Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons And An Unlikely Road To Manhood Quotes
I thank my mother (Ma, you're only second cause you got the dedication), who used to make me write essays whenever I got into trouble, explaining exactly what I'd done and why I'd done it.
On our life map, he drew a bright circle around twelve through eighteen. This was the abyss where, unguided, black boys were swallowed whole, only to reemerge on corners and prison tiers.
No matter was the professional talkers tell you, I never met a black boy who wanted to fail.
This is one of those stories where the feeling of the moment stands in for visual details.