I am black, fear me

*Editor’s note: This is an ongoing series of journal entries from the Donaldsonville High School senior English Class taught by Leia Scott.

I am black, fear me

I want whites to be terrified of me. I want them to shiver as I pass and jump off the sidewalk I walk on. I am black. I want them to talk behind my back. I am proud that they fear me. I am black. The fear me not because my pants are below my ass or because I’m buff from jailhouse bench-presses because I do not look as such. They fear me not because of the do-rag on my head or the wife beater muscle shirt across my chest because I wear no such things. They fear my suit coat, my pressed pants, and my shined shoes. They fear the intellect I hide underneath my scull. The thought that I might, that I am smarter than them petrifies them in their sleep at night. I am black. Fear me!