What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl
The speaker of this poem is trying to put the readers in her perspective of life growing up as an African American. She is a nine year old black girl that doesn’t think she is good enough. Just like any other girl, teen, or person that doesn’t believe they are ever good enough. They have problems with their self esteem. She must endure a lot of pain that no one should be put through. She has to grow up before any child is supposed to. She is talking about her pain, suffering, and torture that a male puts her through.
“What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” describes the life of what a black persons’ life is typically described as. You normally hear about all the bad things in the world before you ever hear about the good. This poem shows all the hardship and black person must endure and go through in a normal day setting.
When she discussions “its smelling blood in your breakfast” a lot of African Americans have life rough but so does everyone else. Most of the time no one has it easy. Life is never without wrong paths or problems along the way. But it is how you deal with that problem and the person that you become because of what you have endured that makes you the person that you are today.
The author of “What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” is most likely referring to shootings, rapes, prostitution, and gangs. Which isn’t the normal life of all black people but it can be the life of some. She is writing this poem for the people who aren’t black. It is like she is telling us that we don’t understand what they go through. A lot of other people besides African Americans have to go through similar situations if not the same situations.