African American

Location

Bronx, New York
United States
40° 51' 0" N, 73° 52' 0.0012" W

I am an American
For my blood helped build this country
It was this blood that grew crops and
weaved the clothes on the moon's back
The moon would be nothing
without the sun
to graze it's face
This country would be nothing
without Afrikan bones
to hold up its foundation
This country would be nothing
without black skin to line the pavements
...you didn't know you are stepping on my history...
This country would be nothing without Africa
So yes I am an American
But I am a decendant of African first.

Comments

jwiener

Our heritage and our backgrounds make us who we are, and it's wonderful that you can write a poem about how you are proud of who you are descended from.

Imani Sophia

Thanks jwiener!

Eunoia

Good, I like it. You got the strength the power.

I like how you are personal with it.

One question: what does clothes on the moons back mean?

 

Also the last line should be Africa not African. We would be nowhere without Africa....Maybe you can add about what is happening in africa right now? did Africans make the pavements?  i didn't know, I knew we they made the railroads.

. I like your comparison with the moon and how you close it. I suggest that you go deeper, because I think you are just 

 

skimming the surface of the emotion of the africans who came, the blood  that ran, the salt crystals leaking from the eyes, the whips, the torture. the fight, the determination, the anger. Keep it up! Thanks for the comment!

Imani Sophia

Thanks for the comments,
Sorry about the confusion though, I wrote this poem when I was a high school freshman. I was going along the lines of the suppressors in general in the line with the moon and the sun being the blacks that labored underneath sun during slavery times

upnorthdavid

Love the repetition beginning and end to tie it together, keep writing!

Imani Sophia

I haven't looked at this poem--or any other poem--in years. It was written during the beta testing of this website lol

Thanks you for the comment that has taken me back to my teenage years of writing and thank you for the encouraging words upnorthdavid! 

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