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
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book. This week’s featured author is Reighan Gillam. Gillam is an assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology…
Rage is a natural human emotion that is denied to Black people. Black rage is dangerous and is washed away, laundered, as if it were an ill-gotten gain. Too Black explains in the second part of…
International law requires that reparations be made for human rights violations. African Americans certainly fall into the category of those entitled to just compensation, restitution, and…
The brutal history of British imperialism should not be forgotten in the wake of the Queen's death. The South African organization, Economic Freedom Fighters, recounts the many crimes…
Haiti is the first target of the Global Fragility Act. Haiti's "fragility" is caused by decades of U.S. interference, and the restoration of its sovereignty is the way to resolve that nation's …
