Genocidal Survivors

They call me Brave Heart
Not because of my courage but because it is my last name
And not because I "like" Mel Gibson that much but because it is 
how I was raised.
Half black and native girl raised on the Reservation
With the beautiful people of The Oglala Lakota Nation.
Two times their tone
as a dark girl among Natives I was taught to hold my own.
You see it is the two worlds that brought me light
And it is my last name that gives me the strength to fight. 
They call me Brave Heart
Like the beat of a drum 
And the hold of a knot, my destiny cannot be undone.
High centered in between
A mixture of African decent and Indigenous being.
I see the greater picture
And I write the words to my own scripture.
I feel the power of my ancestors blood through my veins
And I scream out their existence in my last name. LILILILILILI
I was shackled and beaten as my African mothers
And I share in the pain of the slave trade with my sisters and brothers
Our truths will prevail through HIStory,
And we will restore our Ancestors glory.
They call me Brave Heart
But my skin and biracial split aren't what separate me from the rest
I just know that born into this life I am blessed
I am grateful for those who fought for me and our bloodline to pull through
And I am here today to fight for them too.
You cannot defeat those who are not afraid to die,
And you cannot fool those who see through lies.
Although we were hit with everything from slavery to genocide
they could still never kill Our Native and Black pride.
We know exactly who we are
Because the blood in us proves our ancestors pushed us far.
It is not over for us
We have refilled our cup,
So no matter how much you knock us down we will 
Stand back up.
They call us Brave Hearts.


Akiza - a war cry used to celebrate the spirit of our ancestors and their fight- LILILILILI

Copyright © | Year Posted 2016



Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment

Be the first to comment on this poem. Encourage this poet.

Get a Premium Membership
Get more exposure for your poetry and more features with a Premium Membership.
Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry

Member Area

My Admin
Profile and Settings
Edit My Poems
Edit My Quotes
Edit My Short Stories
Edit My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder

Soup Social

Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us

Member Poems

Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread

Member Poets

Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest

Famous Poems

Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100

Famous Poets

Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War

Poetry Resources

Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
Store
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter
Hide Ad