with sealed testimony
from the creator we were adorned
in a world without shape
devoid of form
with blessings received
and libations poured
continents we ruled
oceans we explored
with courage under fire
we observed the pastora de lima
slave ship in ocean moored
and watched as our families
were stacked and stored
with reserves from our anscestors
despite heartbreak and hell
our black souls remain pure
refusing to die
when other races could take no more
and that is why
i believe in me
when passages were omitted
in the middle of americas history book
we planted our feet firmly
though our african foundations were shook
when our diseased ridden kin
were thrown overboard to be food
for the trailing sharks
we prayed that their brave souls
enter the light though our portal was dark
when toussaint louverture
a slave
lead a successful rebeiion against the french
our march towards freedom though slow
moved inch by inch
when king cotton ruled the south
and in the carribean we harvested sugar cane
we prayed god would prevail
sang hymns when bloodhounds
were on our trail
and left an oral legacy for griots
to tell our tale
and that is why
i believe in us
with americas separate but equal attempts
to halt our pace
and during the civil rights movement
when we sat at lunch counters
and were spat in the face
we refused to give up
and remained in the race
with the bombing of a church in alabama
and 4 little girls were killed
when cheney
goodman
and schwerner were abducted against their will
we restrained our anger
and prayed to i am
sobbing quietly at the girls funeral
and when the 3 civil rights workers
were found buried in a missisippi earthen dam
with malcolm and martin
assasinated 3 years apart
and we lost two inspirational voices
and the wisdom they impart
it broke our collective hearts
as a diaspora
indeed did we suffer
but we were reborn as black panthers
meaner and rougher
with brothers coming back from vietnam
to an america where no veteran felt
he or she belonged
marvin gaye asked whats happening brother
whats going on
and that is why
i believe in me
when reaganomics destroyed
the inner city community
and a new drug lexicon was introduced
with impunity
we looked back
looked within
and shouted this is not our end
we have survived hell before
and dammit we will do it again
when inner city youth were restless
dying to impress
we created a movement
based on music
breakdancing
and dress
introduced america to another black creation on tap
the birth of hip hop
the evolution of rap
when towers fell in new york
and america was in search of heroes
we knew all too well of heroism
for 450 years we had been the victims
of whilte american terrorism
when president barak obama
took the presidential oath
our ansestors cried tears of happiness
for finally we broke bread with america
and no longer had to wait for the crumbs
from the loaf
and that is why
i believe in us
i stand before you tonight
defiant
dignified
a beautiful black alpha male
destined for royalty
for to the heavens i shout proudly
black people
i believe in us
i believe in you
i bleieve
in
me

All Poetry by D.Greaves/Darwin Greaves by D.Greaves-Darwin Greaves is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at dgreaves.posterous.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://dgreaves.posterous.com/pages/dgreaves-tos