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

I Celebrate Red Roses of Resistance
BAR Poet-in-Residence Raymond Nat Turner
30 Oct 2019
🖨️ Print Article
I Celebrate Red Roses of Resistance
I Celebrate Red Roses of Resistance

San Francisco singer sitting in a Manhattan
restaurant, ringlets trickling down ‘round
Angelic paper bag brown face, like sweat
gathering on her glass of white wine.
Her fries stand at attention, saluting
from stainless steel cylinder. Bold white 
letters emblazon her tight-fitting black tee-shirt:

             “IMPEACH
THE MOTHERFUCKER!”

I celebrate red roses of resistance—
tiniest spark in the dark…
bumper sticker, slogan, soundbite;
tiny tussle, or Good Fight. I rejoice at
friction—contradiction—more beautiful 
than perfect…Embryonic class struggle…
Obeying revolution’s laws written in Russian,
Arabic, Creole, Chinese, Spanish, Farsi, French,
English and oceans of blood over Africa, Asia and 
the Americas.
I celebrate them like
I celebrate red roses of resistance—
that pierced cracker Cotton Curtain
claims, “Our nigras were fine until
the Jews started coming down from
New York and stirring them up…”

I celebrate red roses of resistance—
Marching through melting ice, burning forests,
into teargas storms, truncheons, torture and its
elastic time…

I celebrate red roses of resistance—
Revolting warehouse workers, janitors,
truck drivers, bus drivers, carpenters.
Rebelling rubber, steel, auto, longshore,
fast food workers! Resisting teachers, 
nurses, train operators, youth and students!

I celebrate red roses of resistance—
blooming behind bars, springing up from
solitary, baring concertina wire thorns!
Resistance rallying ‘round time clocks, water
coolers, rising from rivers, bursting forth from 
fertile football fields!
Resistance rearing its beautiful head 
in classrooms, concert halls, halls of 
congress, pews, pulpits, side streets, 
back alleys—the planet’s unlikeliest 
nooks and crannies!

I celebrate red roses of resistance—
sprinkling spring water and compost,
grown folks’ faith in the masses; love 
of the people—the 99%—making messy

History…

© 2019. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

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

COMMENTS?

Please join the conversation on Black Agenda Report's Facebook page at http://facebook.com/blackagendareport

Or, you can comment by emailing us at comments@blackagendareport.com

Impeachment

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


Related Stories

Ukrainian Roulette: The “Ukrainegate” Gamble
Enzo Calandra
Ukrainian Roulette: The “Ukrainegate” Gamble
04 December 2019
Liberals have enlisted the CIA to repudiate a clearly obscene and grotesque president because they themselves are obscene and grotesque in many of
Freedom Rider: The Ukrainegate Farce
Margaret Kimberley , BAR editor and senior columnist
Freedom Rider: The Ukrainegate Farce
20 November 2019
The Democrats are hoping that Ukrainegate will succeed where Russiagate failed and they can win the presidency without helping their voters.
Impeachment and the Long Road to a Democratic Party Defeat in 2020
Danny Haiphong , BAR contributor
Impeachment and the Long Road to a Democratic Party Defeat in 2020
09 October 2019
Impeachment helps the Democratic Party catch a breath of temporary relief from subjects such as Medicare for All or climate catastrophe.
Impeachment Watch
Ann Garrison , BAR contributor
Impeachment Watch
09 October 2019
In their crusade to get Trump and distract from their own corruption, the Democrats have moved on from Russiagate to an impeachment inquiry over “U
Impeachable Boss Tweet
BAR Poet-in-Residence Raymond Nat Turner
Impeachable Boss Tweet
09 October 2019
in the swamp, downstream  not far from the White Supreme Court and Capitalist Hill,

More Stories


  • Number of Police Killings in 2022 Outpace 2021
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Number of Police Killings in 2022 Outpace 2021
    10 Jun 2022
    Police killings continue at a rate of more than 1,000 per year in the U.S., with 2022 numbers outpacing those of 2021. Sam Simyangwe of Mapping Police Violence provides analysis of the death toll and…
  • Congo Attacked by U.S. Client States and Neo-Colonial Politics
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Congo Attacked by U.S. Client States and Neo-Colonial Politics
    10 Jun 2022
    The Democratic Republic of Congo lives under threat of attack from neighboring U.S. client states Rwanda and Uganda. Its neo-colonial leadership acts on the direction of Washington and Europe.…
  • Why good guys with guns flunk out (In schools near you)
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Why good guys with guns flunk out (In schools near you)
    10 Jun 2022
                                                           …
  • U.S. Effort to Hurt Russia Undermines Itself and the World
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    U.S. Effort to Hurt Russia Undermines Itself and the World
    08 Jun 2022
    The U.S. drive to dominate creates self-inflicted wounds and self-imposed crises. It also creates suffering around the world with only the most servile vassal states willing to do what…
  • For the Peoples of our Region, the Failure of Biden’s Summit of the Americas Would be a Welcome Event
    ​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
    For the Peoples of our Region, the Failure of Biden’s Summit of the Americas Would be a Welcome Event
    08 Jun 2022
    The Summit of the Americas is not the property of the host nation. The U.S. has no right to exclude, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, but has done so in disregard of their sovereignty. The U.S. is not…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us