Melanin Mama’s

By Lourdes

She with skin the color of love
Her the one who’s been chosen by the sun
Lips of plum
Warrior tongue
With a complexion that tells a story of where we all came from
Woman of fire
Because She can take and create the heat 
Brown baby
Thankful to a lady that wouldn’t give up her seat
Yes, Rosa parks to spark up the convo
And Audre Lorde knew like those before her “your silence won’t protect you” 
let this ignite your soul 
Ida B Wells said “the way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon it”
Be bold
Shine bright  
Live in your roots 
Galvanize them so no one can claim they are colorblind anymore 
you see me?
This is the color of love
The color of strength 
The color of brave
Our shades differ 
But we are one 
And the sun knows it 
so our skin glows with it

Lourdes is a writer/poet, a native New Yorker who currently resides in Shillington, Pennsylvania. Her writing focuses on her life experiences with racism, discrimination, sexual harassment, addiction, love, loss and self discovery. Follow her poetic journey on Instagram (@lourd.knows), for “taboo” topics. In her blog post, Disturbing my peace, read the way she rhythmically raises awareness about sexual harassment many women unwillingly experience regularly. This poem, and the ones she shares on her blog (lourdknows.com) , are what she considers poetic justice stories.