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

For Sistar Kiilu Nyasha: Freedom Is A Constant Struggle…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
19 Apr 2018
Kiilu Nyasha
Comrade Kiilu Nyasha

Never thought I’d see
the day that I’d pray
for: Fake News;
Never thought I’d see
the day that I’d pray
for: Alternative Facts
from Boss Tweet— pray that
scribblers screwed up tenses
scribbling ‘bout a constant struggler—
3-time loser in capitalist Amerikkka:
Disabled; Black and Woman— Panther to the core,
Ida B-child soldier speaking, writing in real time—
Mentoring men and women for battlefront lives
worth living…
Flying warrior woman kites coded in humanity
through concertina censorship; smuggling
Love and hope between bars, amplifying voices…

Maybe I’m selfish and don’t wanna let go—
don’t wanna lose the grace, the smile
Sweetly staunch as principles behind it?
Maybe I’m lazy and don’t wanna lift her
Load, clicking, guiding, electric silence…
whizzing down steep hills, in swift traffic like
little cablecars that climb half way to the stars?

Maybe her meeting after meeting, march after march,
demonstration after demonstration, decade after decade
Shamed my temporarily-abled body to another level?
Or, maybe I’m afraid of losing the constant struggler—
the long distance runner— reminding me: WE WILL WIN?

© 2018. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Our poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed performing artist. You can find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.

 

Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Kiilu Nyasha from proj-ect PRO:JECT on Vimeo.

poetry

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


Related Stories

Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
A few lines for the Poet Ojenke...
21 May 2025
RIP: Rise I
Another June 1
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Another June 1
07 June 2023
                                                                                              Another June 1  
BAR Book Forum: Jon Jon Moore’s “The Calling: Poems”
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Jon Jon Moore’s “The Calling: Poems”
16 February 2022
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
Our ‘democracy’
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Our ‘democracy’
23 July 2021
Shangri-La—untaxed, socially-distanced champagne- caviar, Cayman Island, yacht crowds who
Pigment of your Imagination: Black magic mascots, props and sops?
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Pigment of your Imagination: Black magic mascots, props and sops?
15 July 2021
Could the pigment of your imagination cause Black magic mascots, props, sops— Black faces in high places—
A known known…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
A known known…
08 July 2021
“…there are known knowns. There are things we know that we know. There are known
Twerkers of the World you might…(Or when they go low we get high?)
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Twerkers of the World you might…(Or when they go low we get high?)
01 July 2021
“History repeats itself,  first as tragedy, second as farce.” —Karl Marx
The Town Crier’s Big Tooth Fund (For Drs. Rosenthal, Sapir and Ferdowsi)
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
The Town Crier’s Big Tooth Fund (For Drs. Rosenthal, Sapir and Ferdowsi)
23 June 2021
"From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs…” —Karl Marx
The Town Crier’s List of Who’s Who in the capitalist state machine
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
The Town Crier’s List of Who’s Who in the capitalist state machine
16 June 2021
“Ain’t no power like the power of the people— ‘cause the power of the people don’t stop!” bouncing 
Ladee Blu: Another Monroe Doctrine delivery system 
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Ladee Blu: Another Monroe Doctrine delivery system 
09 June 2021
Raytheon’s craven raven Co-signing for mass murder: “Mowing the grass…” Now… Ladee Blu on a fool’s errand dis-

More Stories


  • Community Movement Builders - Newark
    CMB Newark Statement on the Delaney Hall Uprising
    18 Jun 2025
    When oppression becomes unbearable, resistance erupts. The uprising at Delaney Hall exposes the brutality of immigrant detention and the power of collective defiance.
  • Sean Matthews
    Arab Officials Say There is a Strong Likelihood US Will 'Directly' Join Israel in Attacking Iran
    18 Jun 2025
    Three informed Arab officials, in touch with both the US and Iran, tell Middle East Eye that the White House appears to be moving closer to 'backing up' Israel.
  • Palestine Chronicle Staff
    Aid Queue Massacres Continue in Gaza as UN Warns of Mass Starvation
    18 Jun 2025
    Israeli occupation forces shot and killed several Palestinians on Sunday morning across various regions of the Gaza Strip, as the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate.
  • Ajamu Baraka
    ​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist , Garland Nixon
    US Imperialism Has Set the Middle East on Fire
    18 Jun 2025
    Ajamu Baraka, Black Agenda Report Editor and Columnist, joins Garland Nixon to discuss Israel's aggression in West Asia and the ongoing genocide in Palestine.
  • BAR Radio Logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio June 13, 2025
    13 Jun 2025
    In this week’s segment, we hear about how a tornado impacted the Black community of St. Louis, which already suffered as a result of decades of destructive public policy. But first, we discuss…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us