevate yourself without *!itting in my spaghetti Os Pulane Moremi was an African queen Naledi Khama was an African queen Qani Xiite was an African queen Saatjie Baatman was an African queen too Nkhabity is an African queen, so is Itsiseng Black African comes in all shades of the MamaLand All worth their weight in strength and essence But beneath the hue we all bleed red don't you forget We are irrigated by the same bloodline you and I Enjoy being you without comparing yourself to me Cos being you has nothing to do with my being I am who I am, a red ochre African termite and that's all there is to it I won't measure melanin dosages to prove myself or award worth based on pigmentation levels