#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #ClintSmith

Starting this morning with images of a young Black father (Clint Smith) and his young son enjoying each other's company as well as the beauty of flowers in the park. From Above Ground. 🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #ClintSmith

More poetry from Clint Smith's Above Ground. It's a beautiful book of poetry; many of the poems are lighthearted and dedicated to his two young children. But today I'm drawn to the ones that express dismay at the America his children will inherit. I'll be cheerful another day.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #HarryetteMullen

This poem is an exercise similar to Toni Morrison's Recitatif. Who are these theys and thems? Am I part of we and our?

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #QuincyTroupe

Remembering history is an important first step in avoiding a repetition of our past.

This would have been a good poem to share on Earth Day, but I think the message can be appreciated anyday.

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #QuincyTroupe

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #EtheridgeKnight

This is a love poem. Don't let the language convince you otherwise.

#HenryDumas #BlackPoets #BlackMastodon

Henry Dumas Wrote About Black People Killed By Cops. Then He Was Killed By A Cop : Code Switch : NPR
https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2015/10/01/433229181/henry-dumas-wrote-about-black-people-killed-by-cops-then-he-was-killed-by-a-cop

On hands and knees,
the ocean begs up the beach,
and falls at your feet.

I have to adore
the mirror of the earth.
You have taught her well
how to be beautiful.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

Love Song
BY HENRY DUMAS

Beloved,
I have to adore the earth:

The wind must have heard
your voice once.
It echoes and sings like you.

The soil must have tasted
you once.
It is laden with your scent.

The trees honor you
in gold
and blush when you pass.

I know why the north country
is frozen.
It has been trying to preserve
your memory.

I know why the desert
burns with fever.
It was wept too long without you.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

Going back to Mississippi
This time to stay for good
Going back to Mississippi
This time to stay for good-
Gonna be free in Mississippi
Or dead in the Mississippi mud.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

Left my mama standing
With the sun shining in her eyes.
Left her standing in the yard
With the sun shining in her eyes.
And I headed North
As straight as the Wild Goose Flies,
I been to Detroit & Chicago
Been to New York city too.
I been to Detroit & Chicago
Been to New York city too.
Said I done strolled all those funky avenues
I'm still the same old black boy with the same old blues.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

A Poem For Myself

By Etheridge Knight

I was born in Mississippi;
I walked barefooted thru the mud.
Born black in Mississippi,
Walked barefooted thru the mud.
But, when I reached the age of twelve
I left that place for good.
My daddy chopped cotton
And he drank his liquor straight.
Said my daddy chopped cotton
And he drank his liquor straight.
When I left that Sunday morning
He was leaning on the barnyard gate.

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #PauliMurray

I hope this Pauli Murray poem reminds you to choose your words carefully.

Seas shift at your bidding,
your mushrooms fill the sky.
Why are you unhappy?
Why do your children cry?

They kneel alone in terror
with dread in every glance.
Their rights are threatened daily
by a grim inheritance

You dwell in whitened castles
with deep and poisoned moats
and cannot hear the curses
which fill your children’s throats

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#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #DrAngelou

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #LangstonHughes

If I ever come across a Langston Hughes poem that I don't like, I'll let you know. ❤️

Cross by Langston Hughes

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

Although I'm no expert in the interpretation of poetry, when I share a poem I often give a hint of what I think the writer/poet is attempting to convey (and only the writer truly knows what that is). But in this poem by Haki R Madhubuti (Don L Lee), it feels like he's using a megaphone. Read it and see what you think.

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets

Dr Madhubuti was influenced by Richard Wright and Gwendolyn Brooks and has been writing since the late 60s. He is considered to be one of the architects of the Black Arts Movement and adheres to his roots in the movement with this poem in which he issues a call to poets to participate in bringing about societal change through poetry.

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #LangstonHughes

There's something about the way he turns a phrase and makes the lyrics flow! All of Langston Hughes' poems are special. This one elicits steely determination.

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #AudreLorde

Audre Lorde is one of my favorite voices in poetry. Here she ponders a truth experienced all too frequently by Black women.

#BlackMastodon #BlackFedi #BlackPoets #HarryetteMullen

This poem perfectly depicts our society as it has become. No one is responsible for anything!

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