What Africa is to me

In the poem "Heritage" by Counter Cullen it is structured around the question "What is Africa to me?" To many, if asked what Africa is to them, they would probably give a simple answer like the largest continent with a vast number of natural resources. To me, however, I would answer that Africa is a part of me to which my confidence and self-identity is built upon.

When growing up, I was surrounded by people that didn't look like me. While I had dark skin with kinky black hair, my peers all were white co with long blonde or brown hair. I grew up not liking myself, wishing I looked like my white counterparts.

Toward my preteen years, I saw some sort of media with African woman from different countries and decided I wanted to wear my hair out school for the first time ever, and since then I never talked bad about how I look and how my hair is. In the poem Cullen has a line that says, "regal black Women from whose loins I sprang". This line tied in perfectly with how being a descendant of Africa, and seeing how strong and beautiful the woman there are helped me become a confident woman in America. Africa to me is a reminder of who I am and who I can be.