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

DEI in the sky
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
05 Feb 2025
🖨️ Print Article
Donald Trump

“Fascism, by its very nature, must be
anti-rationale and anti-humane.”

                              â€”I.F. Stone

Not even semiautomatic “thoughts and prayers”
Fired, as black boxes, and burned bodies of
Beloveds are fished from icy waters of the
Potomac … And notification of next of kin trudges on  â€¦

Strong embraces … for bloodshot eyes?
Compassionate hugs leaning into shattered hearts? 
Comforting words … soothing souls in shock?
Humble head bowed in prayer with parents?

None of this. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. Bupkis.
From the reigning Champions of Cruelty. Nothing.
Nada. Zilch. Zero. Bupkis from moneyed men with
Empty, mustard seed-sized hatred-filled hearts …

Nothing, except an absurd salad of words served 
Piping hot on high fructose corn syrup talking points;
And fermented elephant excrement. Nothing, except
Leftovers from tattered menus mimicking ancient agendas …

Evidence? Commonsense!
Had to be DEI—in the sky …
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion—
Oh, my!
Darkies  flying Blackhawks in
Civilian sky!

Must’ve been the Blackhawk Helicopter—
Or, was it an Apache? Dumb-assed Indians!
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Must’ve been monkey-ass Soul Plane Snoop Dogg
Pilots flying civilian aircraft into military airspace?
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Must’ve been woke, chicken wing Tuskegee
Airmen?    Never could fly like white pilots!
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Evidence? Commonsense!
Had to be DEI—in the sky …
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion—
Oh, my!
Darkies  flying Blackhawks in
Civilian sky!

Must’ve been Mexican and Haitian pilots—
Eating the dogs instead of flying the plane?
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Must’ve been transgender air traffic controllers—
Switching off radar for Gay-dar?
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Reagan knew! Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!
Fired lazy-assed DEI air traffic controllers—
For the best and brightest—most and whitest!

Must’ve been Black flight attendants filing their nails,
Instead of calmly telling passengers, “We’re gonna die …”
Wasn’t colorblind—merit-based—
Best and brightest—most and whitest!

Evidence? Commonsense!
Had to be DEI—in the sky …
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion—
Oh, my!
Darkies  flying Blackhawks in
Civilian sky!

Negroes blew up two very fine Boeing Max jets! 
And blew the door off another over the Northwest—
Must’ve been a Black flight attendant opening the door 
In flight?

© 2025. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.
 

Raymond Nat Turner is a NYC poet; BAR's Poet-in-Residence; and founder/co-leader of the jazz-poetry ensemble UpSurge!NYC. You can Vote for his work at GoFundMe and PayPal.

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


More Stories


  • ​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
    Breaking the Silence Revisited: Gaza, Venezuela, and the Enduring Relevance of Dr. King’s Critique of Empire
    14 Jan 2026
    The annual ritual of sanitizing Martin Luther King Jr. serves to obscure his radical anti-war politics, which are urgently needed to challenge U.S. imperialism.
  • Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    ESSAY: Autocracy in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Eric D. Walrond, 1923
    14 Jan 2026
    “[T]he United States on March 31, 1917,...acquired the three Danish West Indian isles…subsequently rechristened “the Virgin Islands of the United States.” 
  • Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    The Bolivarian Legacy, from Hugo Chávez to Nicolás Maduro
    14 Jan 2026
    Attorney Dan Kovalik is an attorney representing Colombian President Gustavo Petro. He is also author of The Plot to Overthrow Venezuela: How the US Is Orchestrating a Coup for Oil. Skyhorse…
  • Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Spinning Half-truth straw into big lie gold…
    14 Jan 2026
    "Spinning Half-truth straw into big lie gold…" is the latest from BAR's Poet-in-Residence.
  • Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright
    The Domestic Global South and The Need for Climate and Environmental Internationalism
    14 Jan 2026
    True environmental liberation demands south-to-south solidarity against racial capitalism, linking the struggles of oppressed communities from Palestine to Louisiana under a shared framework of…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us