IF NOT COLOURED, THEN WHAT?

I am told I am not Coloured

That I have adopted the race of my oppressor

That by doing this

I am oppressing myself

I am told that I have no culture

That my language is oppressive

That I don’t belong

But this is all I know

This is who I am

Who I have identified as

This,

Being Coloured,

Is who I am,

Who I have always been

And I am proud to be Coloured

I am proud of the fact that my identity does not oppress me

That I have been able to reshape and re-imagine what it means to be Coloured

I am proud of who I am

I am proud of what language I speak in

And what accent I choose to speak in

I am Coloured

This is all I know how to be

This is who I am proud to be

Colour Me Coloured.

Charissa Cassels