Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire
  • omnibus

For Fancy Miss Nancy
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
19 Dec 2018
🖨️ Print Article
Nancy Sue Wilson 1937-2018
Nancy Sue Wilson 1937-2018

Guess who I saw
today, black and white photo,
Marching, Montgomery from
Selma, ‘65?

Guess who I saw
at my high school swingin’ the
Trio; urging us to stay in school?

Guess who I,
was privileged to sequence
a later CD for, late one night?

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
put the purr in whisper, with a sultry
Sound that could make subpoenas seem sensuous

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
Appeared, sparkling, at the end of the
golden era—looking as good as she sounded—
Her face should grace
Buckeye State flags emblazoned
“There will never be another you…”

…and you don’t know, you don’t know how
Glad I am that she
Hovered earth— stunning hummingbird,
gorgeous humanitarian, giving the greatest
performance of her life, moments I loitered—
not seizing the time and asking, “When did
You leave heaven?”
Though, I think it was maybe ’37? I know she’s

Free Again…

© 2018. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performing artist. You can find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


More Stories


  • Black Agenda Radio
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio March 14, 2025
    14 Mar 2025
    In this week’s segment, we discuss new foreign policy towards Ukraine and why the Trump administration hopes to further US interests by departing not only from the Biden administration but from…
  • Rodrigo Duterte
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Ajamu Baraka on Human Rights: ICC for Duterte but Not For Netanyahu
    14 Mar 2025
    Rodrigo Duterte, former president of the Philippines, is now in the Hague, after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant charging him with crimes committed during his six years…
  • Donald Trump and Zelensky
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Gerald Horne Analyzes Trump's Ukraine Policy
    14 Mar 2025
    Dr. Gerald Horne is an author and historian currently holding the John J. and Rebecca Moores Chair of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston. Dr. Horne is a prolific author…
  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Mahmoud Khalil and the Criminalization of Anti-Zionism
    12 Mar 2025
    The influence of apartheid Israel extends all over the world. Its supporters demand that anyone expressing anti-zionist viewpoints be ostracized, harassed, or arrested. Now, zionists have added…
  • Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    Essay: The Caucasian Problem, George S. Schuyler, 1944
    12 Mar 2025
    “While we may dismiss the concept of a Negro problem as a valuable dividend-paying fiction, it is clear that the Caucasian problem is painfully real and practically universal.”
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us