First came the German Shepherd dogs
Next came the water hose
Bodies lynched, then set ablaze
Flesh singed, then meshed with clothes
Innocent black lives lost, on a blood stained Poplar tree
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** free"
I am he whose antecedents
Suffered and survived the Middle Passage's arduous trip
I am the progeny who sprang forth from their chained *****
As human chattel, my antecedents suffered the sting of the whip
Their humanity, dignity and pride
Was debased and denied
Deracinated, their bodies were beaten black and blue
But it was the bruises inside, they tried, but could not hide
Innocent black lives lost, victims of the lynching rope
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** hope"
I say again, I am he whose antecedents
Suffered and survived the Middle Passage's arduous trip
I am the progeny who sprang forth from their shackled *****
As human chattel, my antecedents suffered the cabotage of a slave ship
In 1964, they were granted civil rights, but denied civility
A denial rooted in the flowering bloom of racial hate
And the verdant lushness of white supremacy's wicked fertility
So many innocent black lives lost
Because of "Negative Eugenic's" lies and untruths
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** choose"
Apr 7, 2017
Apr 7, 2017 at 2:10 PM UTC
First came the German Shepherd dogs
Next came the water hose
Bodies lynched, then set ablaze
Flesh singed, then meshed with clothes
Innocent black lives lost, on a blood stained Poplar tree
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** free"
I am he whose antecedents
Suffered and survived the Middle Passage's arduous trip
I am the progeny who sprang forth from their chained *****
As human chattel, my antecedents suffered the sting of the whip
Their humanity, dignity and pride
Was debased and denied
Deracinated, their bodies were beaten black and blue
But it was the bruises inside, they tried, but could not hide
Innocent black lives lost, victims of the lynching rope
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** hope"
I say again, I am he whose antecedents
Suffered and survived the Middle Passage's arduous trip
I am the progeny who sprang forth from their shackled *****
As human chattel, my antecedents suffered the cabotage of a slave ship
In 1964, they were granted civil rights, but denied civility
A denial rooted in the flowering bloom of racial hate
And the verdant lushness of white supremacy's wicked fertility
So many innocent black lives lost
Because of "Negative Eugenic's" lies and untruths
Even now, I hear the Slave Overseer's words
Echo inside me - echoing epigenetically
****** run, ****** die, ****** choose"
Excerpt from:
'The Genesis: A Collection of Poems by Mekael'
© Mekael Shane, 2007
