I was raised in Inglewood, California. My community is Morningside Park. It is middle class. I’m not going to apologize for that.

I’m not going to apologize for the media’s portrayal of my community. That portrayal is based largely in the fact that Inglewood was integrated in the 1970s—which was after Montgomery, Alabama was integrated.

That is the long way of me saying it’s based in racism.

I understand that some parts of Inglewood have more challenges. Some parts of downtown L.A., Echo Park and Hollywood have some challenges too.

I’m not going to apologize for calling people who use the term “urban” cowards.

If by “urban” you mean black, then say “black.”

I’m not going to apologize for being insulted by people who call my community the “inner city.”

Morningside Park looks just like Fullerton in the O.C., or Silver Lake. It is primary black and while we’re not record executives or millionaires, I’m not sure why black people who are middle class can’t be newspaper publishers and school teachers.

Why, in order for black people to be viewed as middle class, must we own a $2 million house and possess five college degrees?

I don’t get why some black people have this perspective.
I’m not going to let people who aren’t from here and won’t live here and would like to bulldoze it for profit—under the guise of “black pride”—destroy my neighborhood.

At least not without at a strong verbal protest.

I am not going to be quiet while developers and their friends continue to slap up big box stores and others continue to use the poverty narrative to destroy the reputation of my community for their own selfish gain.

I don’t want to get along with people who don’t like me. I don’t want to get along with people who want to exploit me. I don’t want to work with people who want to keep things as they are.

I’m tired of business as usual. I came back to Inglewood, because I saw stars in the horizon. I saw a small group of people who aren’t in love with old Inglewood and aren’t tools of the post-old Inglewood whose strings are being pulled from Bradbury, Ladera Heights and Playa Vista.

So no, we can’t “get along.”

I’m never going to “get along” with people who have no respect for me.

I am not going to “get along” on my knees for anything—and certainly not to pay people to continue stealing from me.