[Disclaimer: I hate that I have to say this, but I’d like to make it clear that the following post does not in any way justify the use of racial slurs, or derogatory terms towards women, LGBQT persons, individuals with disabilities, any minority group, or any individual. Period. There is a difference between opinion and derogation and discrimination.]

As a writer, I'm no stranger to controversy, anger and confrontation about my opinions. I've been dealing with that for about as long as I've been able to properly express myself. Growing up, I was an only child for many years and being the baby of the house, I got away with a lot, some of which included spouting off my many opinions unabashedly. As I grew older, I remained opinionated and just as uninhibited about spreading those opinions. Once I was given the outlet of writing, and a larger audience to share those opinions with, things really got dicey. In high school, I once published a poem in the school newspaper about how I felt that black youth needed to stop blaming society for their own shortcomings. Needless to say, some of my school mates were none too pleased and saw fit to let me and a few teachers know about it. I found myself both fiercely defensive and deeply afraid, and wondered whether I ought to have censored myself. That was my first brush with the question of censorship and I've been battling that ever since.