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
  • omnibus

Bye, Big Sis
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
11 May 2022
Bye, Big Sis

                                                                                                          Bye, Big Sis

Cred befo’ ‘Ree cried: R-E-S-P-E-C-T for
the record; Feminist befo’ we knew its name
pre-Panther Radical, Mama Harriet-style, you
packed that Luger before there was unpacking,
centering, contextualizing.
You trained with brothers who became BPP
fore there was intersectionality.
You spoke Spanish; Swahili; handled your French;
Italian; German; Arabic—crossing teas; dotting eyes…

But Caffie wrenched the gun from your hand—
putting her children in your hands—weaponizing
Us, instead of losing you—shooting some cop.
Made you magnificent mentor ‘stead of middling martyr— Community-building big
sis; ‘stead of forgotten #????????

We, younger brothers and sisters, stared as you strode lioness-like through sun shards
on “The Stem—”
Bunchy’s beloved Central Avenue! We watched
how you navigated an apartheid City of Angels—
Ruled by devils. Cuz we longed to make you proud…

We, younger brothers and sisters, watched as you walked the world down in wondrous
ways, from the feet of Elder/soldiers who’d fled up south from Hell.
We watched you seize the time as elder/soldier—
beautiful, statuesque, warrior woman—baddest,
blackest ‘fro this side of Angela. You came equipped! Skillsets/talents taking you
‘round the world in its wine,  weed, drums, dance, food, fashion funky-ness— even Porkchop torture! Your po’ kidneys/Pay or Die Disease-‘care!’

We, younger brothers and sisters, watched as you birthed Black beauty into our chalky
worlds. Our first live theater. Sitting in the dark. Eyes bugged out; hot young minds
blown… You on stage
Baldwin’s words in your mouth! You: Sister Boxer. Whitman Mayo: Brother
Boxer/your husband. We: Your Amen Cornerfor life…

© 2022. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Los Angeles
Black Panther Party

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


Related Stories

Saturday Mornings
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Saturday Mornings
29 March 2023
                                                                                                                    Saturday Mornings    
Eddie Conway Tribute
Mali Collins
Eddie Conway Tribute
15 March 2023
The late Eddie Conway was a young member of the Black Panther Party who was framed for the killing of a police officer and spent more than 40 y
Grandstanding: Mayoral Candidate Karen Bass Says She Can Solve LA’s Homelessness Crisis
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Grandstanding: Mayoral Candidate Karen Bass Says She Can Solve LA’s Homelessness Crisis
27 July 2022
As the late Glen Ford said, the Black misleadership class has no shame.
BAR Book Forum: Interview with Akinyele Umoja
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Interview with Akinyele Umoja
08 June 2022
As part of the Black Agenda Report Book Forum, we interview scholars about a recent article they’ve written for either an academic journal or p
911 Is a Joke: Preferring to Shoot Unarmed Blacks, Cops Find It Ain't No Fun When the Rabbit Has the Gun
Jon Jeter
911 Is a Joke: Preferring to Shoot Unarmed Blacks, Cops Find It Ain't No Fun When the Rabbit Has the Gun
01 June 2022
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) began after an LAPD raid on the Black Panthers in 1969 and spread throughout the country.
EDITORIAL: Poor Women: Pawns in the Abortion Controversy, The Black Panther, 1980
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
EDITORIAL: Poor Women: Pawns in the Abortion Controversy, The Black Panther, 1980
07 December 2021
A 1980 editorial in The Black Panther argues that the war against abortion is a bi-partisan war against poor women.
Summer of Soul/Summer of Struggle…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Summer of Soul/Summer of Struggle…
25 August 2021
BAR's poet in residence pays tribute to fallen Black Panther Party comrades. Chalk silhouettes, bullet-violated bodies of
Lessons from Eldridge Cleaver and the Black Panther Party
Ahjamu Umi
Lessons from Eldridge Cleaver and the Black Panther Party
16 June 2021
Just like we glorified the black leather jackets, black berets, and guns in the 60s, we still romanticize African people with guns and mouths that
The Black Panther Party Has Never Been More Popular, but Actual Black Panthers Have Been Forgotten
Santi Elijah Holley
The Black Panther Party Has Never Been More Popular, but Actual Black Panthers Have Been Forgotten
06 May 2021
The name Black Panther is a box-office draw, but can cinematic sympathy be extended to the Panthers who are still living and breathing in this coun
Newly Obtained FBI Files Shed New Light on the Murder of Fred Hampton
Aaron J. Leonard and Conor A. Gallagher 
Newly Obtained FBI Files Shed New Light on the Murder of Fred Hampton
10 March 2021
That all this time later we are still learning new information about Hampton’s killing is testament to the sheer volume of the effort aimed at this

More Stories


  • INTERVIEW: Randall Robinson: Third World Advocate, 1983
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    INTERVIEW: Randall Robinson: Third World Advocate, 1983
    29 Mar 2023
    Remembering Randall Robinson: Black internationalist, anti-imperialist, and friend of Haiti.
  • Uganda LGBTQ Law Obscures Crimes Committed on Behalf of the U.S.
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Uganda LGBTQ Law Obscures Crimes Committed on Behalf of the U.S.
    29 Mar 2023
    Uganda's anti-LGBTQ legislation has elicited worldwide condemnation. But that nation's history of invading, pillaging, and killing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with U.S. blessings, is…
  • 2023 Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza Democracy and Peace Prize Awarded to John Williams Ntwali and Kambale Musavuli
    Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    2023 Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza Democracy and Peace Prize Awarded to John Williams Ntwali and Kambale Musavuli
    29 Mar 2023
    The Victoire Ingabere Umuhoza Prize for Democracy and Peace is awarded to people who work for democracy, peace, and freedom in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.
  • Saturday Mornings
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Saturday Mornings
    29 Mar 2023
                                                                                                                        Saturday Mornings                                              
  •  BAR Book Forum: Hugo ka Canham’s Book, “Riotous Deathscapes”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Hugo ka Canham’s Book, “Riotous Deathscapes”
    29 Mar 2023
    This week’s featured author is Hugo ka Canham. Canham is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of the Witwatersrand and coeditor of Black Academic Voices: The South African Experience.…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us