No, I am not black

Peace on earth goodwill to mankind, we are of one world o e race the human race and are all citizens of the planet earth.

No, I am not black 

No, your right I am not black, so I cannot
ever know how you may actually 
feel, because God just happened to 
make my skin color white but does it 
make a big deal? We both you and I
have struggled in a lot of the same ways 
for I fight every day to find good paying 
jobs so I can put food on my children's 
plate. Just because I was born to 
parents that are white too, does not 
mean that I came with a big silver spoon. 
Just because are you black does not 
mean that you were born poor, you 
have more millionaires now than at 
anytime in our history before. You, 
were never a slave picking cotton in the 
fields and I never owned any and I never 
will, that mistake was resolved back 
over one hundred years through many 
different color of people who have cried 
the same color of tears. When you sit 
down and listen to my words which
ebb and now flow, I am a Poet like you 
that bleeds the same ink that you do 
I fight for the freedom of every race of 
man and I battle against hate where we 
all must make stand. So please when
you see me walking down your street 
there is no need to call me your enemy 
you see for I am just soldier on a mission 
trying to make ends meet. Divided we will 
be defeated by the evils if hate took down 
one by one until it is too late separated 
by memories of all our past mistakes 
doomed to repeat them as we fall to the 
hate. So I say, to all my brothers and sisters 
of every color as I reach out my hand while
giving you my heart in peace let us let go 
of the pain and anger and put laughter and 
good times in its place. 

Poet Richard M Knittle Jr.
A #Poets Journey 
Texas Poet Laureate Nominee 2016-2020