WE ARE THE BLACK MAN
I am a Black Man.
I was born of a dirt-brown woman;
I cry tears of blood,
My veins run wet with sweat.
I am a Black Man-
I was raised in the shadows of despair
Nurtured by the sting of the scourge
Though my muscles ache by day
And my phallus throbs by night,
My mind continues to reel and rock
As my freedom I try to plot
I am a Black Man-
I cut my teeth on lead-based paint
And skinned my knee on racial hate,
I am a Black Man;
Torn from my native soil
Used like pools of unnatural oil
Refined, confined, derided by men.
I am a Black Man
And I feel so all alone!
I was a slave-
An infinite entity in durance vile,
In search of freedom I thought I had found.
I’ve looked around to find few of my
Fellow conned victims present, why?
The way out was not so hard to find—
And to my dismay, “my” Black Woman is not here.
So she to, is unable to break the chains
That bind her!
Indeed, I feel so all alone;
Now that I’m free, how free, am I
When she is not.
I am a Black Man.
Though I have overcome my fate
Where oh Mother of Africa is my Amazonian mate?
Strong and serene to fight by my side;
Both refusing to die.
We must overcome our hate by perpetuating its fate.
We complete each other.
So come Black Woman
Let us lead the way
We are the essence of the whole Black Race
Destined to be, are we-
Though my muscles bulge an my spirit soars,
I am incomplete without my Black Mate
For that I am not, she is
The tender creature I’ve forgotten how to be
And in my war torn mind
She is my comforting peace.
Though we grow weary of the test
We strive on for the battle rages on.
Oh! Brown skinned beauty
Reminder of my native pride
Of which to will they try to deny…
But it shall never die
For I am a Black Man;
With my Black Woman,
WE ARE THE BLACK MAN
by
Sammie L. Carter
Copyright 8\15\77
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~ by Sam373's Blog on March 9, 2011.
Posted in Poetry, Relationship, Socialization, The Governed Speak
Tags: Blackness, complex reality, Dejected, Jazz, Memories, Reality, Tragedy
Absolutely shattering. Perfection. This speaks of a reality I perceive but cannot name. I am completely moved.
Shalom.
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It feels as though you lived through that poem, shared the life of that slave. Your poem deservrs the widest of audiences, and I hope you publish it.
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speaking up is cool in this case.
well done.
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[…] sam373′s blog […]
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Great poem – thank you. Well done.
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So powerful. The treatment of slaves and even the “free” black man today is one of mankind’s greatest shames. Thank you for sharing from the heart the story of The Black Man. pat
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human greed is so very repulsive. Slavery is one of the darkest patch on human civilization, its shame that this practice continues till date.
your poem came from depth of your soul.
trisha
http://sharmishthabasu.wordpress.com/2011/03/09/slavery/
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This was moving .. Makes you imagine and feel the plight of the speaker of these words !
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It is not often I find myself speechless, but the passion in that poem is far beyond my humble words.
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Very Powerful –
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