Don’t be afraid to go for your dream. Sometimes being brave means doing something that you’ve been told you can’t do. Whether it’s escaping the hood, wasteland, or barrio, earning a college degree, starting a business, buying a home, as President Obama said, “the audacity of hope” can provide the courage needed to turn dreams into reality.
Based on gender, race, religion, class, age, immigration and other categories, people’s expectations and treatment can be vastly different. As a black girl born on a southern USA farm, attending underfunded public schools, walking past overfunded statutes of confederates, I had to work double time to cross the finish line. It takes bravery to believe in yourself and sacrifice to become one with your vision.
However, there’s a difference between bravery and bravado. Beware of doing things for the purpose of impressing people. “Be for real. Show loved ones how you feel. Be brave…”
According to the Federal Reserve, the average African American earns roughly half as much as the average white American. This wealth gap can be directly traced back to enslavement and post Civil War governmental Jim Crow “black codes” enforced by police and kkk (often one and the same) which discriminated against African Americans in employment, housing, healthcare, and every aspect of society. Post Civil Rights laws on paper gave African Americans rights, but many were not enforced. In the 21st century, there has been a whitelash effort to turn back the clock on hard fought rights like the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Still people from all over the world are risking death on treacherous treks trying to come to America, because despite its flaws, America is still a place where you can be born in poverty and rise to greatness.
I wrote the lyrics to “Be Brave,” and story for my new #bebrave Afrobeats animated video, to inspire people all over planet Earth. “You can do this!”
Peace and One Love…
Aria
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