Jha'mai - Brother Lyrics

To whom this may concern
This letter is in regards to my brother
He's not old enough to realize you're coming for him, so I'm writing on his behalf
I was taught you write letters in blue or black ink, so please excuse me for writing this in blood red
And don't misread what I said for hypothetical, but I figured if I spilled mine, you would spare his
But, I'm getting ahead of myself
My brother, is 9 years old, high yellow and loves to watch video game commentaries
He has a hyperactive imagination so I'm gonna clear up a few things before you clear out another black boy
One, If you see him with a toy gun in the middle of Walmart
I want you to see John Crawford, 22 years old, unarmed
Stop and walk away
Two, if he decides to sit on his stoop and enjoy his last breaths at the end of the day in New York City
I want you to see Amadou Diallo, 23 years old, unarmed
Stop and walk away
Three, if he's blasting his music too loudly with his friends
I want you to see Jordan Davis, 19 years old, unarmed
Ask him to turn it down politely
Get back in your car and drive away
Four, if he is walking in your neighborhood in the middle of the night
I want you to see Trayvon Martin, 17 years old, unarmed
Ask him if he is trying to find his way home
And walk away
Five, if he knocks on your door in the middle of the night and his presence alarms you
I want you to see Jonathan Ferrell, 24 years old, unarmed
Let him use your phone to call someone
Shut your door and walk away
Kimani Gray, 16, unarmed
He's on his way home
Ervin Jefferson, 18, unarmed
He's protecting our baby sister
Timothy Standbury Jr., 19, unarmed
He didn't mean to startle you
Sean Bell
Orlando Barlow
Kendrec McDade
Ousmane Zongo
Aaron Campbell
Eric Garner
My Brother
Unarmed
Unarmed
Unarmed
Unarmed
Unarmed
It's funny how their innocence sounds a lot like the rounds you
Shot
Shot
Shot
Shot into them
But not my brother
When you see my brother, I want you to see a boy with aspirations of flying
While I have reoccurring nightmares of him falling to concrete
Like all the black boys before him
When you see my brother
I want you to feel the tears of a mother whose boy never made it home
I want you to feel the sorrow of a father whose legacy was snatched from him
When you see my brother

Let him live
Live to be 10, 16, 22, 35, 100
Let my brother live
And walk away