They Are Me

by Jason Kendrick

For himself and perhaps his
people. . . one day

As the journey begins to what appears
as inevitable dismay
To fall, rise, fall again
To always continue to walk the right way

In an environment. . . as foreign to him
As Russia is to the United States

Advancing, with past visions. . . he goes

I go

I carry my spirit's ancestry
with me eternally. They walk
with me, protect me
They are me, I feel their presence

My rulers of the African continent

Queen Amina of Zaria 1588-1589 A.D.
Queen Makeda of Sheba 960 B.C.
Pharaoh of Egypt Thutmouse III 1504-1450 B.C.
King Manoa Kan Kan Mussa of Mali 1312-1337 A.D.

They are me
I feel their presence

The ancestors truly responsible
for Western Civilization
They are me
I feel their presence

The bodies of deep ebony and eyes
of fire who lay entrapped in a
nautical craft of deterioration,
depression, and disorientation
They are me
I feel their presence

Those beaten, lynched, murdered,
obliterated because of disbelief
in Eurocentric ideals

They are me I feel their presence

To my brothers and sisters
deleted from the pages of history
to allow me to believe Europeans
were responsible for the discovery
of a land mass of alleged freedom,
justice, inalienable rights, and
equality. . .
concepts which obviously
exclude me

All are me

I feel their presence

Attempting to attain these ideals
. . . our civil rights. Rosa Parks,
Malcolm X, Medgar Evers, a man
called King, and the countless
number of unknown heroes and
heroines of the movement
All are me
I feel their presence

The brothers and sisters of
South Africa denied the right
to be human beings because of
pigmentation
All are Me
I feel their presence

My father, my brother, and my son
My mother, my sister, my daughter

Trials and tribulations
Tragedy and triumph
Set me free
Within myself
For all are me
I feel their presence

Table of Contents

This magazine is produced by the Write Place
and is funded through a St. Cloud State University
(St. Cloud, Minnesota) Cultural Diversity Committee allocation.
Contributors retain all rights to their work.

Last update: 11 May 2000

URL: http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/kaleidoscope/volume1/theyareme.html

[ Staff | Submission Guidelines]