#Americans #Blacks
In the Quarter of the Negroes Where the doors are doors of paper Dust of dingy atoms Blows a scratchy sound. Amorphous jack—o’—Lanterns caper
To fling my arms wide In some place of the sun, To whirl and to dance Till the white day is done. Then rest at cool evening
How quiet It is in this sick room Where on the bed A silent woman lies between two lo… Life and Death,
When the old junk man Death Comes to gather up our bodies And toss them into the sack of obl… I wonder if he will find The corpse of a white multi—millio…
I catch the pattern Of your silence Before you speak I do not need To hear a word.
My old man’s a white old man And my old mother’s black. If ever I cursed my white old man I take my curses back. If ever I cursed my black old mot…
It would be nice In any case, To someday meet you Face to face Walking down
Night funeral In Harlem: Where did they get Them two fine cars? Insurance man, he did not pay—
My name is Johnson— Madam Alberta K. The Madam stands for business. I’m smart that way. I had a
I’ve known rivers: I’ve known rivers ancient as the w… My soul has grown deep like the ri… I bathed in the Euphrates when da… I built my hut near the Congo and…
We passed their graves: The dead men there, Winners or losers, Did not care. In the dark
You and your whole race. Look down upon the town in which y… And be ashamed. Look down upon white folks And upon yourselves
Remember The days of bondage— And remembering— Do not stand still. Go to the highest hill
The night is beautiful, So the faces of my people. The stars are beautiful, So the eyes of my people. Beautiful, also, is the sun.
I take my dreams and make of them… and a round fountain with a beauti… And a song with a broken heart and… Do you understand my dreams? Sometimes you say you do,
