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

It Is Better To Give Than To Receive
Bill Quigley
10 Sep 2008
🖨️ Print Article

It
Is Better To Give Than To Receive

by Kemet Mawakana

To hear this original work performed by the Seven Foot Poet, click the flash player below

{mp3}poetry/1007ft_better_2_give{/mp3}

You
gave me your name

     And
I took it.

You
gave me your number

     And
I took it.

You
gave me your friendship

     And
I took it.

You
gave me your trust

     And
I took it.

You
gave me your love

     And
I took it.

You
gave me your self

     And
I took it.

You
gave me the world

     And
I took it.

I
finally am ready to give – and you can’t take it anymore.

By
Kemit Mawakana (aka The Seven-Foot Poet)

Peace
(when appropriate) War (when necessary)

Copyright
1996.

Kemit
Mawakana (aka “The Seven-Foot Poet”) is a highly acclaimed
spoken-word artist, and has published two books
A
. . . Z . . . Infinity

and
Crucifixion
of My Soul
.
The collective body of his works presented weekly in BAR are in
tribute to Listervelt Middleton, Dr. John Henrik Clarke, and “For
The People”. Currently, he is a facilitator at AYA Educational
Institute (
www.ayaed.com)
and can be reached at
sevenfootpoet@gmail.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 June 27, 2025
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio June 27, 2025
    27 Jun 2025
    In this week’s segment we hear about a peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.
  • Gerald Horne
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Gerald Horne Discusses His Book "The Capital of Slavery: Washington DC 1800 - 1865"
    27 Jun 2025
    Dr. Gerald Horne is an author and historian who currently holds the John J. and Rebecca Moores Chair of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston. Dr. Horne is a prolific…
  • Peace treaty signing
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Congo and Rwanda Agreement Will Benefit the West at the Expense of the Congolese People
    27 Jun 2025
    Maurice Carney is the Executive Director of Friends of the Congo. He joins us from Washington to discuss the ongoing crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda’s continued intervention…
  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    War Propaganda, State Controlled Media, and the End of African Stream
    25 Jun 2025
    African Stream's Pan-African, anti-imperialist journalistic perspectives made it the target of a state that colludes with corporate media to spread war propaganda.
  • Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    POEM: The Beirut Jokebook, June Jordan, 1982
    25 Jun 2025
    “What did the Arab lady say to the Israeli tank?”
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us