May 15, 2020
By Alysha Sarasua
A world designed to make you feel lesser than
Exchanging one prison for another
Oppressive relationships that leave us
Permanently silence
Sucking teeth
An expression of a black women
Non-verbal and yet
communicates so much
It begins with a pause then
A look
A purse of the lips
Meeting my great-grandmother for the first time
She commented on my light complexion
Comparing her lightness to mine
Born a house-slave
Maybe that’s why she married the blackest man on the island?
A room full of black women
A trigger
Like black crows, a murder
Flying above
Beyond
Away from narrow ways of thinking
All we know is
This feels right
Happiness feels closer than ever before.
The day after valentines day
The Love Day
Finding the strength to sustain us
For another year
Identifying with the need for a celebration
Like always
Feeling a little unprepared.
Corrupted by
My experiences as
A black woman
The “right” worldview
My life stands in direct
Contradiction to that
Powerful narrative.
Alysha Sarasua
Writer
Alysha is a 24-year-old biracial woman from an English-speaking community in Quebec. Raised by her white mother, she grew up with few ties to her black community. She hopes her work will help heal the wounds and isolation she suffered as a young girl by creating a space for women of color. She is looking forward to completing her degree in political science with a minor in economics and moving on to a master's in education.
