Stop Sleeping on Your Dreams: Breaking Free From Generational Limitations

It’s easy to sleep in on your dreams when the world keeps reminding you how limited you are.

My parents and grandparents knew those limitations intimately. They saw the walls society built around them and they refused to be victims of the system. It’s always easier to blame something else for your circumstances than to stand up and fight for what you want. But my family? They were nomadic warriors, for better or worse. They rejected the confines of their homelands and set their sights on the possibilities of what could be.

Their bravery still speaks to me. It reminds me every day of the importance of stepping into the unknown and trusting that somehow, it will all be okay. Nothing in this world is perfect. And while their courage paved the way for me to explore endless possibilities, it also left me grappling with an unsettling question: Who are we in relation to America?

In our household, we didn’t grow up steeped in Black pride. We weren’t taught about the Garveys, the Newtons, or the Malcolms. The focus was on education, safety, and extracurriculars making sure we had access to “better” neighborhoods and opportunities.

But looking back, I think my parents took for granted the fact that they grew up in communities that reflected them. They didn’t need to search for identity or empowerment because it was woven into the fabric of their environment. That privilege of cultural accessibility is something many black communities worldwide have been systematically stripped of.

This isn’t by accident. It’s a deliberate weapon.

We’ve been conditioned to believe that what we need success, safety, even joy cannot be found within our own communities. So we go searching elsewhere. We work tirelessly to buy houses in neighborhoods that don’t reflect us. We send our children to schools that don’t affirm them. We spend our money, time, and energy in spaces that quietly remind us: you don’t belong here.

But here’s the hard truth: this is colonization 101. Divide and conquer. Keep us separated from our lineage, from our communities, from ourselves. When you don’t know who you are, you’re primed to believe whatever they want you to believe.

They’ll tell you you’re nothing but a physical tool. Good for planting, picking, building, entertaining, catching, and dribbling. The government, education system, and media all work in tandem to keep people of African descent trapped in the lowest possible image of ourselves.