Labels (Brent Bourque-Loreauville, LA)

Fag- A British term for cigarette
Dyke- A levee system used to redirect water
Negro- A word to describe a color in the Spanish language
Cracker- A type of biscuit
Retard- To hinder or slow development 

These words amongst others have many meanings
When we often use them to describe each other
They take on a cruel edge meant to humiliate and degrade
Why?
Do we feel these are the words to describe us 
I am a homosexual white male
I would never say I am a cracker fag
Do either one of these statements describe me
No not completely
Lets take the first statement
I am a homosexual but it is not who I am
And while white describes the color of my skin my genealogy says something different
I am made of many nationalities all colliding and mixing and forming to make up me
And even male is subjective
While I live my life as a man there are many people with this label that don’t feel it adequately describes them
With the right label you can succeed 
Your nationality, color, sex and class are just right
With wrong labels you will be persecuted, enslaved, and convicted for what you are what you believe or who you love
Break free of the labels that are placed upon you 
They are only a description of a small piece of your life
Take what people think of you and challenge their belief
I am Brent
A gay
White male
Blue collar worker
Uncle
Brother
Son
Best friend 
But through all of it
I am Brent

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