Wow
Family, Friends, Allies, Foes, Believers, Doubters, Ladies and Gentlemen, I stand before you today a success of yet another life changing endeavor. I stand before you as a testimonial memorial of perseverance, dedication, and devotion. I stand triumphant over the raging rivers of life. Beaten and bullied by the waves of failure, yet here I stand! Often slammed against the rocks of slander on the shores of envy, but kept on track by the encouraging voice of The Most High. At times I was drenched by the rains of self-doubt and I found myself staring down the barrel of digression, but a preserved wisdom would rise to regenerate my self-belief and renew my decomposing self-image so still I stand. I once stood as a scapegoat of the shortcomings of my peers and accused of drowning in the sea of passivity, but those that cross bridges that will never be built are doomed to drown in the saliva that fell from their mouths as they anticipated my failures. Due to my gender and skin tone I have been presumed incompetent by the unrelenting gestures of America. But led by the spirits of my ancestral predecessors I have escaped the traps of that stereotypical predestined path and so I stand as an example and not a statistic. Although debilitating and grinding adversity would amplify my struggles and attempt to chain me to the lowest rung of the economic ladder, the encouraging words of a loving mother and the supporting presence of friends and family would allow me to demonstrate an overcoming characteristic genetically implanted by those that stood where I now stand. My recent accomplishments are but a fragment of the test of times. There will come a day when again I would be faced with depleted self-confidence. Again I will be reclined in the path of adversity. Another time will come when I am exhausted by the blows of injustice. I will have to endure the storms of a system designed for my annihilation again and again. And I will again be standing in the fires of slander and ridicule. Oh but when the smoke clears I will be seen standing with my feet planted firmly against the Earth's crust and knees strengthened by my will to go on and my head lifted to receive further guidance from God Almighty. I will be seen STANDING! I stand, as a product of the Kings and Queens of Great Africa. I stand, for the unyielding inspiration of little black girls and little black boys. I stand, in the doorway keeping the doors of opportunity from closing. I stand, for every man and every woman that said it couldn't be done. I stand, as an exception to the American rule. I stand, for the struggle endured by my slave ancestors. I stand, as my sister and brother's keeper. I stand, as a voice for the braided heads and sagging pants of the ghettos. I stand, as the potential of my incarcerated black men and black women. For equality, I stand. For justice, I stand. For righteousness, I stand. For truth, I stand. In the Name of the Heavenly Father, I stand. Victoriously, I-Stand!