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

For Fancy Miss Nancy
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
19 Dec 2018
🖨️ Print Article
Nancy Sue Wilson 1937-2018
Nancy Sue Wilson 1937-2018

Guess who I saw
today, black and white photo,
Marching, Montgomery from
Selma, ‘65?

Guess who I saw
at my high school swingin’ the
Trio; urging us to stay in school?

Guess who I,
was privileged to sequence
a later CD for, late one night?

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
put the purr in whisper, with a sultry
Sound that could make subpoenas seem sensuous

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
Appeared, sparkling, at the end of the
golden era—looking as good as she sounded—
Her face should grace
Buckeye State flags emblazoned
“There will never be another you…”

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
Hovered earth— stunning hummingbird,
gorgeous humanitarian, giving the greatest
performance of her life, moments I loitered—
not seizing the time and asking, “When did
You leave heaven?”
Though, I think it was maybe ’37? I know she’s

Free Again…

© 2018. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performing artist. You can find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.

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


More Stories


  • Freedom Rider: The Real Trump Coup
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR senior columnist
    Freedom Rider: The Real Trump Coup
    18 Nov 2020
    Trump puts whiteness first and that means he will always have support and Republican leaders know it.
  • How the Black Movement Teaches Us to Fight Cold Wars Both Old and New
    Danny Haiphong, BAR Contributing Editor
    How the Black Movement Teaches Us to Fight Cold Wars Both Old and New
    18 Nov 2020
    China is rising not merely out of colonial underdevelopment but into a position of global leadership.
  • Donkey Dung 2/4 Dance
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Donkey Dung 2/4 Dance
    18 Nov 2020
    Militarist Macarena all pomp and circumstance— they’re baaaack with Donkey Dung 2/4 Dance… First you cry, “Wolf!” in tune with corporate law
  • V.I. Lenin and W.E.B. Du Bois: Class Struggle and Civilization
    Anthony Monteiro, BAR editor and columnist
    V.I. Lenin and W.E.B. Du Bois: Class Struggle and Civilization
    18 Nov 2020
    While the ruling elite is calling for a capitalist reset which could leave half the working class without jobs or adequate income, many leftists are proclaiming working class backwardness.
  • Births of a Nation, Redux: Surveying Trumpland with Cedric Robinson
    Robin D.G. Kelley
    Births of a Nation, Redux: Surveying Trumpland with Cedric Robinson
    18 Nov 2020
    What Robinson identified as “the rewhitening of America” a century ago is what we’re seeing play out today.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us