Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

Black Friday?
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
30 Nov 2017
🖨️ Print Article
Black Friday?
Black Friday?

Thought solemnity—
bowed heads, hands held,
streams of consciousness,
Blessings counted the day before:
Flowing water;
No rockets’ red glare; No
bombs
bursting
in
air
over
dead bird, cranberry,
pumpkin pie feasts was a prelude

Thought our ship came in,
Redressing ships making us
Sales
Thought it was about
Reparations—or 99%
demands on the way…

Thought it was about
Reparations—or at least—wild-eyed kinfolk
storming Wall Street, body-slamming,
beating down banksters and taking back
stolen Homes;
stampeding corporate headquarters,
snatching Single-Payer from
bloody hands of war profiteers;
wrenching Affordable Housing from
kleptocrats and lying politicians;
wrestling Boss Tweet to the
floor, pummeling he and torch
monkeys marauding the nation!

Next morning, glass cages
opened peculiar flashbacks:
Vaunted Negro buying-power on
fours—clawing for sweatshop shit…

Raymond Nat Turner © 2017 All Rights Reserved Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performing artist, You can find much more of his work at http://upsergejaz.com,

poetry

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


Related Stories

Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Army of Artists (For My Friend Horace Silver)
17 December 2025
Harmony of a hug,Rhythm of a rose,Melody in the mirror
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
MrJoeSam’s Text Messages
12 June 2024
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR’s poet-in-residence, pays homage to San Francisco’s shipyard artist JoeSam who died peacefully on June 1, 2024, surroun
Raymond Nat Turner
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Dis-honest Broker
01 May 2024
"Dis-honest Broker" is the latest from BAR's Poet-in-Residence, recently performed at UpSurge!
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Raymond Nat Turner at the UpSurge Jazz Celebration
03 April 2024
 
Image of Refaat Alareer sitting in a crowd of graduates
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: If I Must Die, Refaat Alareer, 2023
13 December 2023
Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer, a martyr of zionist state genocidal violence, has left us with a tale of resistance and hope.
Reese Piece…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Reese Piece…
15 April 2021
Salute to City of Angels’ son! He wrote, he wrote, he wrote And he wrote… Ramparts, The Progressive, The
First 100 Daze: A ‘new’ dance craze
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
First 100 Daze: A ‘new’ dance craze
27 January 2021
Everybody’s wild ‘bout this ‘new’ dance craze— this lewd, crude dance called “The 1st 100 Daze…”
mashing the state— Kristallnacht-style
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
mashing the state— Kristallnacht-style
20 January 2021
Kristallnacht came casting lead ballots, overthrowing Black elected officials and Massacring those that VOTED for them— 
This is what hypocrisy looks like…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
This is what hypocrisy looks like…
13 January 2021
“It's like writing history with lightning.“ — Woodrow Wilson on Birth of A Nation
Think…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Think…
06 January 2021
Think of peoples having the most tanks, the most drones, the most missiles, bombs, aircraft carriers, 

More Stories


  • MANIFESTO: African LGBTI Manifesto/Declaration, April 18, 2010
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    MANIFESTO: African LGBTI Manifesto/Declaration, April 18, 2010
    10 Mar 2021
    The manifesto claimed the LGBTI struggle as an indelible and urgent part of the history of Pan-Africanism and the ongoing movements for Black sovereignty.
  • Meet me at Mary’s Place…
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Meet me at Mary’s Place…
    10 Mar 2021
    “…he said if you can enjoy A real nice affair (Over at Mary's place—oh) Then you'll make it Your business to be right there… (Over at Mary's place— oh)”  —Sam Cooke
  • Why Cornel West’s Tenure Fight Matters
    Robin D.G. Kelley
    Why Cornel West’s Tenure Fight Matters
    10 Mar 2021
    Harvard’s administrators completely miss the point of tenure, which was created to allow scholars to do their work, speak their truth, and stand up for something without risking their jobs.
  • Movements Not Saviors: Lessons from Bobi Wine’s Tweet for Juan Guaido
    Netfa Freeman and Jemima Pierre
    Movements Not Saviors: Lessons from Bobi Wine’s Tweet for Juan Guaido
    10 Mar 2021
    Bobi Wine’s flirtation with US Venezuelan puppet Juan Guaido indicates that the Ugandan is also auditioning for the imperial puppet job.
  • Letters from Our Readers
    Jahan Choudhry, BAR Comments Editor
    Letters from Our Readers
    10 Mar 2021
    This week Pan Africanism and the Black Panther Party were on your minds.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us