I Stay Woke. *Consciousness Series*

PREFACE

Huey
I sat on the edge of my couch staring blankly into the television. I couldn't believe it, I was lost for words. I was stuck. I could only blink in disbelief. Ferguson involves protests and riots that began the day after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown by Darren Wilson, a white police officer, on August 9, 2014, in Ferguson, Missouri.
"M-ma Ma! " I staggered in a slight whisper yell. Still glued to the television in front of me I stood to my feet. "Ma!" I yelled.
"Come here look." I began to point at the tv as my mom walked into the living room from the kitchen. "Boy what?" She asked wiping the excess water from her hands onto her floral gown. "Ma look at Ferguson they turning up for what that cop did..... Niggas is tired man." I said shaking my head.
Mom moved in closer squinting her eyes at the screen. "Hmph" she sounded. I turned and looked at her. "What?" I asked turning back to screen. "What is burning and and and all that other activity gone solve? This is why white folks don't like us now." She said turning around and walking back into the kitchen. I twisted my face in utter disgust. Did she really just say that? I turned the television off and walked into the kitchen. "Ma you act like niggas supposed to live their life to impress white folks or somethin'." I said walking up behind her. She ignored me. "Ma to many of niggas is getting killed by these racist ass cops!" I said a bit aggressively. She dropped the potatoe that she was peeling and turned to face me. "Boy to many NIGGAS is killing NIGGAS. Im s'posed to cry cause a white man did it? Get on out my face now!" She said and turned back to her potatoes. I stared at the back of her head and sighed. "Well.. Ma I think Imma call up Marcus, see if he wanna ride down to ferguson." I said pulling my phone out of my khaki shorts. She turned swiftly on her heels and began walking towards me pointing a kitchen knife in my direction. "Huey King Johnson Jr unless you want to be sliced up from head to toe you will not be going NO where!" She screamed in my face. "Why? I wanna support my people!" I exclaimed. "Why? So you can go out there and those cops can kill you too?! Your only 18 Huey." She said grabbing my arms. I stepped away from her. "So the only black life that matters to you is the one you created huh?" I sucked my teeth and walked away.