Unaltered Voices

  “ Around the same time every year, I would sink into the worse state of sadness; every year, it was worse. I recall doing my cousin's hair at my apartment when I said those words, “I think I am depressed.” I had not acknowledged that to anyone before that conversation. There was some relief in saying it aloud; however, recognizing it did nothing to spark the need to seek help. ” -LaToya Nicole     In my new book, Alone In the Dark, I spoke about how the state of mind I lived in went undetected for years. I was not familiar with depression to the extent I am now, nor were those around me. I was a sad little girl. The way I felt most of the time, I thought that is how people identify. Imagine how overwhelming, saddened a person is after losing a loved one; that is where I lived. I left the house from time to time, but that is where I woke up and slept. I had grown physically, but emotionally, I remained on 978, Wondering Why I Was Born Avenue.   The laughs, hanging out with friends

I watched an interview on A&E with a woman who shared her story about being raped and impregnated at age ten. She was nine when he started and had no understanding of what was happening. She told her mother, but her mom told her it did not occur, then later blamed her when she realized it was happening. Her mother told her she was fast. Yes, a nine-year-old being "rapid, quick, or abstaining from food" gave an over 30-year-old man the okay to undress and penetrate her. If I lost you, I included the etymology of the word, fast, and nowhere did I find that it meant as implied. Where did this foolishness originate? I am willing to bet it's right off a plantation, and we continue to abuse and indoctrinate our children with the same ignorance intended to keep us ignorant. Why is that always the go-to when sick people hurt children? That's not it; she was forced to marry the rapist by age eleven. Her parents held the perpetrator to such a high standard because he held a