Know thyself

my people, know thyself

my siblings, know thy history

cherish your sacred weapon

minds of havoc

challenge

that which binds us animal

haters of our own existence

Know ye not our forebears?

Mighty and sound

Eyes cast towards the heavens

Deliverance bestowed on connected ones

open to spiritual awakening

numbness protests its dismissal

discontentment follows after

grasp its neck

wrangle out life’s fulfillment

During Black History Month, this blog will honor people who demonstrated critical elements of the Black / African experience with commemorative poems. This poem pays homage to Carter G. Woodson, second African-American to graduate harvard, grandfather of Black History, and proponent of independent Black education. Woodoson’s essay Mis-Education of a Negro was years ahead of its time and is still salient today – a must-read for any Black scholar.