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 Poet's Proposal for DT's Inauguration
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
10 Jan 2017
šŸ–Øļø Print Article

by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner

Word is that president-elect Donald Trump still has performance openings for next week's inaugural. In the selfless and noble spirit of public service, our poet kindly offers his own services, and anxiously awaits a response from Rump tower.

A Poet's Proposal for DT's Inauguration

by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner

Bet you wonderin’ how I knew

Few are willin’ to perform for you?

I heard it through the grapevine

Also on TV, radio and online…

I ain’t A-list—

F-list, maybe?

Not a seven-figga n**** or War House Hoet in the

Retinue the Drone Ranger plays like plastic kazoos—

Yet, I’m willing to serve, sir:

Call it Patriot Act III!

Willing to audition, practice, rehearse—gratis—

get on the back of a Greyhound bus, brown bag,

greasy fried chicken, like the good ol’ days…

Apply a plastic smile, applaud on cue, shuffle, shake hands with

Strong-arm Williams, Sheriff Stephen Judas Clarke, Thom-ass

Clarence, and other warlike Bassackwards Tribal leaders

I’m willing to get William Withers with you, sir:

It’s my appointed duty

To let you use me

Get me in a crowd of right-wing racists and act real rude to me—

ā€˜Cause I wanna spread the news:

That if it trends this good gettin’ used

Come on, use me ā€˜til you use me up—

My fifteen-minutes of FLAME!!

Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performance artist. Find more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.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


  • Arturo Dominguez
    The US Plan To Pillage Latin America Is Becoming Clearer
    29 Oct 2025
    Trump Administration officials have frequently invoked the Monroe Doctrine, explaining the aggression toward Latin America.
  • Steve Salaita
    Palestine and the Making of a New New World
    29 Oct 2025
    The liberation of Palestine is, above all, a world-building project.
  • Rodrigo DurĆ£o Coelho
    15 million Venezuelans enlist to defend their country amid U.S. threats, says ex-diplomat Carlos Ron
    29 Oct 2025
    He stresses, however, that the atmosphere is not one of panic despite the possibility of military aggression.
  • Pablo Meriguet
    Cuba denounces Trump admin pressuring countries to change their vote against the 62-year US blockade
    29 Oct 2025
    The Cuban foreign minister has stated that, in addition to diplomatic pressure, intimidation has been exerted on certain countries that condemn the economic blockade that Washington has maintained on…
  • Jemima Pierre and Mark Lamont Hill
    Jemima Pierre, BAR Editor and Contributor
    'Leave us alone': Scholar Jemima Pierre on ending Haiti’s foreign occupation
    29 Oct 2025
    As foreign troops, private contractors, and international powers tighten their grip on Haiti, the country is facing one of the worst crises in its modern history. But who is really to blame? On…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us