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Photo by Mike Von on Unsplash

Dear Lord
Please forgive me
For I have sinned
But please let me be judged fairly
Not by the color of my skin

I may not have done anything wrong
But I’m guilty as charged
Because I am black
But let my skin be of white
And I bet I’ll be cut some slack

I have my life taken
Because I am black
That’s just the way it is today
But let the record show
It’s been this way
Since back in the old slavery days

Back then
We were always hanged or whipped
And always charged to death
Either way didn’t matter to them
They were just happy to see us Blacks
Take our last breath

There may not be hangings or whips today
But the punishment is still the same
We either get gunned down or strangled
Until they stake their claim

There may have been a robbery
Done by another man that is black
But because I am black too
A white cop and his son
Shot me in my back

I went to the store
To buy some Skittles
But I’m a black man wearing a hoodie
So I was chased and gunned down
By a white man
Who thought I was engaged in criminal activity

I am charged for fake money 
And still sentenced to death  
I couldn’t breathe for eight minutes
While a white cop is kneeling on my neck

What I see in all of these crimes
Is unlawful deaths to a black man
All lives matter no matter what race
That’s something the government needs to understand

All lives mean black lives matter too
And we will never give up
Until this government acknowledges that
This world will stay corrupt

So yes Father
My sin is that I am black
But please forgive me
Because I will never try to change that

Disclaimer: The views in this article are those of the author. Prison Journalism Project has verified the writer’s identity and basic facts such as the names of institutions mentioned.

Xavier Southern

Xavier Southern is a writer and poet incarcerated in California. He hopes to inspire people to live the life of God and start living in love instead of hate. He loves to write poetry, which is his hobby. He has 84 poems as of right now and hopes to publish them in the near future so he can touch the world with his words.