A Li'l Somethin' for Dick Gregory
A Li'l Somethin' for Dick Gregory
by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner
Our white-bearded cannon
fell silent—
The day became grayer…
I know, I know, I know, I know…
He was my Mom’s favorite funnyman—
She bought his books, his vinyl
Speaking to her like Malcolm
(who she shared Turkish Coffee
with on his trips west, fishing for men)
I remember his mantra
He chanted like a Buddhist Priest:
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
Doubling us over,
splitting our sides, shaking our cores…
I remember his mantra
He chanted like a Buddhist Priest:
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
Piercing steel veils with X-ray vision
puncturing absurdities with barbed tongue—
Soul-ar powered bullshit detector
administering smell tests
I remember his mantra
He chanted like a Buddhist Priest:
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
“You youngsters got a lotta work to do…”
while coming as close as we’ve come to
Having a Super Hero
putting his body
On the line running,
Marching, fasting, speaking,
Teaching us to follow
the money where the
bodies are buried…
Raymond Nat Turner © 2017 All Right Reserved
Trump begins his term delivering on promises, but compromised and colluding democrats have ready excuses for betraying their voters.
The late Stuart Hall cautions us to be wary of turning to historical precedent without understanding the specific conjunctures of power that characterize the rise of the right.
Rwandan colonization of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) proceeds apace.
On Sunday, January 19th, 2025, the Haiti/Americas Team of the Black Alliance for Peace hosted its first webinar of the year, “Combatting Imperialism, Defending Sovereignty: Zone of Peace in Haiti and…
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's decade as the leader of the Liberal Party has come to an abrupt and embarrassing halt. His term as PM is marked with unabashed servitude to U.S. interests,…
