Stuck Between Appropriation and a White Place

There are those who    
claim that  
white is not “a thing”  
   
(Okay, fine    
I like that)  
   
yet black  
is a thing  
 
(now  
...you lost me)  
   
but because pale    
people have  
....an advantage thing  
   
We are told  
 
(...who cares  
what’s real)  
   
those ones should not    
say anything else  
   
lest they not own    
toxic skin  
   
they should just  
“strive to be    
...less white”  
   
like a dog should    
strive to be  
a butterfly    
   
meanwhile    
not allowed    
   
any cultural tools  
to do so