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All right, kids. Class dismissed. Time to join the working class. What you learned in class stays in the classroom. No need to find the volume of cones or the inverse of cosine when you should’ve learned how to cosign, to bow to bosses and cut your losses. Know that the classroom is not where class ends. That class permeates the atmosphere like the stench of foul cheese. That class clings to the walls like stubborn blood stains. That class is a construct caging clarity and keeping everyone in a certain class. Class invades conversations about manners. Class bolsters discrimination based on income. Class becomes a battleground for two halves of the same coin. Elephant loves to ban books. With no class, you are deemed as crass. Take no class, you are called unintelligent. With class, you are expected to keep it up. In class, you are told repeatedly to shut up. We are so busy fighting in class and over class. Black board pitted against Yellow crayon when both are being screwed over by the white chalk applying white-out to the books that are taught in classrooms about class to keep the Upper Class in class and those deemed crass and unintelligent without class in the slums. In the streets. And in silence. Phoenix Ning is a twenty-one-year-old Chinese novelist, poet, musician, podcaster, book designer, visual novel creator, and blogger. Her published books include Paragon Seven, Bouquets and Chains, and Eastern Dragons Don't Breathe Fire. Her life mission is to pen the 200+ books in her PhoenixVerse centering queer people of color as the heroes that they are. Her poetry has been published in thirteen literary magazines, and her music is available on all major streaming platforms. Soup Dumpling Express, her podcast on Chinese culture, is available on Spotify. She is currently a grad student studying library science. Find more at https://thephoenixverse.com. Comments are closed.
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