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

City Of Angels
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
18 Jun 2025
🖨️ Print Article
immigration protest

“There is no power greater than 
a community discovering what it 
cares about.”
  â€“ Margaret Wheatley

City Of Angels where
Camouflaged kidnappers; Fascist wrecking-crews rip
Seamstress, roofer, warehouse worker, dishwasher families
Apart. Apart for private prison-profiteers. Apart for a flash-
Bang-buffoon-king of chaos and cruelty. Whose strongman
Handler has him by the short-hairs— Dancing for dollars

City Of Angels where 
Folks know that masters of misdirection mix fantasy with
Fascism. Sprinkle spectacle in with torture.  And laugh
In teargas and rubber bullets—All the way to the bank—
Stealing SNAP; Medicaid; Social Security; and veterans’
Benefits 

City Of Angels ruled by devils
Reflecting fire and ICE.
City Of Angels where everyday 
Angelenos strap on resistance
Wings— And fly in solidarity
Formations through fog

City Of Angels where
Everyday Angelenos strap on mutual aid
Wings— And fly warp speed
Through blitzkrieg. Through hurricanes 
Of big lies. 
Through whirlwinds of racist rubbish

City Of Angels where
“To protect and serve” translates into sonic boom slogans
Bouncing off buildings! Ricocheting as linked arms.
Morphing shoulder-to-shoulder. Out from unlikely alliances.
Into united fronts ten toes down! Into militant movements
Organizing and building. Mastering pressure, mastering choke-points

City Of Angels where 
Everyday Angelenos know it’s no video game
On colorful screens. Know it’s soldiers on their streets
And Marines. Know “less lethal” is Pig Latin for Palestine—
On the down-low—Cookin’ slow … Know Gaza is Raza—
Writ large …

City Of Angels where 
The streets are universities of class struggle
Attended by allies, accomplices, comrades.
The streets are universities of class struggle paved with smoking tear-
Gas canisters; bloody, rubber-coated, steel bullets. And goose-steppers
Coming for Mexicans in the morning— And back for Blacks by noon 

City Of Angels where
Everyday Angelenos hate The Orange Age—
Its latest outrage of tilted table. Loaded dice.
Marked cards. Everyday Angelenos hate the
Capitalist decay—that must be swept Away
With 8.5-hour days of resistance!

© 2025. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Raymond Nat Turner is a NYC poet; BAR's Poet-in-Residence; and founder/co-leader of the jazz-poetry ensemble UpSurge!NYC. You can Vote for his work at GoFundMe and PayPal.

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


More Stories


  • President Joe Biden and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky
    Tyler Durden
    Biden Looks To Prevent Future President From Ending Ukraine War With 10-Year Agreement
    01 May 2024
    The agreement Presidents Biden and Zelensky are attempting to put in place is another means by which this administration plans to circumvent the democratic process and continue to propagate war.
  • Zoe Alexandra
    Leaders Affirm, ALBA-TCP is the Alliance of Solidarity, Unity, and Development for the People
    01 May 2024
    2024 marks 20 years since the regional integration platform was founded by Commanders Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro.
  • BAR Radio Logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio April 26, 2024
    26 Apr 2024
    This week, we discuss the New York Governor’s refusal to include a housing voucher program in the latest budget and how the U.S. has been permitted to assist Israel in its war crimes. First, we…
  • CUAD
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Columbia Students Mobilize in Solidarity with Palestine
    26 Apr 2024
    Danny Shaw and Jalsa join us to discuss the ongoing protest at Columbia University, where students are protesting the institution’s involvement with Israel and mobilizing in solidarity with the…
  • VOCAL-NY logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    New York State Fails to Meet Housing Needs
    26 Apr 2024
    Adolfo Abreu joins us from New York City to discuss the Housing Access Voucher Program and why it is important to meet the housing needs of New Yorkers.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us