One necessity in my dreams of liberation is the ability to earn respect and opportunities. My skins boils when I think of the doors slammed in our faces without the person even hearing us out.
I think of my students and the stories they’ve told me about the moments they knew they wouldn’t get the job or they would not have a home in their own communities.
It was their stutter, their tattoos, their dark skin, their language. One cultural stigmatization after another has us all wondering the value of our scarred humanity.
In my definition of liberation, it includes the chance to earn my way.
To be clear, this liberation does not sacrifice work. But it is dependent on open doors full of inclusion and the value of diversity.
