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

…In his head
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
10 Mar 2014
🖨️ Print Article

by Raymond Nat Turner

Dr. King’s Dream come true,

In his head! Black folks way better

Off, in his head, Rev. Wright was

Wrong, in his head!

 

…In his head

by Raymond Nat Turner

 

Headin’ downtown on the D train

The other day I overheard oration—

By a fella, to a fella, from a fella 51/50

“Mexicans takin’ our jobs; they hate

Our freedoms— but blurred lines,

Beyonce’s booty, NAACP Image

Awards, Robin Thicke & recovery

Jus’ roun’ the corner; smart phone,

Dr. Dre headphones lift me outta

Poverty; smart bombs protect my

Freedoms; I got 2,000 Facebook

Friends, a poke away, who gimme

My kidney & bone marrow transplant!”

 

Booming baritone thundering in

Harmony with the train, he continued

His melodious, rhythmic catechism,

“Since ’08 things been Great,” in his

Head, Dr. King’s Dream come true,

In his head! Black folks way better

Off, in his head, Rev. Wright was

Wrong, in his head! “Yes, we can,”

In his head, mo’ Black folks have

Homes since World War II, in his

Head! Mo’ Black wealth than ever

Before, in his head; fewer Black folk

Dyin’ fo’ they 70th, in his head; mo’

Black men goin’ to college than jail,

In his head, liars figure but figures

Don’t lie, in his head, in his head,

“Change we can believe in,” in his

Head, police stopped shootin’ us

Since that beer, in his head; we

Cool, long as Big Brother brown, in

His head! Oratory swelling like a

Dark cumulus cloud, lookin’ me

Dead in the eye, “This election the

Mos’ important election ever…”

 

“The rich say that every time,” I snapped.

He leapt up like a man possessed, banshee-

Rebel- wailing, “What, you ain’t votin’?

Nigger, get away from me, you is cra-aaa-zy!”

 

Raymond Nat Turner can be contacted at upsurgejazz.com

 

Raymond Nat Turner © 2014 All Rights Reserved

 

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


More Stories


  • Maryam Qarehgozlou
    Al-Shifa Hospital Head and Other Freed Prisoners Speak of Horror Inside Israeli Jails
    10 Jul 2024
    Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, director of Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital, who was freed from an Israeli prison after being held without charge for months, has recounted harrowing and horrifying experience.
  • Internationalist 360
    AES 1st Summit: Burkina Faso President Captain Ibrahim Traoré Delivers Historic Speech
    10 Jul 2024
    The consolidation of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger into a confederation marks the next steps toward sovereignty and self-determination for the people of those nations. This achievement has become a…
  • Black Alliance For Peace
    What is INDOPACOM?
    10 Jul 2024
    The Indo-Pacific Command recently began its Rim of the Pacific exercises - a reminder of the continuing US militarization of the world and its flagrant violation of national sovereignty.
  • Traore
    AES Debout
    Burkina Faso President Captain Ibrahim Traoré historical speech at AES 1st Summit
    10 Jul 2024
    On 6th July 2024, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have officially created the Alliance of Sahel States Confederation. Ibrahim Traore, President of the Transition of Burkina Faso, delivers this speech…
  • Black Agenda Radio
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio July 5, 2024
    05 Jul 2024
    This week, we discuss the struggle for Black political power in conservative Louisiana, and Margaret Kimberley talks about the recent debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. But first, we discuss…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us