Ralph Poynter speaking at a rally for political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal.
When I Grow Up…
When I grow up I
wanna be bear hugs
and hundred watt smiles
for family, comrades and friends—
Easy to figure
out: Come correct—
Or, not at all
When I grow up I
wanna be like the
Keystone State son of
a steel worker,
in major—music theory—
Teaching poly-rhythmic
Resistance and asking:
“How do you keep the music playing,
How do you make it last???”
When I grow up I
wanna be like the
Quaker State son of
a steel worker,
in major—allowing
Resistance and the
Organizer in
his DNA to
Lead the way, saying
Names of Political
Prisoners, Prisoners of War…
When I grow up I
wanna be like the
Warrior jousting
windmills in front of the
War House. Picketing
for the Love of his
Life—rain, sleet, snow—
Or sauna. Showing,
Not telling, the rulers,
“Let my Peoples’ Lawyer go!”
Ain’t that lovin’ you, baby?
When I grow up I
wanna be like the cat
not above crashing
in airports, to
Visit his Valentine
shackled to the 17th century—
Deep in the heart of
a Texas torture chamber
When I grow up I
wanna be a spirit
singing,“Lonely teardrops,
My pillow’s never dry…
Lonely teardrops, come
Ho-oh-oh-oh-Om…”
When I grow up I
wanna be like the knight
in whose eyes glint
Her name writ red in flames…
Poet’s note: Inspired by the life of Ralph Poynter …
© 2017. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.
Raymond Nat Turner is a NYC poet; BAR's Poet-in-Residence; and founder/co-leader of the jazz-poetry ensemble UpSurge!NYC. You can Vote for his work at: GoFundMeand PayPal.
Stacey Abrams's campaign to become Governor of Georgia features the popular democratic strategy of pretending to be progressive while advocating for right wing issues, such as allocating more money…
New World Mathaba issued this statement in protest of the deaths of African migrants at the hands of Moroccan security forces while attempting to enter the Spanish enclave of Melilla.
The election victory of Colombia's Historical Pact was the culmination of years of struggle in that country.
The causes of the July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence are rarely taught in this country. The American colonists chafed under British rules limiting their settlements and feared they…
Belgium has returned a gold crowned tooth of Patrice Lumumba to his family.
