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

 Slick Willy Rides Again!
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
28 Aug 2019
🖨️ Print Article
 Slick Willy Rides Again!
 Slick Willy Rides Again!

Don't know if it was the Bible
That said it, or if it was Confucius— 
Or, if I just made this shit up:
"Beware of the one riding in
Bareback, facing backwards on
An ol' mule, for he is an impostor!”
Lo and behold, The Great White
Foundation Father, Vice-
Roy of Haiti and Harlem, nurse-
Maid of NAFTA, demon of de-
Regulation, did it with class in
Tobacco country stables, Offal
Office of the DNC dog and pony show

Like Coltrane licks unrelenting from 
“Out Of This World," repeating in my 
Mind hermaneutics of suspicion swirling

Like steroid-driven dervishes...I NEVER
Trusted that M$%#-F@!*... that silvery-
Tongued, false-fingering saxophonist
From Arkansas—even if an ass-kissing
Arsenio showed the candidate A “Love
Supreme...”
I saw through that saran-wrapped
Charlatan who would imprison
Nixon-numbers of Black men and
Women; dismantle welfare with
Workfare from Reagan's wet dreams;
Bomb Bosnia; bless derivatives and
Deconstruction of Glass-Steagall,
During his “peacetime” presidency...

But, Negroz, who've become 
Fat and flabby from high fructose
Corn syrup years of sweetheart 
Dealing Black faces in high places—
Black faces aspiring for soft leather 
Chairs in corporate boardrooms and
Enough cash to stash in Cayman Island
Accounts, and their home freezers—
These Negroz screamed and shouted, 
"Slick Willy was masterful, he hit it
“Out of the park!"

Him was masterful, alright, him
Still a master after all, ain't him?

But in the fields, we keep our
Gazes fixed firmly on the Drinking
Gourd, the North Star, found just
Over picket signs, on picket lines...

© 2019. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Our poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed performing artist. Find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com

COMMENTS?

Please join the conversation on Black Agenda Report's Facebook page at http://facebook.com/blackagendareport

Or, you can comment by emailing us at comments@blackagendareport.com

Neoliberalism

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


Related Stories

​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
Neoliberalism to Trumpism: The Re-Normalization of White Supremacy as State Ideology
29 July 2026
The crisis of late-stage capitalism has stripped away the liberal disguise and revealed white supremacy as the official ideology of t
Wolfgang Bronner
Entertainment as Militarization: The Spectacle of the Super Bowl & WrestleMania in Nashville
06 May 2026
The spectacle of major sporting events does not simply distract from a city's crackdown on the working class.
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Zophia Edwards’ Book, “Fueling Development”
01 April 2026
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor , Dan Kovalik
U.S. Takes Aim at President Gustavo Petro, but He's Akin to a Rock Star in Colombia
25 March 2026
Francisco Dominguez , Roger D. Harris , John Perry
Imperial Double Standards: Warfare for Venezuela and Welfare for Argentina
22 October 2025
The western response to crises in Venezuela and Argentina reveals a stark double standard.
Tamanisha John
The Historical and Contemporary Role of Neocolonial Caribbean Governments in Supporting US Militarism and Imperialism in the Region
10 September 2025
Turning the Caribbean into a US bombing range requires local collaborators.
Jon Jeter
From Cadillac-Driving Welfare Queens to Xbox-Playing Slackers, the Oligarchs Vilify Others for Their Own Larceny
09 July 2025
America’s ruling class keeps inventing new boogeymen to disguise its endless war on workers, while wealth flows upward and capitalism’s collaps
Clau O'Brien Moscoso
Dollarization in Ecuador: How the Safest Country in Latin America Became a Money Laundering Transnational Crime Hub
29 January 2025
Ecuador was once a safe country. However, U.S.
The Tricontinental
How Neoliberalism Has Wielded ‘Corruption’ to Privatise Life in Africa
04 December 2024
In Africa, the leading forces of capitalism have ruthlessly wielded a neoliberal conception of corruption to undermine states’ sovereignty and
​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
For African/Black Working Class and Colonized Peoples, Midterm Elections in the U.S. Offer No Relief from War, Repression and Capitalist Misery
10 July 2024
This article was

More Stories


  • Twitter Surveillance Startup Targets Communities of Color for Cops
    Sam Biddle
    Twitter Surveillance Startup Targets Communities of Color for Cops
    28 Oct 2020
    Insiders say Dataminr’s “algorithmic” Twitter search involves human staffers perpetuating confirmation biases, searching specific neighborhoods, streets, and even housing complexes for crime.
  • Capitalism Made Women Of Color More Vulnerable To The COVID Recession
    Tithi Bhattachary
    Capitalism Made Women Of Color More Vulnerable To The COVID Recession
    28 Oct 2020
    Black women and Latinas have performed the bulk of the essential work during lockdown and borne the brunt of the recession.
  •  Black Agenda Radio for Week October 26, 2020
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
    Black Agenda Radio for Week October 26, 2020
    27 Oct 2020
    The Rich Will Use Crisis to Further Immiserate Workers
  •  Towards a “De-White Supremification of Amerikkka”
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford , Lydia McCaskill
    Towards a “De-White Supremification of Amerikkka”
    26 Oct 2020
    Lydia McCaskill, a masters and doctoral student at North Carolina Central University and activist firebrand in her hometown of Gastonia, proposes a process of “de-white supremifica
  •  Malcolm X was a Black Internationalist
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford , Desmond Fonseca
    Malcolm X was a Black Internationalist
    26 Oct 2020
    Especially in the latter years of his life, Malcolm X represented “a reemergence of Black radicalism” after the suppression of the McCarthy period, said Desmond Fonseca, a PhD cand
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us