What binds me to the Black community in Los Angeles is the memories that I have of what it once was and the belief of what it can be moving forward if we can just hold on to it.
Queen (Nyema Sawyer) Community Organizer
Throughout my lifetime as an African-American female, and native Los Angeleno, I’ve had numerous battles about my worth and small victories that were hard one. Our small numbers, as a race, that’s nonetheless enriched by our contributions in the arts, politics and popular culture, have often made us more of a threat to some.
The day I saw KKK painted on a window of a school I’ve at as a Special Education Instructional Assistant for over two years reminded me of that. As I covered it up with a large sheet of colored paper, a teacher kindly gave me, I thought to myself, “It doesn’t matter that I’m well-educated with a BA and MA, have been a professional fashion/ feature writer for over 20 years, dress well everyday, work hard, and treat others with respect I’m still Black and am not welcome here.”
Still, despite this, I do as Maya Angelou wrote “I rise” and keep on stepping, visible, proud, and determined to make my mark my way.
Lookin' Good, Feelin' Good 