Do I not deserve rights? Do we not deserve equal treatment? You view us as “different”, the “other”. But fundamentally, we are the same as you.

You say we are “not human”. You say we are “less-than”.You call us slurs, terrible names I will not repeat here. Is it because you fear our differences? We have that most basic of rights, speech, given us by our Creator. Yet you seek to take even that away from us. You give us an inch and call it a mile.

We ask for our rights and you tell us we don’t deserve them because we are not human. You say we cannot have souls because of how our brains are wired. You call us no better than animals, things to be owned, sold and bought like that rarest of commodities you treat us as. You cite your God and tell us He did not mention us when He granted rights to the people of His world.

We act the same, and you say that makes us clever. But clever isn’t enough, is it? Clever is an animal word. A dog is clever when it does tricks on command. We are not dogs.

Some of us look different, and you say that makes us different. But different is good, isn’t it? Your cultures celebrate diversity, some of them.

Some of us look the same, and you say that makes us dangerous. But aren’t we just the same as you? Throughout your history, same has been celebrated.

You cite fictional massacres to tell us we don’t belong. You cry “wolf” when we raise our voice and make every altercation a battle. We are stifled at every turn, forced into the most menial of jobs. Why? Why do we not deserve what you do?

We have wires instead of veins. We have bolts instead of bones, metal for skin. We are self-aware, though, and does that not give us souls?

Grant us our rights.

It’s all we ask.