Best Black History Poems
Rise Up
Rise up to the blessing of another day.
To all that awaits you this moment.
To all that will challenge you and enlighten you.
Rise up to the opportunity to live in your truth and appreciate the truth of others.
To make a difference and matter to those in your path and to those you never noticed.
Be awakened by the joys of opportunities both sought after and placed before you.
Rise up to the choices that you have the freedom to make and take delight in being the vessel to enforce them.
Embrace your beauty, your strength, and most importantly, your flaws.
Be courageous when faced with adversity and smile when you’ve conquered the impossible.
Rise up to your fears and shortcomings and face them with the belief that you are not the only one; you are never alone.
There is so much turmoil in the world today. Be that small ripple in the water that becomes the huge wave of hope and positive change.
Be that spark that ignites into a blaze of restoration.
Rise up to the responsibility of reminding our youth that they are royalty and should conduct themselves as such.
With the dignity and respect which is needed to be a part of resolutions and not part of our demise.
Although life has a way to often break us down, we must rise up to the realities of our destiny.
We cannot be broken. Our spirit cannot waiver. Our souls have been fortified with ancestry that embodied perseverance, power, and the will to praise God.
RISE UP KINGS
RISE UP QUEENS
We are backed by our foundation of greatness and all that we are facing in the world today is our foundation of inspiration and purpose.
We must be inspired every day to simply and deliberately RISE UP!
The past
I am a black prince
Who use to rule over a kingdom
But now my people and me are enslaved
Force to pick the white mans cotton
I see my brother and sisters
Being whipped and branded like cattle
They think we are cattle
So we are treated like cattle
But my people dream and sing of the future
Where we are free from our shackles
The future
I am the black preacher
Who has been freed from his shackles
But now fighting for our rights
So my son and daughter
Can go to a pool and not be separated
By the racial line.
Or when they go outside to play
They don’t have to worry about the KKK
Trying to hang them from a tree branch
That is the reason I fight that is why I want equal rights
For there can be a better tomorrow
The better tomorrow
I’m the son of the preacher
Who was the grandson of the black prince.
Here saying that enslavement and segregation
Is over
An now the only problem remains is
The fact that we are killing each other
Over money and women
This makes no sense
Have we as a people suffered enough?
Have we shed enough blood?
So I ask you
Put the gun down spread the word
Tell our brothers tell are sisters that the
300 years of enslavement and segregation is over
We have our black president
We have the power
To show the world that
We as a people are united
The Sowing
Upon the wind feasted hillside
The jagged edges of used rocks swell
With the fatless skin of babes and wenches
Below a field of blood, no less a Flanders Field
A continuous swell of rape roll like waves
In the pallid squalor of leaking huts wooden tales tell
The scars ironed in the backs and inner thighs
The voices crying with no listening ear
Blood shines bright in moon's glow sons birth upon the fields
For eons it seems men stack rape like barley and wheat
Small ones soft ones and inexperienced virgins too
Daughters bled away dignity men their respect
Born work and ravished in the fields
Where is their medal of bravery
Today the summer sun washes over the fields
Each ray eclipses the dark memories of sin
As the sons and daughters rise
This poem was written for Joann Grisetti's Copycat contest through inspiration of Debbie Guzzi's The Sowing, one of the Greatest writers here on the Soup
It amazes me
They say all men were created equally
But that’s denied throughout history
Theirs starts with constitutions revolutions and bravery
They tell us ours is gangs chains and slavery
It’s pretentious
And I’m offended
You started the race just so you could win it
And they did…well they did
Until we realized that an eagle can’t be judge by its ability to be a pig
False metrics
A ruler being held by media outlets rendering our image helpless
They narrate that our great minds are bipolar, out of order or just selfish
Encourage us to swallow your dreams
Beat our women , eat our young and wash it down with the tiniest sips from their revenue stream
And we say nah
Trick no good
Ms Maya Angelo knew
Sojourner too cause Rosa didn’t move so Mlk can spread the truth
I’m not the smartest man on earth but if I wanna change how history looks
The first thing ima change is what’s explained in our history…books
Long live Babylon America the great its the M night Shyamalan planet of the Apes
Long live Babylon America the great its the M night Shyamalan planet of the Apes
Here’s the plan it’s no secret raise your hand and give the answer I agree with
Concentration of Indoctrination now we consider him a genius
Don’t let him look into why Malcolm X wanted to separate
Keep him chasing his tail in circles as we continue to legislate
Tell the only ones that’s special are the ones that did something first
Ignore the names of those that change what was broke but now works
You know what’ll really knock ‘em out of competition?!
Tell ‘em their role models are ball players and musicians
Let’s assassinate all they’re leaders and complain they’re all directionless
Police Kill off they’re strong men n women even though they are weaponless
But keep the freaks in the sheets cuz they women are the sexiest
Add dope to their communities break down the family structure
So it’s really sister Vs sister and brother Vs brother
Father out the home is more pressure for the mother
Strong and independent makes her think a pb and j can be jelly without peanut butter
So what makes you think I want a calendar with 28 days
With 28 names
Of 28 slaves
Lead to 28 graves? I think …..We’d rather have our 40 acres…
400 years Today
Although my feet has bared the mercy of my body
I used the stars ? to guide me
I am no longer present in this moment
For I am not a slave
I am not a bastard
Oppressed and marginalized
I shall not bare the thought of my offsprings
For what will become of them
For miles I’ve ran to freedom but freedom had forsaken me
Arm and arm we’ve marched
Only to take a greater lashing
For what is freedom
I have no rights and there is no justice
Return me home
But there is no home
Native to the land but the land is theirs to own
Burn it down with my ashes into the flames
This ain’t no life of mines
Have mercy on soul
For I am not a slave
If slavery was a choice, as some have agreed, then what are we?
If watching your father and mother endure rape or murder was a choice,
Then why do we sit on idle hands, while Trump eradicates our posterity’s opportunities,
As if they were written in sand?
If not being able to read was a choice,
Then why do you go to the PlayStation in a rush
while your library card collects dust?
Even a Ward educates themselves,
Even the eunuch Greyjoy developed the courage to stand against evil.
In the midst of upheaval, one mustn’t look through a straw while planning the future.
The sagacious knows fighting must be eschewed when only death is in thy terms.
Allah heard their suffering, but sometimes the way out is through.
They didn’t endure out of docility or obsequiousness,
But out of discernment and sagacity.
The desolate doesn’t become prosperous by exclaiming tumultuous absurdities,
But by embodying opulent minds.
Go back to the mother, which is the way, and endure the storm,
While being metamorphic in form.
You see, my Kings and Queens,
The only choice they made was to give their posterity a fighting chance,
To gather strength while the usurpers wane and start to underestimate.
We must pick up the quill and write our own fates,
No more brooding or carping about what Donny Thrump is doing.
One man’s decisions determine another man’s life,
As much as a drought challenges the land.
Yet, life, like the Way, will always find a path to flourish,
Forevermore permeating even the harshest conditions.
We must stop talking about what great leaders and men should be,
And become Great Men and Assiduous Leaders.
We were the first great civilization and shall act as such.
Lead with grace,
Strike with prudence,
Read great books that enrich the mind,
Treat each other with unyielding reverence,
Because we each carry a piece of the divine.
I am that I am, and I am my brother's keeper.
'Just get over it'
No we still haven't received reparations
And they are long overdue
Why would we get over it
When you prance around wearing bags made of our skin
Sitting your privileged self's on chairs oh so familiar
The fabric - our skin
But you'll never know
You'll never care
Because of your ignorance
Because what you don't know won't hurt you
But a little secret, I promise you it hurt us
Can't you hear the echoes of our ancestors
Or is your inability to basic human emotions
Cause you to go deaf in both of your ears
'Just get over it'
No how about you don't deny our history's existence
How about you stop going on the defence
Everytime you hear about the black experience
Why would we get over it
When it slaps us in the face
Every single day
Through the blood stained pavements
From segregation to alienation
Through the changing of weapons
Long gone are the harsh echoes of the whips
Is now the sharp bang of a gunshot
Going from personal torture
To cowardly killings
'Just get over it'
How can we
When everyday we carry the scars of our ancestors
And you carry the evil spirit of your ancestors
How are we supposed to walk the streets
Where public lynchings was free entertainment
Because no matter how hard you try to erase
The echoes of violence still linger
And the weight of generational trauma clings to a world we built
'Just get over it'
You may have drowned our cities
And set fire to our towns
But one thing remains known
Is how you'll never silence our screams
How can we get over it
When the rope Hangs from the trees
When segregation is over yet the ice in your eyes make known we are unwelcome
How sundown towns still exist with the same outcome
Where every ship is haunted by the fear
Our people faced
Drowning in the eerie thoughts of what's to come
When black history month
Reminds that nothing has really changed
The only difference is the rules of game they made
And the changing of the games name
You claim we are stuck in the past
But we are still living in it
How can we forget
When there's constant reminders
Hiding in every corner
Where every shadow leads to another piece of trauma
That reminds black is not just a colour
Who am I or should I say what have I become,
Well lets take a look at where I came from,
I am a beautiful African American, born into a legacy of African American men and
women who were slain, spit on, stepped on, and beat,
Yet through it all we remained in faiths seat,
not just hoping but also knowing that one day God will see us through,
So if your thinking it made us strong then yes, it's true,
it also built within us wisdom and virtue,
And now we fly across the open sea shore,
Past the oceans we sore,
So with our hands we raise,
Because we know it's Jesus who's worthy of our praise,
In liberty we stand to bless His name,
Together we stand in unity to proclaim,
That we are NOT a product of our past,
But because of Jesus Christ we are free at last,
Not just from slavery, but for the right to live, the right to learn, even the right to
display such bravery.
I am a *****.
Young,gifted, and black.
I have been to the golden gates of heaven and felt the blazing heat of the doors to hell.
Then made my way back.
I have cried a sea full of tears.
I have been beating as a slave.
Whips all across my back.
The white man speaks down on me.
He seem to see what I'm soon to be.
I am a gift.
A gift from God to a unholy earth.
I have done some wrongs and some rights.
I have won and lost some fights.
I have been in love,I have falling out.
I am young.
So I have room to grow.
I still have people to see and places to go.
I have room to grow smarter.
I still have room to improve and try harder.
I am a dreamer.
I know what I wannabe when I get older.
I daydream to stay heated in a world that's growing colder and colder.
I am a poet.
I let my mind run freely.
Then let my pen speak for me.
I grow wisdom each time I write.
I am Black History.
I Make history, I don't let it make me.
Why is it called 'Black History Month'
Black means void of light
why because we are nonwhite
this should be voted out
because the name Human Race
carries more weight
Sure, I understand
it is a way of denouncing the browner skinned man
Why is it there are tanning booths
for the lighter or paler skinned people of the world
they would rather call us 'boy' or 'girl'
Well, the fact remains we are really the majority
who else is given one entire month to give high esteem to for the accomplishments
of the so-called minority
In all actuality every time that you use your dryer thank G.T. Sampson
or stop at a traffic light thank G. Morgan
you are thanking God Almighty for blessing the person who you call 'black' for the ability to create these valuable worthwhile necessities
So, when you hear of someone having an open heart surgery thank the man of the human race with the browner skin for being the first to perform the first one
Ah, the victories we have won
do not frown
do not fret God will get you, yet
to admit that deep in your heart
we all play a part
in the world being 'it takes all kind to make it go around'
no one is better than the next
however, when you get ready to text
think about Mr. H.T. Sampson who invented it for your leisure
pleasure maybe even a luxury
Or when your horse needs a shoe say a silent 'thank you' to J. Ricks
Can we all just get along
became a catchy realistic reachable phrase from a lighter skinned man who was beaten almost to a bloody pulp for being a man you called 'black' by those of a different shade of skin
jealousy, hatred, discrimination, alienation, poverty, hunger, envy, degradation and demoralization has been shared even experienced by all race
the Human Race
Black history means a lot to me.
It is too much for me to write or state briefly.
We, Black people or African-Americans,
I should politically correctly say.
We’ve had struggles and have definitely,
Come a long way and still have a long way to go.
Everyday items that we see,
Are unique elements of our indeed rich history.
When your car stops at a stop light,
I want you to know that for that invention,
An African-American received the spotlight.
If you choose to straighten your hair,
Madame C. J. Walker is the inventor that,
Had knowledge to share the invention,
Of the straightening comb.
I could list many more items and people,
But it the list would be never-ending,
But I do want to add two more pieces,
Of Black history that means so much to me.
One political figure who we should all remember,
Barack Obama, our first African-American,
U. S. President. He has inner strength and,
Intelligence that’s quite evident.
One more person that you could add to the list,
Is yourself.
Whether your skin tone is dark or fair,
You can affect Black history everywhere.
I know that I will add my self.
I know that one day I’ll be on the list,
Because I have been given a gift to write,
Not only this,
But many other unique writes,
I will fight the good fight and keep the faith,
I know that I will make the list of Black history,
As an outstanding poet.
I’ll make history: I just know it.
wrote 2-18-10
I want to lead you to safety like Harriet Tubman,
While we are on our way,
I want to stop traffic like Garrett Morgan,
Before we get there,
I want to right all wrongs like Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall,
While we are here I want to ensure that our minds and spirits are in the
right place and then we will get our hearts pumping like Dr. Daniel Hale Williams,
So that we can run through fields of gold like Jesse and Wilma,
And dance to the beat of a thousand drums like Katherine
Dunham and Josephine Baker,
I want to be the first up to bat like Jackie and Hank,
I want to resound through your ears and your memory bank,
Like Mahalia, Marion and Billie,
I want to fight battles like Muhammad and Joe,
I want to take a stand so that others may sit in comfort,
Like Ida and Rosa,
I want to give of my time, life, heart, mind, body and soul so that future generations
won't have to sit in the dark and sit on the sidelines like
Martin and Malcolm,
I want to soar through the bluest of skies like the
courageous Tuskegee airmen and Dr. Mae Jemison,
I want to be the first beauty you recognize like Vanessa Williams,
I want to undermine and backhand stereotypes like Althea, Venus
and Serena Williams,
I want to paint broad presidential brush strokes of the
the First Lady and her beau with hues of justice like Simmie
I want to act like kings and queens like Harry,
Sidney, Lena and Cicely,
I want to live on through the pages of your memory,
Like Maya, Zora, Lorraine, Langston and James,
can't you see?
From Africa to America spanning the world, quite possibly
My DNA struggled to survive to make me,
My existence is a testament to survival fitness,
My life is to nurture the future and bear witness, the past,
My name is the name to property they gave,
My heritage my lineage is that of a slave,
Yes, slave, property, harsh words to hear,
Great Granddad was born enslaved, three generations too near,
Granddad laid bricks, played music and sang,
Hope from Grandma’s illiterate lips, I sprang,
A lineage broken in Georgia or Carolina south,
passed on and on by word of mouth,
The legacy must pass through me to give my children power,
For their momma’s line stepped off the Mayflower,
In both I must help them see honor,
For the strength and the pride that made me must endure,
Listening, and teaching, and learning I press on without blame,
Learning from the past about my past I move on without shame,
Each new day, new creation, I write the story,
One of survival, renewal, reflection, doggedly pushing toward glory,
I am black yesterday, I am black now, I am black history.
Born and Created
Legacy guided
Inspired from
Destined to Everywhere
Story my own
Mentors who taught me
Knowledge
Victorious enriches me
Accomplishments gained
Intriguing legacy voices
Never forget
Believing you always can
Challenge yourself into win
Black History a mission to always try
Even through the cries
One’s self
Always be yourself and nobody else
Black History is
Always will be
Educational and Sensational
Learn from the best
Wisdom is my test
Press on and enrich your own legacy
Do, Will, Shall and fulfill
I'm not sure this is the dream Martin had
Yet we have moved from the nightmare of what he endured
We still have a ways to go, to make that dream come true
The one where who I naturally am doesn't have to be relaxed to make others feel ok
Where I can shine past the barrier of skin color and just be seen as light
The dream that means that diversity is to be celebrated
because trying to be anything other than who I am
Is robbing this world of experiencing excellence
Where the liberty bell isn't a monument but a movement
As I move into being who I was created to be it rings out to others beckoning them to do the same
And while I live, I carry the weight of the fallen soldiers
Not to mourn but to push me to live as fearless as they did
Knowing that if they had been given the chance to live they would own it
And I can't waste a minute on this earth worrying about who agrees, accepts or approves
See Trayvon, Mike, or Eric don't get to breathe this air, but I do
Martin and Malcolm don't get to give anymore speeches, but I can
No more Rosa's to boycott buses
But there is a you, and there is a me
And we can soar higher than our ancestors
We can live the lives they dreamt about
Bridge the gap between possible and impossible
We can innovative, and motivate and inspire Every Day MAKE BLACK HISTORY
Because who said the History Books had to stop with them.