Mr. Africa Poetry Lounge!

I Have


Have you ever seen death in its most horrific form?……
I have!
Have you see a baby on crack before it's ever born?…..
I have!
What about witnessing a crack fiend shooting heroin in the veins in his feet?..
I have!
Or your closest kin full of bullet holes left dead in the street?…..
I have!
I've seen allot, but what scares me the most is that
I haven't seen it all,
how much will I see before I take my last fall, on my knees, begging the
Lord please, help these young brotha's that call themselves "G's".
And the sista that stands on the corner trickin for a dollar,
and has the nerve to get mad when I pass by and don't holla!
We always blame the "White Man" for our minority rating,
It's not his fault, although he helps by participating.
Like small inked laws that came with desegregation,
Or his promising lies for reparation.
When will a ghetto child get a brake?
Hit the lotto, nice car, small cabin by the lake.
Probably not,
but we can almost be certain to witness the sight or sound of a gunshot.
Still searchin for a better way,
and hope that tomorrow's sun brings a brighter ray!
But if not, we understand,
because we have always struggled in this cold hearted land.
I was born into the race of a dying breed,
so my needs should be obvious, and transparent,
but yet my mother played the role of both parents!
The issues we speak of are so defeasible,
but nothing changes because we are labeled as unpleasible!
So when someone walks up to me and says," You know, I have
never thought about how hard and painful it is to be BLACK."
I just reply with a simple smile and think to myself………..
I HAVE!!!

Written by Osmond L. Oliver Jr.

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Mr. Africa Poetry Lounge