Over a week ago I woke up, probably in the middle of the night, after receiving a text message from a friend, which stated: Rosa Parks sat so Martin L. King Jr could walk, Martin walked so Obama could run, Obama ran so our children can fly. When I saw those words, tears washed my eyes, then realising the truth of those words. We, as black people, have come a far way since slavery. Imagine, blacks, since the dawn of time, were viewed as the bottom of the bottom of the social ladder. I mean, there we are, at the darkest side of the colour spectrum, how dare we show our "dirty" colour? Who are we to think that we are entitled to liberty, fraternity, and equality. The nerve of black people, right?

I know the elders might say that being a teenager, I have no clue as to what I am talking about. Come on now, where was I when our forefathers were being beaten by "the white man" and where was I when our people where being lynched for no apparent reason? Being black means that I know what I am talking about (to some extent). For, I feel as though I have cried a thousand tears for our motherland, for our people and for our future. My hands are practically shaking as I write this (probably I am just a drama queen.) but black people should leave the mentality of servitude behind, step up and be counted. Do not limit yourselves, do not hide in shadows of our paled-eyed counterparts to the north but make a giant leap to the future, our future.

Really we have come a long way, just think, there is hope for this race, after all, and, in the words of our 'newly crowned king of the free world', the audacity of hope.

I am, etc.,

CANDICE HYLTON

Student of Glenmuir High