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

A Li'l Somethin' for Dick Gregory
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
31 Aug 2017
🖨️ Print Article
A Li'l Somethin' for Dick Gregory
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

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


More Stories


  • Alex Saab v. The Empire: The US Tries to Extradite a Venezuelan Diplomat for Securing Food for the Hungry
    Roger D. Harris
    Alex Saab v. The Empire: The US Tries to Extradite a Venezuelan Diplomat for Securing Food for the Hungry
    26 May 2021
    “By controlling the international financial system, Washington can demand banks in foreign countries to accept US restrictions or face sanctions themselves.”
  •  Black Agenda Radio for Week of May 24, 2021
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
    Black Agenda Radio for Week of May 24, 2021
    25 May 2021
    Community Control of Police Advocates Poised to Win in Chicago
  •  Black Rebellions Less Frequent, But Police Response More Violent Than in Earlier Decades
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
    Black Rebellions Less Frequent, But Police Response More Violent Than in Earlier Decades
    25 May 2021
    “The rebellions of the Sixties were not the same as we witnessed last summer,” said Elizabeth Hinton, author of “America On Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Re
  •  Corporate Philanthropy Erodes Black Lives Matter Movement
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
    Corporate Philanthropy Erodes Black Lives Matter Movement
    25 May 2021
    Oppressed communities and political movements need money, but “I don’t believe that corporations can become partners” in people’s liberation, said Imani Wadud, a doctoral student a
  •  Racial Capitalism is the Kind We’ve Got, and Must Defeat
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
    Racial Capitalism is the Kind We’ve Got, and Must Defeat
    25 May 2021
    The issues of race and class are intertwined, and “we must fight against them simultaneously rather than trying to decide if racial or class exploitation came first,” said Justin Leroy
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us