Why I Won't Be Staying in America

Protester in Ferguson.
This photo does not belong to me.

America the land of opportunities. America the great. America where dreams come true. All these wonderful things you hear about America, but is America really that great when you are 'black'? The longer I stay in America the more afraid I become of settling down in this country. Why? Because I see how much the colour of my skin can stir up hate in some people. In Kenya we are not taught to look down upon other human beings because of the colour of their skin. We are not raised to judge the character of others based on the colour of their skin. I am not saying they teach these things in America, but clearly there's something wrong when I can value and appreciate all other races whilst quite a number of people in America cannot.

Why is it that this year alone there have been a handful of cases whereby innocent black men have been murdered by the police? As a black woman I can no longer say I trust the police in this country. Michael Brown could have been one of my brothers. How can black men be expected to trust the police when it feels like the police have absolutely no regard for their lives? Not all police officers are bad on the individual level, but we have seen officers kill innocent black men and get away with it. The problem is deeply engrained in the system. A system that has failed black men one too many times. When will it be enough for us to see change? When will black mothers ever be at peace again when their black sons leave the house? When will black men be able to feel protected in this country? When will it be enough? When innocent white unarmed men start to get murdered on a regular basis by the law enforcement? Is that what needs to happen for people to understand that this is not okay? THIS IS NOT OKAY, and I can never settle down in a country whereby majority of the citizens don't even flinch when there appears to be a pattern when it comes to the murder of unarmed innocent black men by law enforcement officers.

Stay peaceful.