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

Breathe the Bern…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
20 Apr 2016
🖨️ Print Article

by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner

Our poet in residence muses upon the collective madness engendered by the quadrennial presidential election.

Breathe the Bern…

by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner

Right around this time ‘left’ pundits and
Pontificators hitch worn star-spangled
suspenders to an ol’ mule and pretend they’re
Alcoholics— invoking the serenity prayer:

“God, grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things that I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.”

They claim theirs is the highest form of self-
discipline; like a form of Yoga, a sacred set of
Breathing exercises in 4yr-cycles—foundation of
their practice is regulation of oxygen to brain cells…

But it looks like the Hokey-Pokey:

You clamp your left nostril down,
Until it feels like you’ll drown…
You clamp your right nostril down,
Until your ‘hood’s like Jonestown—

Then you do the shit again in 4 yrs
As the wily 1% stokes your fears…
Set yourself back another decade
With the practicing of this charade…

Raymond Nat Turner © 2016 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


  • Malaika Jabali
    In Milwaukee, Many Black Voters Aren’t On Board With Either Party
    31 Jul 2024
    The city’s abstainers could determine who wins Wisconsin, a critical swing state, this November.
  • Philippe Rosenthal
    France in Africa: “ New Partnership Model ” and Revenge Projects
    31 Jul 2024
    Despite the well-known political instability of the Fifth Republic, caused by the results of the recent legislative elections, the continuity of Paris' military-political path in Africa seems…
  • The Cradle
    One third of the world under US sanctions: Report
    31 Jul 2024
    Four consecutive US governments have incrementally expanded their reliance on using the US dollar as a weapon of war, forcing nations across the world to create alternative financial systems and…
  • Black Agenda Radio
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio July 26, 2024
    26 Jul 2024
    This week, we talk to a veteran fighter in the liberation movement about his work nationally and internationally. But first, we discuss Joe Biden standing down from his re-election campaign and the…
  • Kamala Harris
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    The Politics Behind the End of Biden's Campaign and His Endorsement of Kamala Harris
    26 Jul 2024
    Dr. Anthony Monteiro joins us to discuss the 2024 presidential election in the wake of Joe Biden’s announcement that he is standing down from his re-election campaign and endorsing Vice President…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us