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

December Surprise (Class struggle trumps Trail of Tricks)
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
17 Dec 2014
🖨️ Print Article

December Surprise (Class struggle trumps Trail of Tricks)

by BAR poet-in-residence Raymond Nat Turner

I. Historically High on the Hog

An occasional ALEC bill—
Cashin’ in on Capitalist Hill
Comfortable with wild charades
Playin’ 3 monkeys, 4 decades
Seein’ evil, zero jobs, AIDS…
Big galas, par-tays and parades
Keepin’ their eyes on the prize—
Board seat, sub-contract, franchise!
Coming off the plantation porch
Gud lawd movin’ ‘em to march?

II. Prelude to failed Trail of Tricks

K: “People didn’t see what they saw…”
S: “Don’t understand complex law?”
K: “So, ‘Sharlatanize’ their demands!”
S: “Keepin’ things in the state’s hands?”
K: “Like more funding of D-O-J…”
S: “Drivin’ young activists away?”
K: “More laws, special prosecutors…”
S: “Cameras, trainin’ for shooters?”
S: “Boss, I’m barely part of it…”
K: “Front it, cut the heart of it!”
S: “Tellin’ ‘em what time to hit town?”
K: “Yes, and which streets to march down”
S: “What gestures and speeches to make?”
K: “Videos and ‘selfys’ to take…”
S: “What hoodies and T-shirts to wear?”
K: “Who to put on and keep off air…”
S: “Signs to carry, slogans to shout?”
K: “Then to get their black asses out!”

III. Change Gonna Come…

At last, Reckoning Day arrived
For those who’ve shucked and jived—
Erupting below, wildcat strike
Seizing the time, their place and mic
With young, Black America’s sound
New meaning to ‘boots on the ground!’
Like a ‘surge,’ chum-rushing the stage
Declaring: The Ferguson Age!

In resistance, the new arose
Firing ‘niggas’,  ‘bitches’, ‘hoes!’
Beautiful, young, gifted and Black
Boldly unafraid to attack
Media-police state violence…
Breaking old, sinister silence—
Motion, growth, protracted ferment
Our young people growing insurgent—
Struggles rise, fall,  shift, come and go
Motions lift, stirrings ebb and flow
Revolutionary trend latent
Seeds of socialism…nascent…

Raymond Nat Turner can be contacted at Raymond (at) upsurgejazz.com
Raymond Nat Turner © 2014 All Rights Reserved

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


More Stories


  • Demonstrators in Niger
    Black Alliance for Peace Africa Team
    BAP’s Africa Team and U.S. Out of Africa Network Applauds Niger’s Move to Expel AFRICOM
    03 Apr 2024
    In another step toward the achievement of its national sovereignty, Niger recently declared the United State's military presence in the country illegal.
  • NY Panther 21
    Dhoruba bin-Wahad
    55th Anniversary of the NY Panther 21 Case
    03 Apr 2024
    The trial of the New York Panther 21 was the moment in the Black liberation movement that ushered in an era of intensified state repression and violence and increasingly aggressive tactics…
  • Uhuru
    Penny Hess
    Chairman Omali Yeshitela, Uhuru 3 put state on trial in fightback against bogus charges
    03 Apr 2024
    Three members of the Uhuru Movement were recently indicted on charges related to operating as "unregistered foreign agents." This attack has huge implications for free speech everywhere.
  • Bassirou Diomaye Faye
    Abayomi Azikiwe
    Senegal Elects New President
    03 Apr 2024
    After months of social unrest, the youngest leader in the West African state’s history will take office pledging a progressive program.
  • Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black and Brown Coalition for Palestine Meets with South African Foreign Minister
    29 Mar 2024
    We hear from a Black and Brown coalition in Chicago about their meeting with minister Naledi Pandor of South Africa and their mobilizations for solidarity with Palestine.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us