My fresh ink represents going back to your roots But they could never imagine how hard that is When a tattoo begins to itch It represents the coming permanence As I travel back to the root of the diaspora To the castles that started it all Cape Coast Castle: A Seat of Government Built on…
A mí mamita le decían la reina My great-grandmother would smile with all her teeth Let out a laugh that everyone still remembers Dicen que cocinaba como no te imaginás And she’d wear dresses with flowers and sunbeams on them Wearing them with a flare like only a dark-skinned woman could Yes A mí mamita…
Speakers off tonight Turn off your headlights tonight Don’t drive the road to slow Don’t look too close tonight My body is a vessel for stories When I was little Every night before bed my mother would read me Myths and legends hailing from West Africa The adventures of Anansi Stories of little girls and…
Home lies in the wrinkles on the corner of my father’s eyes, In the tremor and resonance of his quaking belly in response to his own jokes. It shines and captivates through my mother’s smile, Protests in the deep caramel tone of her arms that nursed me. Minutes and hours of commodified work, Entire revolutions…
The red is the love of the poor, And the hatred of the rich. The crunches are the voices of the uneducated and the unashamed. The smacking of lips is the joy of being selfish enough to love oneself. The severe smell cuts through The false odors awakening the senses. The powder slowly forges a…