Yes I’m Black and I Don’t Forgive You
An ode to American hypocrisy
Do you know why America tells Black people to forgive?
So they can remain comfortable. Their idea of live and let live.
White supremacy doesn’t tell us to forgive because it’s our holy mission.
They tell us to forgive so we can remain in submission.
They tell us to forgive, not to get on the right track.
They tell us to forgive so that we may never fight back.
They say we idolize race, but we don’t. We just see it and show it.
These fake Christians idolize race and don’t even know it.
The way they tell Black people to forgive is hypocritical and fake.
The fact that we believed them was our biggest mistake.
I believe in forgiveness, but only the right kind.
Not the false white supremacy version meant to keep Black people in line.
These Christian nationalists don’t love the Lord. They love false idols.
That’s the whole reason why they cherry pick with verses from the Bible.
I don’t take advice on forgiveness from non-forgiving enemies.
Their fake beliefs are just extensions of American identity.
The same Christians who tell us that fighting back isn’t nice
Are the same hypocrites not living by their own advice.
Spewing rhetoric you don’t live by, which will out live you.
Yes I am Black and NO I don’t forgive you.
I will fight for what’s mine. What’s rightfully mine.
And the man upstairs will bring the right judgment in time.
About the Creator
Joe Patterson
Hi I'm Joe Patterson. I am a writer at heart who is a big geek for film, music, and literature, which have all inspired me to be a writer. I rap, write stories both short and long, and I'm also aspiring to be an author and a filmmaker.
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Comments (17)
Beautiful piece!
Absolutely incredible. Profound and essential. Please, please keep writing.
Important indeed.
I'm white and I don't forgive anyone who fed me lies for 54 years.
Extremely powerful!
Powerful essay: you skillfully expose how calls for forgiveness can be used to preserve an unjust status quo rather than to heal. The moral clarity here challenges readers to distinguish between sincere compassion and social control.
I call them Hypochristians.
Very interesting peom filled with sentament
Unadulterated truth set to poetry! Well stated, Joe (and feel free to STATE it again any time!) Top Story Kudos!
Yes indeed!!!!
"They tell us to forgive so we can remain in submission." As a Canadian with Indigenous roots, being raised in the Indigenous community, this cuts deep. The way America put their Black community into the worst pieces of real estate is what they did to my family up here. Incredible work, this piece.
Truth! Every Word!✍️
"their fake beliefs are just extensions of american identity." yes. divine in every way, joe. clear and incisive, this must be read. i'm so glad it is top story. 💙
This is powerful and unflinching truth. You've laid bare the weaponization of forgiveness as a tool of control, and the hypocrisy of those who preach what they never practice themselves. The line "They tell us to forgive so that we may never fight back" cuts right to the heart of it. Your clarity about the difference between genuine forgiveness and the manipulative version used to maintain oppression is so important. And your refusal to accept bad faith advice from people who don't live by their own words? That's strength and discernment. This needed to be said exactly how you said it. Keep speaking this truth.
You don’t owe anyone any reason to feel comfortable about history.
Every word has power
I'm West Indian Canadian, and I approve this message.