Did you cry for me
when none but the crows
were both black and free
in the cotton rows?
When you saw me hung
did you cry for me
as my body swung
from the lynching tree?
In the infantry,
combat knew no race
Did you cry for me
once I knew my place?
I've spent my last years,
as your property
I owe you no tears -
did YOU cry for me?
Categories:
reparation, abuse, anger, autumn, slavery,
Form: Quatern
Everywhere the white man put his foot
unerringly on unwary locals he stepped
'til they became downtrodden
unable their customs to accept
physically mentally financially
from top to toe stern to stem
to his own advantage
he used abused and exploited them
no matter their culture
what floats their boat but gets my goat
Government-approved
he pushed religion down their throat
lies were spoken treaties broken
but we can't undo what they have done
and after all these years of dislocation
history has shown too little too late
reparation is no compensation
Categories:
reparation, discrimination, engagement, men, racism,
Form: Rhyme
Many white Americans still struggle with the issue of racism in the 21st century.This started with the Confederate monuments. The Confederate monuments do not have the same meaning to black Americans. While white americans view these works as a part of history, a past that cannot be covered over or changed ; the symbols of confederate officers being celebrated as heroes in public places to black americans will always symbolize a stain on America's very ideals. It was these people who fought to keep black Americans in enslavement and without any hope of being considered as equals to the white race. It was a wise move for cities to remove these statues and public monuments as it did not speak well for the image of America to continue to honor people who fought to deny people their basic rights and freedoms.
Those white Americans who were opposed to the removal of confederate monuments and statues, showed that they were insensitive to the black community and even antagonistic toward it. It showed that they did not understand black americans and how they felt. It was a
sign of how out of touch white Americans were with the black community.
Categories:
reparation, absence, america, political, racism,
Form: Prose
In prayer I offer a Rose of Reparation --- to adorn ---
her sorrowful Immaculate Heart, as I remove a thorn
Categories:
reparation, mother daughter, prayer, rose,
Form: Couplet
Come by here, Lord,
Kum ba 'eah;
Come by here, Land,
Kum ba yeah;
Come by here, Love,
Kum ba yah;
Oh, EarthSoul Mama,
come by here!
Someone's singin'
Someone's swingin'
Someone's in pain
Someone's dyin'
Someone's laughin'
while Someone's weepin'
Someone's prayin', LandedLady,
Kum ba here.
Each of us contains
a therapeutic difference
Between bad news trauma
from suffering and pain
untimely lost,
Amid degenerating chronic loss
of resilient healthy prospects
Someone's coming, Land
with aging bones,
with deep Earth longing
to appreciate this difference
Between ego and eco-fragmentation
despair of timeless souls,
capitalization
commodification
buying and selling out
positive regenerating hope
for negative ungenerously depraved profits.
Come by here, EarthBodies
of wisdom to re-attach repairing climates
with vulnerably resonant messages,
re-memories of Earth's detritional enslavement,
of apartheid bought
and sold embodied souls
From non-elite historic elders past
prayin' for reparations
restoring youngsters health wealth futures,
Home safe journeys, Earth reparations
kum ba here.
Categories:
reparation, africa, america, earth, health,
Form: Political Verse
1.Tolerating troubles, untroubling others
is right reparation.
2.Reparation suits deserving, if
others trying, futile.
3.By feeding renounced, others
ignored maintaining Tapas?
4.Destroying hostiles, protecting friends
possible by reparation.
5.Accomplishing desires of men
endeavors to Tapas.
6.Ascetics prefer self-reliance others
suffer by desire-nets.
7.As intense-fire brightens pure-gold
ascetics endure sufferings.
8.All beings worship who
possess pride less soul.
9.The power of penance
succeeds even death.
10.Many needy few rich
since non-ascetics more.
…………………………………
Dedicated to Thiruvalluvar(31B.C), the author in Tamil
Translated by S.Kandasamy, MUSIRI, TAMILNADU, INDIA
Published in poetrysoup.com on 13-12-13
Categories:
reparation, self,
Form: Couplet
Tell me, is it not pathetic
that we keep on drifting
away from our loved-ones as the
time beats us out.
You were in a marathon.
Did something go wrong ? Why,
why did you run faster than others
to become a sole survivor of the massacre ?
Life would want to know
your name, which you had wiped
out from every page of the book,
uncorrupting the painful cessation.
What was concealed
in between the words when you
went into the soul
to erase the bodyprint from the bed ?
There was nothing left unsaid.
The death said, I will not come.
Satish Verma
Categories:
reparation, art,
Form: ABC