A SONNET TO BLACK AWARENESS

CATEGORY

My fellow African Americans,

This is not Stockholm and we are free;

Let’s not be victims of our land’s plans

To make us self-killers of you and me:-

Here we are murdering each other—

Thinking there will be no punishment

For killing a sister or brother—

Unaware of the death wish intent.

We’re hooked on a different syndrome;

One that is caused by back oppression:-

Its name is the Oppressor Syndrome,

And increases our self-regression.

With less, our ancestors learned to survive;

With more, let’s be aware and keep hope alive.