Congratulations to my people
you are no longer the dark threat
you once were
used-to-be owners of square houses in the 'burbs dreamt of you
mounting
an offensive on their pink daughters
ina-Othello stylie,
built white picket fences around
each and every one of them
forcing same daughter
(and son)
to run downtown
or spin 'round black disk
for night-faced men
holding brass to their faces
doing for us what only they
could do: yelling
'Blow Myles. Blow Byrd. Blow.'
Congratulations to my people
you are no longer the dark ignorance
you once were
used-to-be they would line up with signs
saying keep that N-word hole outa dis school
'cause they all knew about the Black hole of ignorance
so much white light squeezed to scorn
by your gravity
Praise be due 'cause in the belly of the beast
Rico, Juan and Maria pass you in numbers but not in cash
relieving you of the burden of being the brown-down-under
Spanish becomes official language of 'hanging in the hood'
Ebonics moves one step closer to the classics.
Today a newly decorated Othello
tells tales to excite a passion
of bombs
'But don't be fooled by the skin that he got
this ain't no, no brother from the block'
And when all have died there'll be two mad gods
grinning across a desert mountain
Go ask Pharaoh if you don't know
who was on the brown side
in apartheid
Oh Moses while you're on the mountain
burn the bush
and let the people go.
Spoken Word Performance 2003