Inaugural poet Amanda Gorman took to Twitter Friday night to share her experience with a security guard who called her “ suspicious, ” presumably due to the color of her skin.
“A security guard followed me on my walk home tonight,” the 22-year-old tweeted, adding that he wanted to know if she lived in the apartment complex.
“I showed my keys and buzzed myself into my building,” she added.
Gorman claimed the guard left without apologizing for his accusatory actions. She wrote that the situation shed light on the racial problems facing the US.
“This is the reality of black girls: one day you’re called an icon, the next a threat,” she said.
A security guard followed me on my walk home tonight. He demanded if I lived there because “you look suspicious.” I showed my keys and buzzed myself into my building. He left without apologies. This is the reality of black girls: one day you are called an icon, the next a threat. https://t.co/MmANtQqpBs
– Amanda Gorman (@TheAmandaGorman) March 5, 2021
Gorman’s tweet hints at the praise she received after her viral inaugural appearance in January. She was then asked to perform in the Super Bowl, for which she also received widespread acclaim.
As the youngest presidential inaugural poet in US history, Gorman drew extra attention with her performances. She said she used her platform to make other young black women visible.
Wow, fantastic @WindmillMemes piece by @nnnekamcguire We live in a contradictory society that can celebrate a black girl poet and also pepper spray a 9 year old. Yes, see me, but also see all the other black girls who have been made invisible. I can’t, I don’t want to, get up alone. https://t.co/tP531SCjrk
– Amanda Gorman (@TheAmandaGorman) February 14, 2021
“We live in a contradictory society that can celebrate a black girl poet and also a 9-year-old pepper spray,” she wrote on February 14. The tweet refers to an article written about the praise she received in the wake of an incident in which Rochester police sprayed a young girl with pepper spray.
“Yes, see me, but also see all the other black girls who have been made invisible,” she added. “I can’t, don’t want to get up alone.”