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

My Mentors and me
BAR Poet-in-Residence Raymond Nat Turner
13 Nov 2019
🖨️ Print Article
My Mentors and me
My Mentors and me

Standing out in the cold shivering,
shoveling white bean soup in my mouth,
A mentor appears, two assistants in tow. 
Mind butcher shop sharp with a
New York nano second for bullshit,
she’s heard scores of $campaign
slogans and $election promises…

Wednesday’s Wall Street Journal
interview: centenarians and technology;
and she’s still in her writing workshop.
I feel validated because she too uses
spiral notebooks; winding wire coils
lower to higher, mirroring her life…

When we met a year ago, she
taught me how to meditate as I
wake mornings. A Jew 102— A
year later she’s here for me103!

My other mentor’s African-
American and 97—though barely 95
when he named me “The Town Crier.”
Moment our paths crossed, my
curiosity got the best of me, “Whoa,
who’s this lean, mean elder with
boxing gloves and punching bag?”

I found out later this Brooklynite
grew up with Jazz legends; hoists
black dumbbells twice the weight 
I hoist; and puts wannabe
Thugs down for subway naps…
So wonderful—so fabulous—
Him showing up for our gig at The
Commons and giving us two thumbs up!
Gosh, wish I could reciprocate, being the
writer telling his story—even his
work for a Collection Section of
IBM—Italian Business Men…

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

Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performing artist, and an official of the National Writers Union. 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

poetry

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


Related Stories

Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: Poem for Walter Rodney, Edward Kamau Brathwaite, 1981  
11 June 2025
“any where or world where there is love there is the sky and its blue free
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
A few lines for the Poet Ojenke...
21 May 2025
RIP: Rise In Poetics to Ra
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: Reflections after the June 12th March of Disarmament, Sonia Sanchez, 1982
18 December 2024
“I have come to you tonite not just for the stoppage
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Love My Black Job
11 September 2024
Love my Black Job— Black Student Union Job! Hired at L.A. City College As “The Peoples Poet!”
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: Enemy of the Sun, Samih al-Qasim, 1970
29 May 2024
Read against the terrible incineration of Rafah today, this poem of resistance and refusal, by Pa
Image of Refaat Alareer sitting in a crowd of graduates
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: If I Must Die, Refaat Alareer, 2023
13 December 2023
Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer, a martyr of zionist state genocidal violence, has left us with a tale of resistance and hope.
Protest for Palestine at the White House
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Trigger Warning
22 November 2023
Trigger Warning Palestine’s the Answer— What was the Question?
Another June 1
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Another June 1
07 June 2023
                                       
BAR Book Forum: Jon Jon Moore’s “The Calling: Poems”
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Jon Jon Moore’s “The Calling: Poems”
16 February 2022
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
Our ‘democracy’
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Our ‘democracy’
23 July 2021
Shangri-La—untaxed, socially-distanced champagne- caviar, Cayman Island, yacht crowds who

More Stories


  • Black People, Guns, and the Troubling Reaction to Ja Morant
    Gus Griffin
    Black People, Guns, and the Troubling Reaction to Ja Morant
    21 Jun 2023
    Ja Morant plays basketball in Tennessee, an "open carry" state with lose firearm regulations. But the issue of Black people carrying guns is not one of strict legality. Racism is also the issue.
  • Violence is Their Religion!: How Murder Gives the White Settler Purpose
    Jon Jeter
    Violence is Their Religion!: How Murder Gives the White Settler Purpose
    21 Jun 2023
    This episode of Black Republic Media is the second in a series entitled, Murder Inc: The White Settler Republic as Homicidal Maniac.
  • Jalil Muntaqim Reports from Venezuela on the Case of Alex Saab
    Jalil Muntaqim
    Jalil Muntaqim Reports from Venezuela on the Case of Alex Saab
    21 Jun 2023
    Jalil Muntaqim was invited to attend a conference in Venezuela regarding the case of diplomat Alex Saab, who was kidnapped by the United States three years ago and is still being held in prison.
  • The June Days – Senegal’s struggle for justice
    Review of African Political Economy
    The June Days – Senegal’s struggle for justice
    21 Jun 2023
    In Senegal supporters of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko protest his exclusion from next year's elections after a disputed conviction in a criminal case. 
  • Debunked: Media Falsely Claims China is Building Spy Base in Cuba
    Ben Norton
    Debunked: Media Falsely Claims China is Building Spy Base in Cuba
    21 Jun 2023
    Media outlets claimed China is building a secret station in Cuba to spy on the US, citing anonymous intelligence officials. But the Pentagon admitted this story is false. It is part of an information…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us