Miss Lightskinned: A Poem

The color of my skin is a hot commodity

Every little black girl, wants to be just like me.

But let me tell you being pretty isn’t what it seems

“Which one’s the ugly doll?” “The dark one” They said

“Which one’s the pretty doll?” “The light one” instead

“Why can’t they both be pretty?” Asked the little girl in red

The other girls looked her up and down, with envy in their eyes.

They scorned her fair skin, “Oh shut up pretty girl!” they cried....

They got a little older, somehow became the best of friends...

Remember we called you “White Girl?” Ha I’m sorry let’s make amends!

The color of her skin has since become a fashion trend

But did all those jokes truly come to an end?

In high school she wasn’t pretty, her complexion became a cliche

First House slave, no light skinned girl, oh now mixed you say?

Then came the bougie bad bitches, that text back the next day.

I want one! I want one! I want a light skinned the boys say.

I want a cute mean girl that’ll treat me the right way

The envy turned to ridicule, it’s because of their insecurities she thought

The negativity associated with her complexion, has left her so distraught

I thought I was pretty, but I guess on the inside I may as well rot

You just want me for my skin, but you think I’m someone I’M NOT

Sorry I didn’t mean to offend! The girls said, It was a joke I swear!

Oh but by the way, can I run my fingers through your hair?

I just want to see if you came from the same tree

But your roots aren’t my roots, we’re different you see

There is nothing alike between you and me

Now that little girl in red made it to college with dread.

Her skins not in, but the white girls instead.

No the foreign, now darkskin, what about me she said?

She’s so confused, but she’s been utterly mislead

Now everyone loves black skin, and black women too

Black? The little girls said, Oh no not you!

You are no black girl, you’re foreign and pretty

But oh don't you worry, we don’t need your pity

We are strong we are loud, we are Black and we are proud

You dont look like us, or act like us, nor have you struggled like us you see

You were bad and boujee but now we are queens

You stayed inside while we picked all those things

We got beat and we got hung, you were lucky you see

You stayed in, cooked and cleaned, you endured none of those things

No I was raped and degraded, and held captive you see

You were free and escaped but I couldn’t leave

You married your own kind,

you left me behind

My children weren’t my children,

You stuck together, you had eachother I had none of those things

But I was never bad and boujee, I’ve always been a Queen

… I’m Black too don’t you see?

I seemed different then but We have the same roots my queen

Why does everyone think I have it better because of my genes

That pale white woman cursed us all

“Which one’s the pretty doll?” “Which one’s the pretty doll?” She asked

She taught us to hate each other, divided we cannot conquer you see

But sweet girl, my sister, we were both always queens!

I am black I am black, I’m black too don’t you see?

No the other girls said, you will never be like me.

See I had to say it differently because it’s hard to understand. My complexion hasn’t always been the fairest in the land. It’s hard to love yourself when you feel inadequate I know, but it’s even harder to love yourself when your own sisters think you don’t know. Their struggles their pains, That we were always from the same plane, it is the true white woman is to blame. It’s not my fault she lied to you, and created your pain. But now we can't love each other because we don’t realize we are the same.