How Does it Feel to be a Problem?
By Nicholas Brown (he/him/his)
“Between me and the other world, there is ever an unasked question: How does it feel to be a problem?” - WEB DuBois
Black Americans live in a constant state of contradiction. Our Blackness and Americanism fight against one another like water and oil, trying to come together but always separating. We are forced to fight for respect and status in spaces designed to deny us of both, all while trying to figure out our own duality. Descendants of one land while inhabitants of another. Inheritors of struggle and citizens of the nation that caused it. Where do we fit in?
Photo Credit: Gabriel Campanario. Image featured in ”Check Your Patriotism,” The Seattle Times, July 2, 2020.
It is clear, now more than ever, that education is the arena in which our dual identities first battle. Black students journey through an education system that gives thousands of pages on “American” history, and a few on slavery, MLK, and Rosa Parks. We are then forced to consult family and outside resources to learn about the other half of ourselves. Who were we before 1619? How did we make our own culture? Why do we struggle still? These are questions that burn in the minds of every young Black person, with answers buried deep in the greatest cover-up in history. In class, we learn about the George Washingtons and Abraham Lincolns, but must go a step further to learn about the Marcus Garveys and Bayard Rustins. Our desire to learn about both worlds speaks to our very existence. We are always playing for two teams, always maintaining a balance between two perspectives. But perhaps our game of juggling identities is our biggest strength?
It is no secret that being Black in America is exhausting. We are faced with impossible odds, images of our own deaths, and unparalleled ignorance on a daily basis. It is a constant struggle, but it has also become our greatest weapon. By constantly exercising our two consciousnesses, our sociological, philosophical, and social muscles have become stronger. We can see the world through the lens of America and the ever growing Black diaspora. We know struggle and triumph. We use our unique patriotism to see America as what it ought to be rather than what it was designed to be. The incomprehensible despair of our ancestors combined with their irrefutable greatness to create the leaders of the future. Our double consciousness has become a glorious heirloom of struggle and victory, a tool we can use to help fix our country so that everyone can fit in. When asked “How does it feel to be a problem,” we respond with “We are the solution.”