Dear Child of the Ghetto

Dear Child of the Ghetto
Don't you know, when Maya wrote,
"But, Still I Rise,"
She was talking about you
That you can rise up from adversity, exploitation, and poverty

Dear Child of the Ghetto
Your life may seem like a dark room
But, there is a light switch that you must flicker
So you can finally see the yellow brick road
That has always been before you.

Dear Child of the Ghetto
Don't be afraid of using your God given talents
Our community needs them NOW
You are a 26 karat Diamond in the rough
Covered with dark nasty coal
Let your light shine

Dear Child of the Ghetto
I don't know what you’ve been told
I want you to know that your beauty is more than skin deep
You must love yourself
The good, the bad and the ugly

Dear Child of the Ghetto
You don't have to sell on the corner
You don't have to drop out of High School
You don't have to become a teenage mother
or a dead beat dad

All of your Life
You don't have to live in poverty
Don't have to suffer from domestic abuse
You don't have to join a gang
You dont' have to use the check cashing place
You don't have to eat ghetto chicken
Six days of the week from US, Crown or Kennedy Chicken

I'm telling you
Your are somebody
You are Langston, Harriet, Martin, and Rosa
You are Bayard, Angela, Malcolm and Stokely
You are Oprah, Russell, Magic and Diddy
You are Ken Chenault, Richard Perkins, Cathy Hughes and Robert Johnson

Dear Child of the Ghetto
You Matter!
Once you realize this
The revolution begins...