Featured Poem of the Week: “The Art Exhibit” by Tyree Jackson

In this image,

you cannot see,

that I am

damaged, discriminated, stereotyped, racially profiled,

shot at, convicted, and thrown behind bars;

but most of all, I am a victim.

But who can we blame for the burdens I have told?

I am a man of color,

my mother’s son,

now behold.

So it is through this image,

and in my world, a story unfolds.

As I stare voiceless, my lips sealed closed

at the injustices that plague me, consume me

to eventually poison me, and my people.

So stare into my eyes, and tell me what you see?

am I a human being,

or just some violent black offspring?

Who is up to no good,

many police officers would say.

Because,

I am a drug dealer,

woman beater,

rapist

a bastard child

or some dangerous

gang member

who can’t speak proper

and initiates fights.

And it is I,

who strikes fear in

white people’s hearts, because

I’m just another felon.

So I am an uneducated,

unemployed,

black hoodlum,

a by-product from

living my entire life

on the streets.

But most of all, I am

bagged and tagged,

to be buried six-feet deep.

~

About the Author: 

Tyree Jackson is a poet and activist.  He resides in Bronx, NY.

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Spread the poetry revolution by clicking the image to become a fan on Facebook. 

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Ayvaunn Penn is an award-winning writer and the author of Ephemeral Moments, a book of poetry and short stories from the Christian perspective, available on Amazon.com in the fall of 2013. She is also the founder of Your Black Poets. To receive Ayvaunn’s daily Bible devotionals by email, click here. Click to follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Featured Poem of the Week: “The Trophy Wife” by Eli Soul

She’s sitting, hoping –

almost motionless.

Her lover’s not home;

she’s losing focusness.

Maybe a drink, she thinks,

will ease the pain.

The tipsiness relieves stress temporarily,

but peace is not gained.

She acknowledges his reign,

and his fame bracing towns.

How he parades her beauty,

but at the house she’s found –

slumped in a chair,

watching movie after movie.

Truly she’s a trophy wife,

but only collecting dust.

The description of her base praises her dreams,

and well-placed on the shelf,

supposedly, never to be discovered.

No, she won’t be suckered.

She’s being polished,

and holds a simple glow about her –

she’s always being modest.

Not many comes close to hearing her story.

They would be bothered.

They won’t hear her holler

or even her silent whimpers.

These are only a chosen few

that can stir the embers that can cause the flame

that gives her her release

from the low, setting pedestal she stands.

Somewhere writing her gripping tale –

well, she plans on.

This is definitely a trophy wife

that God has got His hands on…

soon to give her life.

~

About the Author: 

 

Eli Soul was born, Billy Elijah Chandler, in Kingstree, SC.  The gift of writing started for Eli at an early age. At first, it was birthed in stories that he would write in elementary school that showed his colorful and vivid imagination. His writing then progressed, and at the age of 8 he began writing poems.  Eli did not write Christian music until after being drawn by God. That was the turning point to the lyrical content of his music – getting to know Christ. The story lines became stronger and more impactful. Finally leading him to what he was chosen to do in life; minister through poetry and music.

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Spread the poetry revolution by clicking the image to become a fan on Facebook. 

~

Ayvaunn Penn is an award-winning writer and the author of Ephemeral Moments, a book of poetry and short stories from the Christian perspective, available on Amazon.com in the fall of 2013. She is also the founder of Your Black Poets. To receive Ayvaunn’s daily Bible devotionals by email, click here. Click to follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Featured Poem of the Week: “Words” by Barbara J

Not a tone of uncertainty
or a sting of calamity
or a shriek of ambiguity
lives to dispel the makeup of words
No endangered emotion
exists in our language of devotion
as if to deny the completion
of unrehearsed patterns of words
Sometimes stable, but quite often disheveled
spurs of unexpected moments gather
in alignment to provoke and condone
a rebirth of unknowns
or a hindrance to our own
kinds of things as these words
A build-up for a breakdown
and most favored when upside down
Gifts of life, thoughts of wonder–
all an exchange for our heart’s exposure
To receive, to grieve, to laugh
controlled by memories and lost by the untapped
Words imply, they deny, they revive
Yet I relish every syllable like short breaths of air
As they move in rhythmic shapes and sounds
Some distant, others near
Words, like simplicity or complex consumed in time
yet never unlearned even as we discover
that sticks and stones are fine and dandy
but words are tools that come in handy

~

About the author:

My name is Barbara J from Miami, FL, now living in Los Angeles. I’m a performer and writer of three books of poetry, and host of Fearless Fridays Open Mic in Echo Park.

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Spread the poetry revolution by clicking the image to become a fan on Facebook. 

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