Figurines
Figurines
Lace up your shoes
Wear your black hoodie
And your Timberland’s, too
You’ll never know what ‘ll happen to you
Or where you’ll end up
On your way home
Your ancestors have walked this land
In shackles and in chains
And labored for but one cent
Their names have since been changed
To rob them of their dignity
And to mirror the victim hood of their becoming
Bridges were built
And houses were constructed
Wooden pillars on the fence
Guarded the territory
“Girl” and “boy” were your poor grandparents called
“Yes, Sir”
“Yes, Master”
“Yes, Ma’am”
They uttered
Even to the littlest of kin
Did they bow their heads
They survived the Middle Passage Across the Atlantic
Where hundreds of others ended up dead
Lynched and branded with hot compresses
Labeled the” inferior”and “subordinate” race
The ***** race
Black blood
Thicker than mud
Light skinned sisters treated just as rough
Black bodies mere commodity
Sold and exchanged
Equated to an object -property
The spirit of the human being
Engraved upon a figurine
Their time and energy
Kneaded, molded , carved
Sculpted and refined
As merchandise is shelved to be bought
Upon the auction block they stood
Black fruit hung from green trees and
Black blood oozed over leaves
Peculiar crop plucked at harvesting
Wall Street bonds and stocks
Sold and exchanged livestock
Transaction complete
Convincingly science supported slavery
Likening blacks to beasts
Reinforcing laws and customs of cruelty
The forbidden instrument : the pen , the pencil
The forbidden book
The forbidden dreams
The forbidden hope
Forbidden gatherings and group ensembling
Torn into shreds
Toiling to the grave
Children on auction blocks
Mothers forcefully detached
Bonds are busted open
Ties are broken
Flowers ravished
Murderers forgiven
Runaways in search of refuge
Find their way back into captivity
The paradox of democracy
Of individual freedom and liberty and the institution of slavery
Slavery, the generational curse
Lincoln proposed freeing slaves to another country
For blacks and whites
Must not mix
Cause suffering
And make each other sick
Whites fall ill to ***** presence and existence
Blacks fall ill to the unjust treatment and submission
An honorable, decorated black veteran beaten blind by the police
Others shot and lynched
Their patriotism deemed unwarranted, threatening and disturbing
In WW II
Laws forbad blacks from testifying in against whites persons in court
Burnt alive, castrated and dismembered
Their body parts put on storefronts ,
Buses firebombed
Overrun by dogs
hunting , public spectacles
Meant to deter and turn others back
The jazz and the blues
Soothed their souls
Expressed themselves
And had attitude
Every living thing is made of matter
None can deny that fact
Marckincia Jean
Free verse
08/28/19
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