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

Statues of Limitation
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
28 Sep 2022
🖨️ Print Article
Statues of Limitation
A flatbed truck carries a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee from Market Street Park in Charlottesville. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Statues of Limitation

A German comrade
quipped, “When you
Come to Frankfurt
You’ll find bronze celebrating
Poets, painters, philosophers—
But you won’t find the
Führer’s face any place—
Bratwurst, beer and Jazz
in Berlin; but you’ll find
lime green leprechauns
before patinas of Goebbels,
and Goering glaring from
park and plaza pedestals…”

Italian bandmates chimed in,
“Come with us when we go home—
you won’t find Mussolini’s
mug in Milan, or Rome…”
And the Butoh dancer blurted
“And no Tojo in Tokyo!”

Why’d I softly reply,
“ Dixie—south of the
Canadian Border—sits
pock marked with 1,000
syphilitic statues of
Slavers, traitors, terrorists—“
Instead of screaming,
“Would you name your child
Jezebel Jackson,
Judas Jones,
Satan Smith, or
Sheriff Joe—
Would you call yourself
a nigger, bitch, or hoe?
Would you celebrate
Stonewall Jackson, or
Robert E. Lee—
Would you tell your Mother
You’re an SOB?”

Raymond Nat Turner © 2017 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: GoFundMe and PayPal.

confederate statues

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


More Stories


  • Who is the Most Dangerous Fascist?
    Glen Ford, BAR Executive Editor
    Who is the Most Dangerous Fascist?
    23 Jul 2020
    Most American leftists are incoherent on the term fascism, and Democrats have utterly destroyed the word’s meaning. 
  • Freedom Rider: Media Silent as Trump Declares Wars
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR senior columnist
    Freedom Rider: Media Silent as Trump Declares Wars
    22 Jul 2020
      Donald Trump’s attacks on Venezuela, Syria and Iran are criminal, but Joe Biden vows to be even worse.
  • A New Cold War on China Is Against the Interests of Humanity
    Danny Haiphong, BAR Contributing Editor
    A New Cold War on China Is Against the Interests of Humanity
    22 Jul 2020
    Ajamu Baraka and Margaret Kimberley join with the No to the New Cold War coalition to demand Donald Trump back off his confrontational stance with China.
  • What Are Trump and His Goons Up To?
    Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    What Are Trump and His Goons Up To?
    22 Jul 2020
    That’s the question I asked policing and privacy expert Tracy Rosenberg, Executive Director of Media Alliance, and coordinator of Oakland Privacy.
  • Third Reich Quick Strike: low Barr-Boss Tweet 
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Third Reich Quick Strike: low Barr-Boss Tweet 
    22 Jul 2020
    I remember when they used to play Round ‘em up—bang-bang, baby; I remember when they used to chase Schoolboys—beat ‘em up, lock ‘em up I remember Geronimo’s wife, Sandra Pratt, aka Red
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us