Are We Leaders or Followers?

It's been almost 50 years since Martin Luther King Jr. rose out of the African American culture to preach peace and unity among all races and creeds. He was able to make a kind of change to our freedom that seemed impossible at the time. In a time where few men would dare speak of bringing black and white together, one man wasn't afraid of standing against racism and segregation. He peacefully marched and preached for us to be able to enjoy the freedom we enjoy today. He wasn't able to do this with violence or anger, but with peaceful compassion and decisive politics to attain his vision.

I am a product of the reality of that vision, having both African American and Caucasian blood. I have learned to become very proud of both sides of my heritages. However, the fact that we still have racial injustices occurring in our country is quite sad. We still live in a world where police officers can shoot down innocent African Americans and can harass whom they please without consequence. As millennials, we are quite strong minded when it comes to beliefs. However, we also live in a time where no real leaders of our generation are standing for the justice of our people. 

I saw a quote on Instagram earlier that read: "Tupac did a lot more for me than Barack." I laughed for a moment, then thought of how true such a statement actually was to me. Tupac has indeed taught me so much more about standing up for what you believe in a sometimes flawed system, regardless of the consequence. Now I'm not saying that Tupac has done more than Obama. I'm saying to me, he has inspired me more to rebel against the racial corruption of our system. Of course Tupac had the freedom of speaking to the masses through a music platform and Obama has to speak through a complex political platform. Maybe that's why Tupac was assassinated. Maybe that's why MLK was assassinated. Maybe that's why Michael Jackson's death was made out to look like a suicide. They didn't want one man's voice to be that powerful. Obama has his hands tied by the same mofos that probably assassinated MLK, Michael Jackson, JFK, and Tupac. We can learn a lot from our predecessors. Making this kind of change alone is and always has been quite impossible. 

It almost feels less possible for a half African American president to directly deal with these racial issues that still linger in today's justice system than it was 50 years ago due to the political games that blanket the clarity of the solution. So what is holding us back from making these significant changes we need in this country we live in today? Maybe it's because our generation is too worried about their following on social media or too afraid of our government. Maybe it is out of Obama's power to do it alone and maybe it's up to us to stand up with some of the leaders we have today. Who is to stand up against today's racism so that CHANGE is made? Who is to stand up against the segregation through gentrification of today? How do we come together as a country? As a people in a democracy where the people are supposed to have the last say, who will be that leader(s) of our time if our justice system becomes more of an injustice system? Is it you? Is it me? Is it Donald Trump? Is it Kanye West? Or is it us all?

Do me a favor...Stand up, look in the mirror and ask yourself if you stand for what you believe in?