I LIVE IN THE MOUTH OF HISTORY
i live in the mouth of history
but wish that civilization would spit me out
modernity's split tongue lies, progress' white teeth bite
& the ancient seed of my blackness is never swallowed
though my weary bones are cracked and tender marrow sucked
i live in the belly of genocide
the acid of injustice daily eating away at my gentleness
separating me into useful proteins, vitamins & invaluable
human fibers which nourish the blood of a body which rejects
the bulk of my being & shits me out of the ass of a demented society
which self righteously accuses me of smelling up the place
i live for the day when i can wake up
without voices of morality telling me to hate being who i am
without images of consumption suggesting the brightest life is white
without broadcasts of commercialism prostituting my womanself
without sirens of authority seeking to incarcerate black male genitalia
without bullets of unfriendly fire lacerating the social air
i live for the day when i can wake up
& see morning smiles blackening my mirror
& caress the intimate nudity of all whom i love
& inhale a bouquet of communal unity aromas
& hear a liturgy of love & respect chanted every hour
& taste tomorrow in all its bittersweet complexity
i live for that day & love the night
even as a prisoner in the skin of humanity
whether as ancestor, advocate or spirit unborn
i was, am and will continue to be
a dangerous rock in the mouth of this century's history
—kalamu ya salaam