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

SNAP elections?
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
04 Sep 2024
🖨️ Print Article
Woman in grocery store

Pushing rattling shopping carts down supermarket aisles
They came up empty searching for okra, collard
Greens, and black-eyed peas. Hunting 50lb. bags of
Beans, rice— and tons of tortillas— Hecho de mano …

Rolling empty shopping carts down deserted ‘discount’
Market aisles, they came craving ice cream and fig bars—
Not Black Hawk Helicopters, Predator Drones and Hi-Mars!
They came for crackers and cheese—not an eradicated disease!

Pushing streamlined shopping carts down barren
Supermarket aisles they came looking to load
Paper towels and toilet tissue … Not 2,000 lb.
Bombs—                    busting babies and budgets!

Rolling empty shopping carts down ghostly ‘discount’
Market aisles— sticker shocked—Hellfire Missiles
$110,000 a pop! Frozen F-16s won’t fit in their freezers! And
Salads of shrapnel-shredded flesh of children aren’t appetizing …

Angry stomachs growling—faces questioning—
“When will we see SNAP elections?
Elections of sticker-shocked/check writer blocked citizens
Receiving SNAP?

Elections of citizen crusaders wrestling price-gougers each
Month … And somehow surviving …          Citizen crusaders
Feeding gargantuan grandchildren—with mothers of all appetites—
As grifters drop MOAB: Mother Of All Bombs for murderous sport!

“When will we see SNAP elections—with all their imperfections—
Electing citizen crusaders receiving SNAP? Firing bipartisan chefs
Shouting, “Ain’t nothin cookin here but hot Hunger; War; Fascism—
MAGAt-Microwave-style—or Democrat Crockpot-style: Order up!”

 

(SNAP refers to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)

Š 2024. 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.

Working Class
Inflation
Elections
War and Empire

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
Short word problems: do the math
03 June 2026
Work these word problems. Work them as if your lives depend onYOUR correct answers.YOUR solutions … Because they do:
John Parker
Socialist candidate John Parker: Abolish ICE and police, fund people’s needs
22 April 2026
Following is a recent campaign meeting talk by socialist congressional candidate John Parker.
Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
BAR Book Forum: Zophia Edwards’ Book, “Fueling Development”
01 April 2026
In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
Donald Trump and the Truth About Robert Mueller
25 March 2026
Donald Trump is not lying about Robert Mueller.
Gary Wilson
Dow 50,000 — and workers selling blood
18 February 2026
The Dow Jones hit 50,000, yet 200,000 people a day are selling their blood plasma to survive.
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Day 40-something pedophile-protecting government shutdown
19 November 2025
Day 40-something of pedophile-Protecting-government shutdown —Snapshot of resistance revealed our unwillingness to 
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Tuesday night’s tiny glimpse of what The People really want
12 November 2025
“Universal suffrage is thus the gauge of the maturity of the working class.
Jon Jeter
Stagflation Returns, Shining a Spotlight on the Federal Reserve’s War on the Working Class
06 August 2025
History exposes the Fed's inflation fight for what it truly is: a decades-long class war waged against working people under the guise of moneta
Jon Jeter
From Cadillac-Driving Welfare Queens to Xbox-Playing Slackers, the Oligarchs Vilify Others for Their Own Larceny
09 July 2025
America’s ruling class keeps inventing new boogeymen to disguise its endless war on workers, while wealth flows upward and capitalism’s collaps
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Did New Yorkers say, No Mo Cuomo; No Mo Turkey Trot with Papa Cop?
02 July 2025
Did New Yorkers say, No Mo Cuomo;

More Stories


  • BAR Radio Logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio December 5, 2025
    05 Dec 2025
    In this week’s segment, we hear about events in the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau, a disputed election, and a so-called coup that was actually carried out on behalf of the president. But first…
  • Margaret Kimberley and Jamarl Thomas
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    China Cannot Be Contained
    05 Dec 2025
    Margaret Kimberley was a guest on the Jamarl Thomas YouTube Channel. We present excerpts of the discussion of her contribution to the new anthology China Changes Everything. Her chapter is entitled "…
  • Guinea Bissau
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Guinea-Bissau Coup Protects Its Neo-Liberal State
    05 Dec 2025
    The West African nation of Guinea-Bissau recently experienced an aborted electoral process followed by what was called a coup d’etat. But the reality differs from the narrative presented by the neo-…
  • Ajamu on Reason2Resist
    ​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist , Dimitri Lascaris
    US Attack On Venezuela Would Cause 'Chaos' In The Region w/ Ajamu Baraka
    03 Dec 2025
    Ajamu Baraka, BAR Editor and Columnist, joins Dimitri Lascaris to discuss the potential US attack on Venezuela and its regional impact. The conversation explores the legality and morality of recent…
  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    The Double Tap on Venezuela
    03 Dec 2025
    U.S. sanctions, violence, threats, and theft are war crimes waged against Venezuela for decades. A scandal about a “double tap” killing should not be the focus of attention.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us